Final Year for Solar Boat Competition in Fayetteville

solar boat from University of Southampton, England

University of New Orleans solar boat, sprinting

race preparations

solar panel display

sprint competition

endurance competition

soaking up the rays

pontoon design

University of Arkansas single hulled entry

three time champion, Cedarville University

Photo Submitted

One of two solar electric boats from the University of Arkansas competing in Solar Splash 2009. All photos copyright Scott Miller, used by permission.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The motorboats of the future will be on display again on Lake Fayetteville as the University of Arkansas College of Engineering hosts the 17th annual Solar Splash competition, from Wednesday, June 9, to Sunday, June 13. Solar Splash is the world championship of intercollegiate solar/electric boat racing. The title sponsor of this year’s competition is the Power Electronics Society of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.

This is the fifth and final year the event will take place in northwest Arkansas.

Thirteen teams of engineering students from 12 universities will put the boats they designed through four days of sprint, slalom and endurance races, all without burning a drop of gasoline. The teams come from as far away as the University of South Carolina on the east coast and Washington State University on the west, with international competition provided by the University of Southampton, England, and Mexico’s Tecnologico de Monterrey.

University of Arkansas engineering students will enter two boats in the competition, a single hulled craft and a catamaran design. Both are modified and improved versions of the university’s solar boats that raced last year.

The team to beat is Cedarville University of Cedarville, Ohio, which won the last three contests. Other previous champions include the University of Arkansas and the University of South Carolina.

“It’s a very intense competition,” said Alan Mantooth, electrical engineering professor and one of the organizers of the event. “A team can make one small mistake and go from first place to third – make another little mistake and you are in fifth place. This is the last time for a while that our teams will be competing in front of hometown crowds, so we really want to do our best.”

The teams are scored on the basis of their boat design, appearance and workmanship as well as their performance in slalom, sprint and endurance races. Qualifying events begin on Thursday, June 10. The slalom race will run Friday morning, with sprint heats run that afternoon. Saturday the teams will put their boats through two separate two-hour endurance races, and the finals of the sprint competition will run on Sunday. The public is welcome to all events, and there is no admission charge.

“This has been a great event for both the University of Arkansas and the city of Fayetteville,” said Mantooth. “The city’s support has been terrific and of course the event just would not have been possible without the dozens of volunteers and corporate sponsors who helped us in so many ways. We have a few extra events planned just to show them our appreciation.”

Next year Solar Splash will be held in Cedar Falls, Iowa, and hosted by the University of Northern Iowa.