As we reported to you a week ago, lowly thieves struck yet again and took something that belonged to future hot rodders and machinists that participate in Hot Rodders of Tomorrow (HROT). HROT is a nationwide competition held at major car shows and events where high school students compete for scholarship prizes by tearing down and engine and rebuilding it in an amazingly short time. The competition assimilates what is done at drag races, where the engine is torn down and rebuilt between rounds.

The West Coast truck and trailer that housed the tools, parts, and equipment for these competitions was stolen, and thus far only the trailer has been found – but it was stripped. It was left abandoned in the Beaumont, California, area with lots of damage and just about everything was stolen except some counters and flooring. The 2001 GMC Topkick C7500 that was used to haul the trailer is still missing, the bright red paint and graphics are a definite standout and would be easily recognized.

We’re asking everyone reading this to help get the word out and share the story, because stealing is bad enough but stealing dreams from teenagers is the lowest. These 770+ kids, on 110 teams across this nation are competing for more than $2.5 million in scholarships to various trade schools such as Ohio Technical College (OTC), University of Northwestern Ohio (UNOH), and School of Automotive Machinists (SAM).

The competitions are at all the major gearhead events such as Goodguys Nationals, Race & Performance Expo, Edelbrock‘s car shows, Carlisle, PRI, SEMA, and many more venues. These kids work hard, and HROT is a non-profit organization that teaches kids the skills and discipline to become a professional engine builder and helps keep them off the streets in in a garage doing gearhead things.

From the HROT Facebook page, they ask us all: “Please pray for us, and keep on the look out for our Truck. Thank you for all your encouragement over the last week. We all volunteer to help these students out, and are not going to give up because of a few bad people.”

Please spread the word and let’s all help restore some dreams here and get these kids back to doing what they love to do: rebuild engines. Contact the local authorities if you have any information, or you can get in touch with the Hot Rodders of Tomorrow through their website.