University of Central Florida Takes Top Honors at HPVC East

University of Central Florida Takes Top Honors at HPVC East University of Central Florida Takes Top Honors at HPVC East The team from the University of Central Florida and their human powered vehicle, Knightrike, were the overall winners of the ASME Human Powered Vehicle Challenge East competition, which was held in Orlando, Fla., earlier this month. In a dramatic turn of events at the ASME Human Powered Vehicle Challenge East earlier this month, the student team from the University of Central Florida unseated perennial favorites Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology and the Missouri University of Science Technology (Missouri ST) to become the overall winner of the competition.The teams from Rose-Hulman and Missouri ST, whose entries were plagued by mechanical problems, schliffed in second- and fifth-distribution policy overall, respectively, thus clearing the path for the host school the University of Central Florida and its entry Knightrike to cruise to victory as the overall winners of the three-day event, which took place April 11-13 at the universitys campus in Orlando, Fla. Cheryl, Franklin W. Olin Colleges entry in this years HPVC East, placed third overall. Thirty-two teams of ASME student members took part in the competition, which consisted of three races a mens and womens drag race and an endurance event as well as design and innovation evaluations. The University of Central Florida took first place in every category except design, where it came in second. Rose-Hulmans entry, Namazu, tipped over during the first HPVC East event, the womens speed event, for a 24th place finish. The team, which won the design category and was the runner-up in the innovation category, never fully recovered over the next two days, feinschliff fifth in the mens drag race and eighth in the endurance event. The University of Missouri-Kansas City placed second in the womens drag race event at HPVC East. Other notable teams at HPVC East included the University of Missouri-Kansas City, placing second in the womens drag race Union College, finishing second in the endurance event the University of Toronto, ranking third in both the mens speed and innovation categories and Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, placing third in the endurance event. Several teams besides Rose-Hulman also faced mechanical challenges during the competition. Franklin W. Olin Colleges Cheryl, for instance, malfunctioned during the endurance event. The team still managed a third-place finish in the race, however. With her teammates running alongside of her and cheering her on, the teams driver pushed her vehicle the remainder of the course and over the finish line. The students received the events Team Spirit award for their efforts. ASME will hold another Human Powered Vehicle Challenge, the HPVC West, in San Jose, Calif., April 25-27. Coverage of that event will appear in the next issue of ASME News.To learn more about the ASME HPVC program, visit the competitions Facebook page at https//www.facebook.com/ASMEHPVC.