Spring 2007 Issue 1

• ALUMNI ACTIVITIES
• CoE, National Honors for ME Alumna
• Rashid Receives Benford Award
• ME Graduates Receive Faculty Appointments
• Farshid Asl: From ME to MRE
• FACULTY & STAFF NEWS
• A Reflection on the Past Year
• Galip Ulsoy Elected to NAE
• Epureanu, Ulsoy Earn Outstanding Achievement Awards
• Krishna Garikipati Completes Humboldt Fellowship
• Ellen Arruda Named Centennial Fellow
• Hong Im Receives Ralph R. Teetor Award
• Jwo Pan Named SAE Fellow
• ME Manufacturing Sets the Pace with Awards
• William W. Schultz Appointed to NSF Position
• Professor Volker Sick Named Faculty Advisor of the Year by Student Affairs
• One Advisor + Two Generations = Unique ME Experience
• Senior Engineering Technician Jerry Polashak Retires
• Professor Jun Ni, Shien-Ming (Sam) Wu Professor of Manufacturing Science
• Alan Wineman Receives Distinguished Faculty Achievement Award
• Professor Jan Shi: A Focus on Quality
• Changes in the Guard
• Sue Gow Celebrates 40 Years of Service
• Marcy Brighton Chosen as Finalist for Distinguished Staff Service Award
• STUDENTS ACTIVITIES AND AWARDS
• Let It Rain, Let It Rain, Let It Rain
• Engineering a Unique Wedding
• Family Ties x 3 for PhD Student
• MRacing is Successful Worldwide
• Hamza, Smith Receive Distinguished Achievement Awards
• ME Students Recognized as Distinguished Leaders
• Lu, Salac Receive Faculty/Student Award
• Undergraduate Student Honors & Awards
• Graduate Student Honors & Awards
• Outstanding Mentor Appreciates Teaching/Learning Opportunities
• ME Students Going Around in Circles
• ACADEMIC INITIATIVES
• Course Prepares Students for International Teamwork
• Energy in the Curriculum: Powering the Mechanical Engineer's Vision for New Technologies
• Wee Wizards to Inspire Future Engineers
• First International Engineering Summer School a Success
• New MEng Program Off to a Quick Start

 

• CREDITS

ME Students Going Around in Circles

Even though cycling is a club sport at the University of Michigan, it's every bit as competitive as any varsity sport. Team members must draw on both stamina and skills. Just ask ME graduate student Simon Koster and undergraduate Kenneth Tsang, who have drawn on their ME educations to help them compete.

The U-M Cycling Club is part of the Midwest Conference, composed of teams from universities in Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois and Missouri. The competition is sanctioned by USA cycling, the national governing body of the sport.

"We race all over the conference for about two months prior to the Regionals," said Koster. "Around here, we ride at Pinckney, Maybury, Highland and Pontiac Lake state parks. We race as individuals but collect points for the team." The points total help qualify teams for regional and national competition.

Koster was named to the four-person U-M Cycling team who took part in the National Collegiate Cycling Association's 2006 Collegiate National Championship in Angel Fire, NM last October. Koster raced in both the short track cross country (STXC) and cross country (XC). The STXC is a 30-minute race around a short course with multiple laps, while the XC race is two loops of 9 miles of trail that climbs about 1500 feet per lap. Koster finished 53rd of 85 racers in STXC and 65 of 120 cyclists in XC.

For both riders, an ME education is a decided advantage.

"My study of mechanical engineering has helped me prepare for races more than it helps me to participate in them," said Tsang. "My participation in the SAE Baja Racing team has given me a very good understanding of how mechanical systems are designed and put together. I am able to do almost all of the work on my bike myself, including rebuilding the fork and tuning the drivetrain. I have even fabricated my own parts for my bike. I built my wheels and use an unconventional homemade tubeless tire system. This means that my bike goes into the race in good mechanical condition, and if something goes wrong with it, I know what it is."

Koster was more succinct: "In mountain biking, there are a lot of crashes and broken pieces, both rider and bike," he said. "My mechanical aptitude helps me set up my bike before a race for top performance and lets me fix it faster when things go wrong on the trail."

Reflecting cycling's universal appeal, Koster, a native of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada and Tsang, born in Palo Alto, California, both began riding at an early age, and both also participate in road races.

"Both types of racing are fun," said Koster. "Road racing is all about tactics, while mountain biking is all about climbing as hard as you can without passing out, and then descending as fast as you can without crashing. I think I prefer mountain biking because there is such a ‘wildcard' aspect. People crash, break bikes, get lost, and there is such variety in courses that every race is something new and exciting."

Road racing or mountain biking, the primary reason both took to the sport is simple: they enjoy it.

"I got into mountain biking because it's fun," said Tsang. "I've always enjoyed riding bikes, and the added challenge of riding a bike offroad is just exciting. I've never been one to set a training regimen for myself, even in the racing season. I ride only when I want to ride because it keeps the sport fun for me. An added bonus is that in the trails and roads that I ride at home, it's easy to get away from civilization, so it's just me and my bike out in some beautiful parts of the foothills on the Peninsula. The fact that it keeps me in shape is just another side benefit."

For Koster, in addition to the sheer enjoyment of the sport, riding is a test he welcomes. "I got into it in high school," he said. "I love the challenge and adrenaline of it. I push myself mentally and physically harder in race than I do in anything else. I love crossing the line and being utterly spent, knowing that I just gave it everything I've got. There is also great camaraderie. The sport is filled with people that like to have fun, be outside and enjoy pushing themselves to the limit. It's a wonderful community of people to be a part of."