Unleashing Potential
As UCF approaches its 60th anniversary next year, we continue to focus on unleashing the potential of people and ideas to change the world.
The 2022 Great Navel Orange Race marked 25 years of a rite of passage for first-year engineering students. Testing their creativity and hand at conquering engineering challenges such as buoyancy, propulsion and trade-offs between weight and speed, students designed and built their watercrafts while abiding by a strict set of rules and a limited budget. Knights taking the Introduction to Engineering course participated in an all-day series of qualifying and elimination rounds of boat races within UCF’s iconic Reflecting Pond, all while carrying a half-pound orange across the water.
“The Great Navel Orange Race was developed to reinforce collaborative teamwork, which is an integral part of the engineering design process. Plus, the race is a fun and memorable way to end an engineering student’s first year in the college.”
1,200+
First-year engineering students participated
278
Teams competed this year, with just under 10% of the boats successfully navigating the racecourse
$80
Maximum amount each team could spend on parts and materials
2014
2014
2014
2016
2022