UBC Supermileage’s equipment and cars have been destroyed in a rollover accident while in transportation from the Shell Eco-Marathon Americas, where the team placed third. No students were injured in the accident. A statement from the team follows.
“UBC Supermileage Student Team Loses Cars & Tools in Semi Rollover After International Competition
June 26, 2014
Vancouver – UBC’s Supermileage student team travelled to Houston, Texas to compete in the Shell Eco-Marathon Americas from April 24 – 27. They are one of the top ranked teams in this international fuel efficiency competition, placing third this year with 325 mpg. Unfortunately, the shipping truck containing the team’s crate was in a rollover accident on the way back to Vancouver, destroying both vehicles, years of hard work, and tens of thousands of dollars in equipment and materials.
“While we are still confident we can succeed again next year, this was a huge blow to the team,” says Team Captain Katelyn Currie. “We had many exciting improvements we wanted to implement and now we are faced with significant setbacks in both time and resources. In addition to rebuilding our vehicles, we have the challenge of securing funding to replace all the tools and materials we lost in the crash.”
The UBC Supermileage Team is one of 22 UBC student teams which enable students to bring their classroom education to real-world applications. The extra-curricular teams are comprised of volunteer students and are supported in part by the Faculty, which recognizes the many benefits students receive from hands-on design work.
Countless hours have been devoted by the members to build and perfect the fuel efficient vehicles. As devastated as the members were upon hearing the news, they are eager to begin refining their designs in order to remain a highly competitive team.
To represent UBC in the upcoming 2015 competition, the team needs to replace the vast majority of their tools, including drill press, hand drills, a socket set, tool boxes, a multimeter and oscilloscope. In-kind, cash or cheque donations will receive a charitable tax receipt as well as the gratitude of some very hard working students.
For more information on the team and the competition, please contact Katelyn Currie at info@supermileage.ca, 778-888-4934 or visit the team website at www.supermileage.ca.
If you are able to help the team rebuild through funding or in-kind donation of tools, please let us know.”
Prototype Mark VIII before the accident
Urban Concept Car Odysseus before the accident
The remains of both cars after the accident