UA College of Engineering Solar Boaters Make Waves, Slalom into Second Place

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — A rough start almost sank the Solar Boat Team from the College of Engineering at the University of Arkansas, but they resurfaced to capture a second-place finish in the Solar Splash Competition, the world championship of solar and electric boating held in Buffalo, N.Y., from June 22 through 26.  

Racing a boat named BOSS H2OG, the team received a total of five trophies, including first in the solar slalom race, and second place in both the solar sprint and the solar endurance races.  They also received third place in the technical report category. The team placed ahead of other teams from universities including Cal-Poly Pomona, the U.S. Naval Academy and the University of South Carolina.

“I’m really proud of our team this year,” said Roy McCann, faculty sponsor from electrical engineering. “They were discouraged to get off to a poor start, but they persevered. I think that shows something special when you can come back like they did.”

During the very first competition, a shear pin, which helps to connect the propeller to the output drive, broke — twice. “This 50-cent piece of equipment about drove us up the wall,” said Bill Springer, faculty sponsor from mechanical engineering. “The team felt they would have won the entire competition if it hadn’t been for that shear pin, but then again, we might have had another problem.”

Learning to solve real-life, real-time problems quickly while under pressure is one of the key lessons of the competition. “Working on the Solar Boat Team helped me take what I learned in the classroom and use it,” said Brad Carter, who graduated in May and headed the drive-train section of the team. “We’re proud of our efforts this year.”

Next year, the Solar Splash Competition glides into home territory for the UA team, with the competition to be held at Lake Fayetteville. “We’re really looking forward to hosting the competition,” said Springer. “I know we’re going to go all the way next year.”

The University of Arkansas has participated in the competition every year since 2000.  The UA team won the world championship in 2002.