School captures Americas Cup of civil engineering award for third year in a row

RENO, Nevada – For the third year in a row, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo has won the National Concrete Canoe Competition. After putting their academic and athletic skills to the test in a grueling three-day battle at the American Society of Civil Engineers’ 25th annual National Concrete Canoe Competition. The school’s win came in their canoe called Prospector in honor of the California Gold Rush.

Throughout the year, teams of civil engineering students from across the country and Canada logged thousands of hours researching, designing and constructing their concrete canoes in search of the winning combination of creativity, knowledge and teamwork. After coming out on top in regional competitions throughout the spring, the best and brightest from 22 top engineering schools matched wits and skills in the national finals.

The winning team receives a $5000 scholarship and a trophy. Second place team overall receives a $2500 scholarship and trophy, and the third-place team receives a $1,500 scholarship and a trophy.
The complete 2011 ranking is:

Rank – School
1st – California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
2nd – University Laval
3rd – Michigan Technological University
4th – University of Nevada, Reno
5th – University of Florida
6th – Ecole de technologie superieure
7th – California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
8th – University of Wisconsin, Madison
9th – Youngstown State University
10th – University of California, Berkeley
11th – University of Texas at Tyler
12th – University of Evansville
13th – University of Massachusetts, Lowell
14th – Clemson University
15th – Fairmont State University
16th – University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown
17th – University of Wisconsin-Platteville
18th – Utah State University
19th – Oregon State University
20th – Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
21st – Louisiana Tech University
22nd – Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

The competition is comprised of both academic and athletic events, and the scores are divided into four components which are each worth 25 percent of the team’s final score. Students write a paper detailing the design and construction of their canoe and then give an oral presentation on their year-long effort. They are also judged on their final product, the canoe, and their accompanying display, which further explains their design process. Finally, they put their canoe through the paces in a series of five race events—men’s and women’s slalom/endurance races and men’s, women’s and co-ed sprint races.