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| The Wedge Concrete Canoe team from Cal Poly Pomona. |
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| Jason Wolf, Michael Thompson and Adam Wilson load the canoe entry into its trailer. |
The Cal Poly Pomona American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Concrete Canoe Team will make a splash at the 20th annual ASCE National Concrete Canoe Competition in Seattle from June 14-16.
The university earned a spot in the prestigious contest after finishing second in the Pacific Southwest Regional held on April 12-14.
Each spring, engineering students compete in the challenging event. The competition allows participants to demonstrate their creativity and engineering skills.
Separated into four components, the competition includes an oral presentation, design paper, product evaluation and canoe race. Constructing the canoe is only half the battle for participants. In addition, each entry is evaluated based on its design, speed, floating ability and overall performance.
“The concrete canoe competition is the most demanding and intense event at the ASCE regional conference,” said Michael Thompson, Cal Poly Pomona concrete canoe team co-captain. “Success in the competition takes dedication, team work and determination.”
More than 200 teams nationwide vie for a spot in the annual event, with only the top contenders in each conference qualifying for nationals.
In 2005, the Cal Poly Pomona team won the regional competition for the second year in a row and placed in the national competition. Once there, the team earned their highest ranking at the national level after finishing eighth.
To be competitive, this year the team made a year-long commitment to the hands-on project. Comprised of 10 civil engineering students, the team will compete against 22 other top engineering schools.