ACC Concrete Tech students put their skills to the test in a concrete canoe race – WBKB 11

Students from Alpena Community College’s concrete technology program built and raced canoes they built from concrete in the Northern Lights Arena pond.

“It actually comes from the American Society of Civil Engineers, they have concrete canoe races and so we implement it in our precast, prestressed concrete,” said Eric Kennedy, instructor of Alpena Community College’s concrete technology program.

The students spent most of the semester working on their canoes for the race.

“Every day we went to build this came up on the board, so we planned to race it and it went well,” said Gage Kangas, an ACC concrete technology student and winner of the canoe race.

‘I knew we were going to sink. We were, it was three weeks ago, we just took the canoe out of the mold and dumped water on the bottom. The water flowed right through the canoe, so it looks like we’re going to sink,” said Jake Morrison, a concrete technology student at ACC.

The students used different materials to float their canoes in the water.

“How we make the canoe float is it’s all made of lightweight sand. We put a lot of air in it to make it lighter,” said Kangas.

The competition allowed the students to work on both their craftsmanship and team building skills.

“I think it was fun. And I think it’s something where students really get involved in managing a team, and they all have different roles in it. From treasurer to mixed design, to all design, to team captain. You know, to really bring it together and work as a team, which you’re going to do in every part of the industry,” said Kennedy.

Kennedy is proud of the work and effort his students put into their canoes and is happy that none of their boats sank during the competition.