Concrete canoe regional competition held locally this year

University of Nevada, Reno proud to host annual series of engineering competitions on campus and the Sparks Marina

April 07, 2016
Students hang out at lake during practice for canoe event

University of Nevada, Reno students socialize while waiting for their turn at paddling practice in anticipation of the Concrete Canoe Competition April 9 at the Sparks Marina. Photo by Matthew Ravaglioli, University of Nevada, Reno.

Concrete canoe regional competition held locally this year

University of Nevada, Reno proud to host annual series of engineering competitions on campus and the Sparks Marina

April 07, 2016

University of Nevada, Reno students socialize while waiting for their turn at paddling practice in anticipation of the Concrete Canoe Competition April 9 at the Sparks Marina. Photo by Matthew Ravaglioli, University of Nevada, Reno.

Students hang out at lake during practice for canoe event

University of Nevada, Reno students socialize while waiting for their turn at paddling practice in anticipation of the Concrete Canoe Competition April 9 at the Sparks Marina. Photo by Matthew Ravaglioli, University of Nevada, Reno.

Excited to continue a tradition of victory, engineering students from the University of Nevada, Reno are ready for the American Society of Civil Engineers Mid-Pacific Conference and the concrete canoe races April 7-9.

"We are very proud of the hard work and effort our students put into the Mid-Pac competitions each year," Kelly Doyle, program coordinator for the University's Center for Civil Engineering Earthquake Research, said. "The conference is a lot of fun and the students learn so much throughout the process."

The conference is hosted this year by the University, with the canoe events at the Sparks Marina. The University's concrete canoe team has a formidable record, earning one of the top five spots every year since 2007 at the ASCE National Concrete Canoe Competition.

Thursday evening teams meet for a general participant assembly at the Silver Legacy Casino Resort. On Friday morning at 7 a.m. canoe teams begin setting up canoes on the lawn in front of the Mathewson-IGT Knowledge Center on campus for viewing and judging at 9 a.m. Various competitions, including steel bridge building and water treatment, will be held during this time at the Lawlor Events Center.

The ASCE Concrete Canoe Competition is held Saturday, with set up at 7 a.m. and races at 9 a.m. There will be a dunk test to rate the buoyancy of the crafts before the races and fun mini games periodically in-between races.

Canoe teams are judged in four categories, including a technical design paper, oral presentation, final product - covering aesthetics, buoyancy and durability - and the races. The race portion includes five events: men's and women's endurance, men's and woman's sprint and co-ed sprint. At the national competition, teams win $5,000, $2,500 and $1,500 scholarships for first, second and third place.

Along with the University of Nevada, Reno, 15 universities are in the Mid-Pacific region, some of which include the University of California, Davis; Tongji University in China; Cal State University, Fresno and arch canoe rivals University of California, Berkeley.

April 07, 2016

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