"Universite Laval - Canadian National Champion"
(2nd place overall)

Design Paper (5th):

Presentation (3rd):

Laval's power point presentation was given by three male team members dressed in casual attire.  The presentation began with a very assertive statement claiming that the 2002 model was the best in the world.  

Laval was fortunate to have the video team select their presentation for archival purposes.  Slides consisted of white text on a solid black background.  The text on the slides nicely complimented the script and the required delivery in English did not seem to phase the team who featured their finite element analysis and concrete composite design.  In the end, the team claimed that this year's canoe was lighter, stronger and faster than last year's.

Laval was asked why they used two different mixes to construct the form and structural elements such as the ribs.  They were asked to define the correlation between tensile strength and the proportional limit, to clarify the properties of their aggregates and additives, and where some of these are ordinarily employed.  

The judges pressed on with questions ranging from the use of water soluble epoxy to the benefit of their high water to cement ratio.  They were asked why their canoe was competitive considering that it was the lightest canoe in the competition.  No question there!

Considering the impediment posed by the language barrier and the increased pressure associated with the media coverage, this was definitely one of the strongest presentations of the day.

Product (4th):

Name: Apogee
Length: 21.25'
Weight: 80 lb
Color: dark red and white with yellow letters

 Vital Stats:

The Universite of Laval is located in Ste-Foy, Quebec in Canada.  Laval qualified for the competition by winning the Canadian National Concrete Canoe Competition.  This year was the fifth time that Laval competed at the U.S. nationals.  It is their third consecutive appearance and they have three top ten finishes to their credit.  This year's second place finish is their highest to date.

Display (5th):

Canoe/Materials/Facts:

Laval's canoe was reinforced with four layers of carbon fiber and two layers of fiberglass mesh impregnated in extremely light carbon fiber reinforced concrete mixes.  They were the only team to finish top five in all categories including the races.