I would be somewhat surprised if our town of Eureka ever hosted concrete canoe races before last week. Such an event was certainly new to me. If you are a civil engineer or know someone who is, you quite likely are up on this. I've learned that building a concrete canoe and entering competition with them is part of the curriculum for CE's. Sponsored by the American Society of Civil Engineers, local competitions lead to national competitions and some university engineering department is awarded the top prize in canoe races featuring 2 man, 2 woman & 4 person co-ed races. Perhaps there's more, but hey, I'm still learning.
Back to Eureka. About 17 university engineering departments from the "Great Lakes" conference brought their canoes to Eureka Lake for a day of races. Some assortment of winners from about 18 regions across the US will advance to the national finals held this year at University of Nevada, Reno.
One of the most interesting aspects of the 84 pages of regulations for designing, building and racing a concrete canoe is that the boat must be buoyant after it is completely filled with water. There is lots more interesting stuff but you'll need to check out the ASCE website if you would like to see it.
Univ of IL carries their boat to it's "dry-dock" after a race.
Dedicated trailer for the concrete boats. Serious!!
Northwestern U
In action. Slalom races perhaps?
I wondered about a concrete boat taped together. But apparently if you boat doesn't float after being filled with water you get deduction of points then you can modify the boat with ballast. Or something like that. Correct me if I'm wrong Andy.
And of course, the BANANA BOAT
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