MIAMI -- Some Miami-Dade County public school students are getting creative while going green as part of a national inventors challenge.

A class at Miami Coral Park Senior High is taking a new spin on renewable energy. Engineering students there are building a bike one tire, chain and bolt at a time. But don't expect to find the model in any bike store.

"It's very similar to a motorcycle in the sense that it has a motor and two wheels," said student Stephanie Vazquez. "All we have is a motor powered by solar panels, so there's no carbon footprint."

The solar bike, as the students call it, is part of a the class's bid to win the first annual School Inventors Challenge, a national competition sponsored by Popular Science Magazine. Vazquez explained how the invention works.

"The solar panel rolls up almost like a sleeping bag. You pull it out to charge it and roll it up when you're done," Vazquez said.

Vazquez said the goal is for the bike to go a maximum speed of 30 mph. She said the target audience is businesspeople who want to be eco-friendly and "work appropriate" while commuting to the job.

The students are using donations to build a prototype. They said they will work on their invention until June 30, when they will submit their creation to judges.

While the kinks are still being working out, the young inventors said their bike is the future.

Winners of the School Inventors Challenge will take home $5,000 worth of science equipment.