The University of Akron Finishes First Overall at HPVC East

June 3, 2016

The University of Akron’s entry Klokan not only finished first overall at the 2016 HPVC East in Athens, Ohio, it also placed first in the innovation and women’s speed categories and the endurance race and finished second place in the men’s speed category.

Ohio’s University of Akron, the team that placed second overall at the ASME Human Powered Vehicle West Challenge (HPVC West) in California in late April, climbed a notch to win first place overall at the HPVC East Challenge, which was held last month in Athens, Ohio.

Approximately 35 student teams from universities in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico faced off at the ASME competition, which was held from May 13 to 15 at Ohio University. The three-day event consisted of design and innovation presentations on Friday, followed by the men’s and women’s drag race matches on Saturday. The final HPVC East event, a two-and-a-half hour endurance race, took place on Sunday.

The team from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology (foreground) was another big winner at the 2016 HPVC East, taking second place overall at HPVC East, first place in the design and men’s speed categories, second in the women’s drag race speed event, and third in the innovation category.

Besides being named the overall winner of the competition, the team from the University of Akron’s entry Klokan also placed first in the innovation and women’s speed categories and the endurance race. The vehicle — which was constructed of aluminum, carbon fiber and plastic sheeting and weighed just over 50 pounds — took second place in the men’s speed category.

Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, a regular top contender at the HPVC competitions, climbed back into the Top 3 overall following a disappointing showing at HPVC West. Rose-Hulman’s Dakuwaqa took second place overall at HPVC East, and placed first in the design and men’s speed categories. The team also placed second in the women’s speed race and third in the innovation category.

Approximately 35 student teams competed at the HPVC East event, which was held from May 13 to 15 at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio.

The team representing the event’s host school, Ohio University, finished third overall with its entry, El Gato 2.0. The team, which only began participating in the Human Powered Vehicle Challenge last year, also took third place in the women’s drag race and the endurance race with El Gato 2.0.

Other teams receiving awards at HPVC East included Ohio Northern University, whose entry The Third Wheel placed second in the design and innovation categories; Missouri University of Science and Technology, which finished second in the endurance event and third in the men’s speed race with its vehicle B-24; and the University of Toronto, whose vehicle Cyclone placed third in the design category.

To view the entire list of winners at HPVC East, visit https://community.asme.org/hpvc/w/wiki/11346.results.aspx#2016-Results-East. For more information on the ASME Human Powered Vehicle Competition program, visit www.asme.org/events/competitions/human-powered-vehicle-challenge-(hpvc).