Northeast Regional Concrete Canoe Competition held at UNH

This Friday and Saturday UNH hosted the ASCE Northeastern Regional Concrete Canoe Competition. Eleven schools competed for the honor of representing their region at the National Competition to be held this summer in Las Vegas. The competition includes a design report, graphic display, oral presentation, scoring of the aesthetics and workmanship of the canoe, and finally the race competitions.

Schools included Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), Wentworth Institute of Technology (Wentworth), Northeastern University (Northeastern), University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth (Dartmouth), University of Rhode Island (URI), University of New Haven (New Haven), University of Massachusetts-Amherst (Amherst), University of New Hampshire (UNH), University of Massachusetts-Lowell (Lowell), University of Maine (Maine), and Universite Laval (Laval) .

Anyone who has proposed on a qualifications-based selection would have a good idea on the expectations for the design report. There are very specific rules on the page limitations, order, and specifications. Reports are rated based upon the executive summary,  structural analysis, test and development, construction, project management, sustainability, innovation, concrete mix design, and the overall report presentation.

Graphic displays included a cross section of the boat and a product display. These were graded based upon a list of specific items and displaying them with a marketing-style flair. The schools generally wove a common theme throughout the materials including the boat name, display, exterior finish of the boat and written and oral presentations.

Oral presentations were graded on the performance of the presenters, quality of the presentation, and ability of the presenters to answer questions from the judging panel.

 To provide better understanding of the competition, it is important to know the diversity of the entries, and the thousands of hours dedicated to these projects. Laval was a top five finisher in last year's national competition. They are dominant in all facets of the competition. From the polar bear supporting their canoe, igloo-shaped display, dog sledding scene inside the canoe, and expert canoeing skills, they set the bar for the Northeast competition. Unique to the competition is their shot-crete technique using a specially designed applicator, allowing them to meet a 1/2" hull thickness. They had the lightest canoe while maintaining one of the strongest mix designs.

 Lowell wove into this year's canoe a theme of their city's strong industrial roots. The picture shows their canoe support fashioned in the style of their historic mill districts and the art on the canoe matching the cogs that ran their machinery. With Laval's top five finish in the previous year's national competition, the rules allow for a second competitor to also attend the nationals from the Northern region. Lowell early in the competition put in their bid for one of those coveted two slots to Nationals, but with a strong field, it was all going to come down to the critical races which make up 25% of the overall score.

Maine has a history of strong showings in the Northeastern region. This year their boat performed particularly well on the water. They also had the most dominant cheering section providing renditions of school songs as their paddlers negotiated the courses. It is only natural to see Maine and UNH compete against each other as they have healthy rivalries in almost every other competition and sporting event held within the region. Both schools were part of some of the earliest competitions where the concrete canoes actually races down river courses to determine the winner.

New Haven came forward with a strong entry. With an attractive boat and an enthusiastic young team the "other UNH" came to New Hampshire to showcase their hard work. They were one of a number of younger teams pushing the early leaders with strong showings in the earlier events and some new design modifications to the ribs to provide support when paddling. Their final position was also going to be determined by the race events. In the Northeast where the climate makes canoe conditioning and practice a event that takes considerable planning, the amount of time spent practicing, especially in make quick, tight turns the difference between winning and losing a race and even a competition.

Northeastern came out of the gate strong with a boat dedicated to Boston History. The boat finish, displays and presentation included recognition of the Freedom Trail and included a working cannon. With a strong showing entering the races, it appeared certain that they would be in the thick of the competition for the slots to Nationals until the first race event when tragedy struck. On the home stretch, the boat broke in the middle sending both paddlers into the shallow water. Competitors to the end, they recovered the severed boat and went to work trying to reconnect and patch the boat. Through hard work and quick thinking they were able to repair the cano and managed to go through a mandatory dunk test where a canoe has to show that even fully submerged it will still float. This test was passed, but the boat ultimately broke again before re-entering competition. 

Dartmouth was looking to build on some top five performances in 2008 and 2009. With a solid performance through the early challenges they pushed the leaders and like many others came down to the races. Mixing in some leaders from the junior class, they are looking to improve continuity within the program.                                                                                            

This year UNH was the host school as well as a competitor. With some bad luck earlier in the year, there was a period of time when it appeared that the host would not field a boat in their own event. The hard work of the canoe committee ultimate won out preparing a solid entry and making a strong showing on the water. With eleven competitors it was necessary to run three heats and a final race for four of the events. UNH earned their way to two of the four finals. One of the closest battles of the day occurred when UNH secured a third place finish in one of the finals by only 1/4 of a second. UNH distinguished themselves as a solid competitor and a first class host.

URI provided one of the most impressive visual demonstrations with a display and canoe art that were both creative and artistic. A series of pictures would be needed to truly appreciate the graphics on the canoe. The theme was Ramses the Great as one of the world's master builders with Egyptian symbolism throughout their displays, presentations, and canoe. They were quickly one of the earlier favorites, but with the strong competition, had to wait for the races to determine who would be going to Nationals.

Wentworth fielded a solid entry ready to challenge the other schools. After competing in the Nationals as recent as 2005, the last few years have included a 9th and 10th regional finish. This year's entry was dedicated to the USS Constitution for the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812. This year's canoe included a new hull design and a new approach to creating the molds.

All of these changes from previous designs kept them in the heart of the pack with the final order being decided during the race events.

WPI was one of the younger programs that showed a lot of heart. Some of the disadvantages to the younger programs or programs where there has been a break in continuity are the number of rules that include height of lettering, abbreviations, and a number of seemingly mundane rules that come with the program. Experience helps clarify the rules while younger programs often learn the hard way with small deductions throughout the process.

Amherst is a younger team with a lot of enthusiasm. After struggling for the last few years, this year's team stepped away from previous construction methods to chart a new course. Their 9 Million Carat entry payed homage to a glitch where their scale was stuck in the carat unit mode making it necessary to make some odd conversions to keep their project moving. Construction of the canoes is a complex process where the teams encounter many unanticipated problems and require quick thinking to return to a normal schedule. All of this while trying to complete one of the more challenging undergraduate fields of study, Civil Engineering.

  

With all the work done, all the judging complete, and the races concluded, it all came down to the final announcement. Tony Puntin, former regional ASCE Governor and current ASCE National Board member, further built the suspense with a brief discussion about the benefits of ASCE and the importance of younger engineers to continue as members as a vital tool in their career development.

UNH ASCE Student president Anabelle Allen and Head Judge Jeff Klein ended the suspense with the announcement of the top three teams and the final results. With an incredible performance, Laval University retained its standing as the leader of the Northeast Region. In a very tight battle the University of Massachusetts at Lowell beat out the University of Rhode Island to earn the second coveted spot to the National Competition. Congratulations to our regional winners and thanks to all of the competitors for such a strong field. Final congratulations to UNH for hosting an exceptional competition with a lot of fun for all of the competitors and spectators.