The Human Powered Vehicle at Berkeley team showed off its newest vehicle, PB&J, as well as its shiny 2nd place trophy, to prospective students and interested community members at Cal Day today. On a beautifully sunny Saturday, HPV team members talked about the team’s recent accomplishments at the ASME HPVC, displayed molds and parts that were used to create the bike, and answered any questions visitors had about Berkeley in general. It was great to meet potential Berkeley engineers and show off everything our team has to offer to the engineering community.

Thanks to everyone who stopped by our table today and talked to us. Hopefully we see you around campus next semester, and we hope you consider joining the HPV team!

The Human Powered Vehicle Team at Berkeley is coming to Cal Day this Saturday, 4/20! Team members will be in the Etcheverry breezeway from 10am-3pm, showing off our newest bike, PB&J, as well as other bike parts and photos from our most recent competition. Come by if you are a prospective freshman, current student, or anyone interested in what the mechanical engineering community has to offer. Hope to see you all there!

The final day of the competition started bright and early, with all 28 teams lining up at the San Jose State Park and Ride track for the Endurance Event. The UC Berkeley Human Powered Vehicle Team started strong, gaining a position near the front of the pack. The team maintained this lead, thanks to the bike’s lightweight design and ease of maneuverability. While other team faltered at obstacles like the stop sign and the hairpin turns, PB&J managed to speed through every obstacle.

With the help of some incredibly strong riders, the UC Berkeley team managed to hold their lead for most of the endurance race. Many of our riders clocked impressive two minute laps with the bike’s aerodynamic design. At the end of the two and a half hour Endurance Event, the team as a whole accomplished 61 laps.

This combination of speed and endurance earned the UC Berkeley Human Powered Vehicle Team second place in the Endurance Event, a remarkable accomplishment for the team’s first year back on the HPV Circuit. Congratulations to UC Berkeley!

Following a successful night of sprint events at the Hellyer Velodrome, the UC Berkeley Human Powered Vehicle Team spent day two of the competition presenting PB&J to the judges. During the Design Event, the Engineering Team spoke about the year long process of conceptualizing PB&J. Details like the roll bar, the fairing, and the mega lug were prominently displayed and scored.

Later in the day, the team participated in the Innovation Event. Again, the team presented their work to judges, this time emphasizing the innovative features of the vehicle. The engineering team made sure the emphasize the mega lug, perhaps the most innovative and time consuming portion of the vehicle’s construction. The judges seemed to respond well to the presentation, but we’ll only know the final results on day 3, after the Endurance Event.