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STUDENTS TOP HUMAN-POWERED VEHICLE COMPETITION |
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April 22, 2009
GROVE CITY, Pa. – Grove City College engineering students topped all competitors in the 2009 American Society of Mechanical Engineers Human Powered Vehicle Challenge East contest April 17 through 19 in Philadelphia, Pa.
The team of eight students won first place overall in both the multi-rider and utility classes, and topped the multi-rider design, endurance and sprint events, as well as the utility design and endurance events. Their success earned seven trophies and $1,000 in prize money. It is just the second year Grove City students have competed in the challenge.
Students competing were: sophomore Tyler Baker of Perkasie, Pa.; sophomore Caleb Elwell of Woodstown, N.J.; sophomore Kate Balmer of Manheim, Pa.; senior Trisha Griffith of Meadville, Pa.; junior Joel Kenney of Beverly, Mass., sophomore Jonathan Ward of North East, Pa., sophomore Luke Harmon of Albany, Ore.; and sophomore Kevin King of Bel Air, Md.
The challenge, which was hosted by Drexel University, featured 27 teams from schools across the country, including Iowa State University, Arkansas State University, Missouri University of Science and Technology and Central Connecticut University. Teams also competed from India, Venezuela and Ecuador.
In the challenges, teams compete to design and build aerodynamic, highly engineered vehicles that can be used for everyday activities. Though some vehicles have achieved high speeds, the competition assigns great value to the elegance and ingenuity of the design, including presentation, practicality, safety and functionality.
The vehicles are judged on design, safety and performance. The first stage of the competition is the preparation of a comprehensive design report. The second part of the competition includes design presentation and performance events, where the vehicles race against one another in time trials, an endurance event and a utility course.
Dr. Mark Archibald, professor of engineering, commended the students’ hard work, particularly the underclassmen, in bringing the design concept to reality. It’s an opportunity for a number of them to get early real-world engineering experience, he said. “They’re seeing the practical application for engineering before they get to the classes.”
A reception honoring the team will be from 4 to 5 p.m. April 27 in the lobby of Hoyt Hall on campus.
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