Trine BUV team wins competition

May 01, 2019

CINCINNATI, Ohio — A Trine University team bested other universities at the 19th annual national Basic Utility Vehicle competition near Cincinnati, Ohio.

It marked the first time Trine has won the event outright.

Five schools took part in the annual event hosted the weekend of April 26 by the Institute for Affordable Transportation on a course owned by the University of Cincinnati. Each school designs a simple, low-cost vehicle that could hypothetically be used in a developing African country to perform daily tasks over rough terrain.

The vehicles must be capable of pumping water onto their vehicle from a pond, successfully navigating a muddy 2.2-mile course and returning the water to the pond. The team that transports the most water during the allotted time period is declared the winner.

Trine team members were senior mechanical engineering majors Nathan Lane from Solon, Ohio, Austin Snyder from St. Joe, Indiana, Erin Boles from Pittsboro, Indiana, and Damon Prifogle from Terre Haute, Indiana.

Working from Trine’s entry in last year’s competition, the team designed a new, lighter frame that reduced the weight of the vehicle by more than 400 pounds. They also developed a new drive linkage and detachable winch, ensuring the vehicle is more reliable and robust in the harsh conditions of rural areas.

Trine last placed in the competition in 2011, finishing third.

Photo: From left, Joe Thompson II, laboratory manager and instructor at Trine University, Nathan Lane, Austin Snyder, Erin Boles and Damon Prifogle with the first-place trophy from the Basic Utility Vehicle competition.

News Information

Read More

All News
Center for Sports Studies

Trine podcast discusses coaching youth

March 2, 2023

A longtime area high school baseball coach and educator discusses the coaching profession and strategies for effectively leading youth in the newest episode of Trine University’s Center for Sports Studies podcast.

1/3
Cat Benson PGA

Benson named Indiana PGA president

March 2, 2023

Cat Benson, dean of Trine University’s Ketner School of Business and director of its golf management program, was elected the first female president of the Indiana Section PGA on Monday, Feb. 27.

2/3
Bethany Schmitt

Trine student honored at ‘Realizing the Dream’

March 1, 2023

INDIANAPOLIS — Bethany Morgan Schmitt, a Trine University sophomore from Fort Wayne, Indiana, majoring in exercise science/pre-physical therapy, was one of 29 first-generation Indiana college students named as a “Realizing the Dream” recipient by the Independent Colleges of Indiana (ICI).

3/3