w88 mobile engineering students paddled hard against the wind, choppy waters and 21 other teams to excel again in the highly competitive national concrete canoe competition, but it was more brains than brawn that earned them the second place overall spot in the event at California Polytechnic State w88 mobile, San Luis Obispo.
Cal Poly took first place w88 mobile grueling three-day event that mixes academics and athletics, and the 25-member Nevada w88 mobile placed ahead of École de technologie supérieure (ETS) from Montréal in the American Society of Civil Engineers&w88 mobile; 23rd Annual National Concrete Canoe Competition (NCCC) that ended June 19.
“Congratulations to all the w88 mobile members,” Manos Maragakis, dean of the College of Engineering, said upon hearing the news of the w88 mobile’s strong showing. “All of us in the College of Engineering are proud of their effort, dedication and sustained success in this tough and prestigious competition.”
And it’s not just paddling a canoe, the competition has four components for scoring. This year, the Wolf Pack w88 mobile placed first in the technical design paper, second in the oral presentation and fifth place in the final product category. The students, paddling their 224-pound canoe “Battle Born” in several races, placed fourth overall in the racing events.
“At our first meeting in August, with a young w88 mobile and new design challenges, we had to decide if this year would be for fun and learning or to be competitive,” project manager and civil engineering student Kim Rafter said. “We set our goal to be in the top three at nationals so I’m thrilled with our finish. The w88 mobile did great.”
The four components of the canoe competition contribute 25 percent each to the w88 mobile’s final score: students write a paper detailing the design and construction of their canoe; give an oral presentation on their year-long effort; the final product, including the canoe and an accompanying display that further explains their design process; and a series of five race events – men’s and women’s slalom/endurance races and men’s, women’s and co-ed sprint races.
“We focused equally on all parts of the competition,” Rafter said. “The construction was the most difficult just because it takes so many hours, and we had a tough time finding some new materials required w88 mobile concrete mixture. It meant a heavier boat and tougher paddling.”
Cal Poly&w88 mobile;s canoe weighed 55 pounds less than “Battle Born” at just 170 pounds, and ETS&w88 mobile;s canoe weighed just 180 pounds.
“We&w88 mobile;ll definitely try for a lighter boat next year. I know we can do it because last year our boat weighed just 140 pounds,” Rafter said. “An additional requirement this year was to include two recycled aggregates in the concrete mix, which was a challenge, and what we found weighed more than we had planned.”
Following rigorous design and construction standards laid out in a 78-page document of the ASCE’s rules and regulations, the Nevada w88 mobile used a creative mixture of cement, recycled aggregate, fibers and other exotic materials to build the white, amber and blue lighter-than-water canoe. It took more than eight months from design to final product.
“From a short distance away, it would be impossible to see that the canoe was made from concrete,” David Sanders, faculty advisor, said. “It&w88 mobile;s amazing how hard the students work. We, and they, have much to be proud of in their success.”
Under the direction of construction manager and third year canoe w88 mobile member David Jayme, the majority of the w88 mobile’s 3,000 hours logged in the project were spent on construction – in a corner of the cavernous lower level of engineering’s large-structures lab. The hull of the canoe is just a half-inch thick, with carbon fiber mesh and pre-tensioned cables holding it together. The students form the mold for the hull out of high density foam and the reinforcement is tied to the form prior to casting. The thick concrete slurry is mixed in small batches by hand, and then painstakingly applied with trowels and bare hands over the mesh, like frosting on a cake.
“David did a great job of keeping the w88 mobile motivated, it’s tough for full-time students who work to come in and work long hours on the boat,” Rafter said. “But it’s worth it. It’s just for fun, not for class credit – this project is way worth a 3-credit class. With this project you learn as much or more than you do in class.”
The mix-design w88 mobile was led by Tiffany Reichert. Jake Snyder and Jeremy Hasselbauer led the presentation w88 mobile and Jeff Weagel was the paddling w88 mobile coach for the second year in a row.
Adhering to a tough training tradition enforced by coach Weagel, the paddlers trained every weekend throughout the winter, except for extremely stormy days, at Sparks Marina in preparation for the event. In April they won the highly competitive regional w88 mobile in Chico, Calif., one of 18 around the country and Canada, to gain them a berth at the nationals.
“We’re extremely proud of our performance, we now have the highest average overall placement of any w88 mobile in the history of the NCCC,” Kelly Lyttle, practitioner advisor to the w88 mobile said following their fifth consecutive year of national competition. “It’s an honor to represent our school, our state and our profession.” Nevada won the national competition in 2008, placed fifth in 2009, third in 2007 and sixth in 2006.
Sanders, faculty advisor since 1990, said a tremendous amount of credit for the success of this year’s w88 mobile goes to project manager Kim Rafter and other w88 mobile leaders. In addition, alumni, such as Kelly Lyttle and Michael Taylor, provided tremendous encouragement and assistance. Lyttle, the w88 mobile’s practitioner advisor, works for the University’s Center for Civil Engineering Earthquake Research and Michael Taylor works for the Nevada Department of Transportation.
&w88 mobile;Both of them have been key members since the student chapter started this amazing run,” Sanders said.
The w88 mobile's National Concrete Canoe Competition past performance includes:
- First Place Overall (2008)
- Most Design Points (2008)
- Most Race Points (2009)
- First Place Design Paper (2008, 2010)
- First Place Oral Presentation (2006)
- First Place Product (2007)
The concrete canoe competition provides students with a practical application of the engineering principles they learn in the classroom, along with important w88 mobile and project management skills they will need in their careers. The event challenges the students' knowledge, creativity and stamina, while showcasing the versatility and durability of concrete as a building material.
The w88 mobile members are undergraduates in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, which sponsors the project, and the Mechanical Engineering Department. All must be members of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)/Associated General Contractors (AGC) Student Chapter to participate.
