University of Arkansas Brings Solar Splash 2008 to Lake Fayetteville

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The Arkansas solar boat skims across Lake Fayetteville during the finals of the 2007 Solar Splash.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. –  Soaring gas prices are putting a squeeze on the budgets of boating enthusiasts across northwest Arkansas. Wouldn’t it be nice if power boats could run without the expense of gasoline? Well, they can.

The University of Arkansas College of Engineering will bring Solar Splash, the world championship of intercollegiate solar boating, to Lake Fayetteville from June 18 to June 22. People from across the region will be able to see the future of sustainable boating as 19 teams, from as far away as Turkey, compete for top honors without burning a single drop of gas.

Each team of students is responsible for designing its own boat and solar power system. Boats are scored on how they look, how well they are built and how well they operate, in addition to their performance on the lake.

"The Razorback solar boat team competed very strongly last year, and our overall score improved compared to 2006 when we won the championship. Most significantly, for the first time since the University of Arkansas began competing in 2000, we came in first place for the sprint race. This had been a primary goal in our designs over the last few years," said Roy McCann, associate professor of electrical engineering and adviser for the University of Arkansas electrical team.

The official competition begins Wednesday morning, June 18, with technical inspections that continue through the next morning. The racing starts Thursday and Friday, June 19 and 20, when the solar boats will be timed on a qualifying course and a slalom course. Friday afternoon the teams get to show off their boats' speed in the 300-meter sprint races, scheduled to finish on Sunday. The endurance competition, in which boats try to go as far as possible in 2 hours, is scheduled for the morning of Saturday, June 21.

As an added attraction on Saturday, the Fayetteville Public Library’s Solar Bug Tug will be held on Lake Fayetteville from noon to 1 p.m. during a break in solar boat action. These solar-powered Bug Tugs were built by local students from 5th grade through 12th grade with help from College of Engineering students.

These events are free and open to the public. This will be the third consecutive year the University of Arkansas College of Engineering has hosted the event on Lake Fayetteville. Solar Splash, in its 14th year, is the world's only international, intercollegiate solar electric boat design and race competition.