This year, eight Arrowhead High School seniors competed in the first round of the Technicians of Tomorrow (TOT) competition sponsored by the Automobile Dealers Association of Mega Milwaukee (ADAMM).

On December 16, Mr. Eric Varrelmann sent his top eight seniors from his Advanced Auto class to take a written test at the ADAMM headquarters. His top students this year were Matt Fink, Brad Kramer, Brad Moore, Kyle Miller, Garrett Gosh, Erik Bergersen, Dave Wrobbel, and Josh Roberts.

“This was the first round of the TOT competition,” stated Varrelmann. “[They took] the same test I did to become a Certified Master Mechanic; [it’s] a very difficult test.”

After the first round of competition, the top 2 seniors from each competing school were chosen to move on. On February 9, Matt Fink and Brad Kramer will compete in the state hands-on competition at MATC South Campus. If they win the state competition, not only will they receive an all-expense paid trip to New York City for the national competition, but they’ll also receive scholarship money, tools, and be deemed state champs.



For the competition on February 9, Fink and Kramer will be working with 2005 Ford Escapes. The judges will place “bugs” in the vehicles so certain things won’t work.

“The vehicle will not crank over. When it’s repaired to crank over, it will not start. When repaired to start, it will not run smoothly,” Varrelmann explains. Other things such as lights not working or loose wheels can be bugged as well. Basically, the team that finishes first with the most accurate repairs will win.

Last year, Zach Durnford and Jason Stangler, both graduated AHS students, won the state competition and traveled to nationals in New York City. There, they placed 14th in the nation and won thousands of dollars worth of tools along with full scholarships.

So, what exactly do you need to even qualify for this competition?

“You need to be an auto student, one of the best. You must also be very good at taking written tests and actually fixing cars,” tells Varrelmann.

When asked what the future plans for this competition are, Varrelmann said, “We plan to compete each year in this competition. In fact, there is another competition beginning on February 16th which is sponsored by Ford and AAA.”

Whatever future plans may be, we all wish Mike Fink and Brad Kramer the best of luck at the upcoming competition.