The Triumph of 2008

It all started with a pulse prompting pour. We all had our skepticism about using a two mold method after a fruitless 2007. But the day of casting came and went nearly right to plan, the combination of our mix and dual-mold casting method worked. Not perfectly we would come to learn, but it made us a boat. A boat in 6 minutes (after concrete prep), an actual record. Here's the video we cut together to play besides our presentation in the competition.



The competition on our regional level consists schools from Pennsylvania, Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland. The overall winner is determined from a combination of the races, the final product, the presentation, and the technical report. At Lafayette, in 2008, Drexel took first place in the races, technical report, presentation and product display. She was bridesmaid to the chosen prettiest boat, but our Big Bertha was all we needed. Perhaps maybe a bit of teamwork to lift her 300 lbs self.



With that work came the Overall First Place and an entrance into the National Competition of Concrete Canoe. Only one problem, our boat broke on the way home.



There's Kyle inspecting the full blown break. The transport box broke and the boat cantilevered and broke in tension. A most disappointing night's end after a successful day.

We asked the National board politely to allow us to rebuild, they nicely agreed, at 50% product point reduction, citing durability. Quite the setback heading into a competition we fought real hard to get to, but they were more or less right about the durability issue.

So we did it. We built another canoe the same way we did the first time. It is of my (Greg) personal belief that the molds were warped a bit during the first boat's curing, and that the boat's volume increased. However, it worked again. We refitted our coffin/trailer combo to be invincible and set out for Montreal. Yes, Montreal is not quite in our nation per say, but Nationals was in fact held there. Easily my favorite Canadian city, and home to the Montreal Olympic Basin which played host to our races. The basin is 2 kilometers long, and for those keeping track at home, that's about 1.2 miles long.



Nationals is an intimidating situation to be behind schedule. Having to make another boat kept us in the lab when we had planned to better our presentation. Although the pour and cast was even faster the second time, putting the team decals and sealing the boat meant unexpected time in the lab. However we got our act together, put a respectable display and presentation together and a great report. We did not hold up well with the deduction and we barely beat out the median of the pack. Which is quite respectable considering the struggle to get there. Our sundae-topping cherry was the Tony P. Chrest Award for Innovation. We're quite glad someone noticed that we've got this down to a renewable art form.

Mixing 2009's Tests!

Sunday we'll be mixing our first round of test batches. I'll have to discuss with the others on how much we can share, but I will surely tell you, there will be concrete.

Did I mention how fashionable we are? Look at Pat's sweet boots/longsocks/shorts combo and my uber fashionable concrete hands.

Greg

Midcember Update

Today's attendance: Ali Rehemtulla, Alan Fody, Greg Scott, Aga Sidarta, Pat Perhosky, Nicholas Simmons
Work: Aggregate Testing

This falls been full of trials and tribulations for Concrete Canoe, but things are moving along and looking well. It's been a tough transition to new project managers seeing that the Kyle Rutherford regime has come to an end. I can't say enough good things about him now that I've got a share of the lead and realize there's just far too much to do for one person, especially in senior year at Drexel University. This year Patrick Perhosky and myself, Greg Scott are partners as Project Managers.

So far this fall it's been all networking on my part, hunting down materials and designs and sponsors. Pat's been the wizard behind the curtain concocting up secret concrete mixes that will blow your mind, or at least hurt your toe if you drop a cylinder.

This year is all about being Green, with the ideal being something near LEED approval. That, of course, is competition wide. Concrete by nature is not environmentally friendly, as our advisor Dr. Martin explained in class a few weeks ago, "The art of making concrete is essentially taking cement and boiling the CO2 out and bam, a man made rock." I'm afraid I have to keep many details close to the vest in fears of our rival schools. But I will say that between bicycles and recycled concrete ingredients, we've got a good thing going on.


Greg

Recent History

As per background history for this lovely team I'm afraid I can't go back very far. But I sure can tell you about the last couple years. We've been branching out into new methods of concrete casting and concrete mixing, widening our horizons and trying out crazy things. Two years ago, our methods left us with a boat so full of voids that we could not compete. Last year, our brilliant complex but yet simple method led to a victory at Regionals, and the Tony P. Chrest Innovation award at the 21st Annual ASCE National Competition of Concrete Canoe. ASCE being the American Society of Civil Engineers. "Presented in Recognition of Superior and Creative use of Technology and Materials in the Construction of a Concrete Canoe" reads the plaque. Flattering for sure, but this year we want it all. Follow along on this blog, as I attempt to explain the process of building our beautiful oxymoron.


Greg

The Birth of Canoe Blog

Amidst today's aggregate testing and lab clean up, the conversation turned to dirt that can be dug on everyone through the internet. Easily half of us there have had a livejournal or xanga or some early workings of a blog in high school, and let's not talk about myspace or facebook. But a blog with an actual purpose, now that's something. Last year we tried to set up an online website/forum, but it all got left behind when the real work started in the lab. This year, I propose a blog, for everyone to read and those in charge of canoe to write.

Sponsors, faculty, students, family, friends, people that just hit "next blog" and randomly came here, and anyone I've left out, this blog is specifically about Drexel Concrete Canoe.


Greg