Drexel’s Concrete Canoe team is making waves again this year. The team has been busy preparing for another regional competition. The annual ASCE Mid-Atlantic Concrete Canoe competition will be hosted by Penn State University, University Park on April 10 – 12, 2015. Last year’s team finished 1st overall and made it to the National Competition. This year’s team is hoping to repeat a successful performance and continue a long history of Drexel participation in these competitions. The top team at each regional competition will be invited to compete in the ASCE National Concrete Canoe Competition in June at Clemson University.
Drexel’s overall presentation theme is titled “Under Construction” and the name of the boat is “Close Out.” “Close Out” was chosen to signify the milestones that the team has accomplished as well as the challenges overcome in order to reach the end goal of a successful regional competition. In addition to constructing a water-worthy canoe that meets specific requirements, the team will also be judged on a presentation, a paper, a theme display, and overall final product.
Project Managers for the team are Colleen Hyde (Materials Science Engineering) and Alex Gagliardi (Mechanical Engineering). The Theme Manager is Santiago Uribe (Civil Engineering); the Mix Manager is Steve Kreeley (Civil Engineering); and the Paddling Manager is Mike Setaro (Civil Engineering). Joseph Martin, PhD, Professor in the Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering (CAEE) Department is the Faculty advisor. Last year’s Project Manager and Civil Engineering senior Chris Magruder is participating as an advisor this year.
The team generally meets twice a week in the evenings to work on the canoe. A few weeks ago the team had a successful ‘pour day’ constructing their canoe using a shotcrete method. For the third consecutive year, the team used this shotcrete method of spraying concrete onto an epoxy-coated mold. Over a three hour period, a twenty person team worked together to assemble the canoe in layers of concrete and fiberglass mesh. The next steps will be for the team to sand and stain the canoe and to prepare for other aspects of the competition.
The team looks forward to an exciting competition and intends to bring their best performance to Penn State in April.