Human-powered vehicles are recumbent bikes with aerodynamic shells. The bikes can go about 45 mph. During competitions, university teams are judged in sprints, endurance tests, design reports and oral presentations. Rose-Hulman took second place in the endurance and men's sprint competitions, and third in the women's sprint and design report categories -- improving from last year's seventh place overall finish.

Fast Pedalers: Members of Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology's 2007 Human Powered Vehicle Team included (front row, from left) Chris Wlezien, Michael Wieck, Jeff Van Treuren, Danny Sing, Molly Nelis and Nathan Wendt. In the back row (from left) are Tommy Roberts, Christina Davis, Luisa Fairfax and Zach Goff.

"We had a better overall performance this year because of experience from last year," admitted team project manager Tommy Roberts, a junior mechanical engineering major from Weston, Conn. "We have made big strides during the first two years of this project, and we're already looking ahead to next year."

Second-year improvements included the installation of a light-weight composite body shell, which improved aerodynamics; familiarity with driving the vehicle, through extensive testing; and experience in vehicle development. The single-rider, two-wheeled vehicle is 9.8 feet long, 23 inches wide and is four inches off the pavement. The driver is almost parallel to the ground while driving, making a different adjustment from riding conventional bicycles.

Rose-Hulman's team earned a perfect score in the design and innovation category of the ASME competition, with its mechanical landing gear, which helped stabilize the vehicle during turns, earning rave reviews from judges and members of competing teams.

"Our vehicle was more stable this year and that improved our performance," stated lead male rider Danny Sing, a junior mechanical engineering major from Columbus, Ohio, who has extensive competitive bicycle riding experience. He pedaled the vehicle to approximately 36 mph during the men's sprint race.

Different Kind of Vehicle: Members of Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology's Human Powered Vehicle team prepare for driver/cyclist Danny Sing to take a test drive in preparation for this year's American Society of Mechanical Engineers' competition.

Female driver Molly Nelis, who achieved 26 mph in the sprint competition, added, "We're learning each year as we become more familiar with the vehicle and the competition. It takes a lot of experience to become comfortable driving the vehicle. However, once you've got it, it becomes easier." She is a junior mechanical engineering and electrical engineering double major from West Olive, Mich.

The 60 kilometer endurance race tested vehicles' abilities to negotiate a course with several tight turns, including a 180-degree u-turn, and rough roadways, testing the experience of all riders.

The University of Missouri-Rolla won the ASME East Coast competition for the sixth straight year. Other colleges that competed in the regional were the University of Alabama, Florida State University, Iowa State University, University of Kentucky, Marquette University, Olin College of Engineering (Mass.), Rutgers University, West Virginia University and University of Wisconsin.

Earlier this year, Rose-Hulman's team gained valuable racing experience by being the only college team that competed in the Nissan One Hour Challenge in Casa Grande, Ariz.

Joining Roberts, Sing and Nelis on Rose-Hulman’s 2007 Human-Powered Vehicle Racing Team were:

• Christina Davis, a junior chemical engineering major from Florissant, Mo.
• Luisa Fairfax, a junior mechanical engineering major from Falls Church, Va. She wrote the team's design report.
• Justin Gerretse, a sophomore mechanical engineering major from Bourbonnais, Ill.
• Zach Goff, a junior mechanical engineering major from Flower Mound, Texas. He was the team's head engineer.
• Blake Lin, a sophomore mechanical engineering major from Seattle, Wash.
• Tim Mayhew, a junior mechanical engineering major from Terre Haute.
• Pooja Saxena, a freshman mechanical engineering and electrical engineering double major from Bethesda, Md.
• Jeff Van Treuren, a freshman mechanical engineering major from Woodway, Texas.
• Nathan Wendt, a freshman mechanical engineering and electrical engineering double major from Crown Point, Ind.
• Michael Wieck, a freshman mechanical engineering and electrical engineering double major from Floyds Knobs, Ind. He was the team's treasurer.
• Chris Wlezien, a freshman mechanical engineering major from Chicago.

The team's faculty advisers are mechanical engineering professors Clark Merkel and Pat Ferro.