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| UA Mini Baja team captured a first place in the 2002 Mini Baja Midwest Competition. | |
Akron, Ohio, June 10, 2002 — University of Akron mechanical engineering students continue to be formidable competitors in Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) collegiate design competitions as they captured first place in the 2002 Mini Baja Midwest Competition.
The event, which included more than 100 schools from around the world, was held May 30 to June 2 in Waukesha, Wis. The Universite De Sherbrooke of Canada finished second and a Brazilian team finished third.
This is the second consecutive year a UA Mini Baja team garnered first place — and the sixth first place win since UA began competing in 1990.
Mini Baja teams design and build an off-road vehicle capable of negotiating rough terrain. The competition includes static and dynamic events such as cost, sales presentation, engineering design and safety, maneuverability, acceleration and a grueling endurance race.
Members of the team who traveled to Wisconsin are Jeff DeWitt of Aurora, Bill Gross of Akron, Matt Lux of Kent, and brothers Jared Utz of Green and team captain Zach Utz of Jackson (North Canton). Other team members include Dan Ehmer, Jr. of North Canton and John Gibbs of Tallmadge.
The UA students made good use of the lessons they learned in late April when they placed 27th in a field of 101 teams in the West Mini Baja Competition held in Logan, Utah.
“Apparently they learned the lessons very well,” says Dr. Richard Gross, UA associate professor of mechanical engineering. “As advisor to the team, I am very impressed with their preparation for the Midwest competition and the camaraderie among the five team members throughout the event that led to a first place win.”
Dr. Graham Kelly, interim dean of the UA College of Engineering, adds that compared to other colleges the UA team is relatively small. “An amazing statistic is that we accomplished this feat with only five team members,” Kelly says. “Many other schools had at least 10 students on their teams.”
This latest win adds to UA's dominance as a leading national SAE chapter. UA students won more design competitions in the 1990s than SAE teams from all other Ohio colleges and universities combined. Akron students have set world records and captured 13 first place Aero Design awards, six firsts in Mini Baja Competition and a 1999 first place in the prestigious Formula Car Competition.
