Iowa State University is hosting a regional student concrete canoe competition today (Saturday). The competition includes the University of Iowa and five others teams along with I-S-U. They’re all engineering students and Ryan Haaland of Waverly is the I-S-U co-captain. Haaland was asked what it takes to be a success.He says having a good team and getting everything running smoothly is important. The competition is more than pouring some concrete into a mold, the teams have to submit technical papers as well as race. He says they actually start out at the beginning of the year designing the canoe and the concrete mix. Haaland says it takes several people and thousand of dollars to float their boat. He says his team consists of 17 people with about 15 always dedicated to the canoe. He says they budget about 10-thousand dollars a year for the cost of the canoe. Haaland says they raise all the funds themselves for the project. The competition will culminate in races beginning at one o’clock Hickory Grove Park, southeast of Ames.
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