IT’S THE MISSION ACCOMPLISHED BY A TEAM OF STUDENTS OF THE SCHOOL OF MECHANICAL, INDUSTRIAL AND MANUFACTURING ENGINEERING, OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY. A BEAUTIFUL STORY OF COMMITMENT AND PASSION, TOLD BY THE INSTRUCTOR JOHN GREEVEN
June 2024 (G.T.) – The email arrived at Wide magazine’s editorial office at the end of May: “I wanted to let you know that our student engineering team has developed an Aprilia RS50 for competition in Land Speed Racing events at the famous Bonneville Salt Flats and other similar venues. We have recently set a new official land speed record of 141.246 kph and wanted to let you know in case you would like more information. The students are super excited and plan on breaking more records this summer. Kind regards”. Signed: John Greeven, Capstone Instructor, School of Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering, Oregon State University.
This is a great news! And we ask to Mr. Greeven to talk more about: “We are a student-lead team in the College of Engineering at Oregon State University. This is our first year working on this project, so we are extra excited with the results so far. Setting a record of 87.766mph (141.246kph) on our 2001 Aprilia RS50 was a terrific result for such a young team!”. This surpasses the previous 70mph record in the 50cc fuel category. Congratulations!
And John Greeven wrote for Wide magazine the following story. Enjoy it!
Left to right: the announcement of the challenging enterprise of the OSU LAND SPEED RACING; the team admires the sunset on the eve of the challenge; location: El Mirage, in the western Victor Valley of the Mojave Desert (San Bernardino County, California).
Breaking World Records at El Mirage: A Novice Achievement.
By John Greeven
“I’m sitting on the bike at the front of the long line of competitors, waiting to make a run down the 2-kilometer course. The desert sun beats down relentlessly, and the wind is picking up, swirling dust across the dry lakebed. The starting official holds me in position, her hand raised. This will be my third run, and the stakes are high.
The team worked hard all year and has driven 1.600 kilometers to make it to this moment. This is a first-year team of mostly Oregon State University students, and there is so much at stake. From the students’ dreams, and mine, to securing financial sponsors so we can run again next year. Performing well in this moment is how we make that happen. Will the wind cancel the event, as it did yesterday? My stomach clenches with nerves.
We’ve already broken the record twice during this event, but as novices our runs can’t be recorded as records. The rule that novices can’t make records is frustrating, since we beat the standing record by 15 kph. But now, we were good enough to get boosted to full competitors. Now this third attempt counts. I’m thinking about all of this, hoping the weather holds. We only need a single minute; we can’t have come this far and not get the chance to prove ourselves.
Connor Heath - www.instagram.com/p/C6wN7rurdaS
Ethan Wickman - www.instagram.com/p/C6wN4y6rx
Kameron Coryell - www.instagram.com/p/C6wN04br1P
Dylan Varga - www.instagram.com/p/C6cbitcPKZU
Tanner Windom - www.instagram.com/p/C6rEG7qxssy
Instructor, John Greeven - www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZf0Oj5Gr48
www.linkedin.com/in/john-greeven-477990
College of Engineering, Oregon State University (135 year of history, founded in 1889): engineering.oregonstate.edu/about
Minutes pass, feeling like an eternity. The starting official receives a radio message—the wind is slowing. She waves me forward. I push the tiny Aprilia forward, drop the clutch, and the engine roars to life. The highly modified Minarelli AM6 engine hits its power peak in first gear, and I shift through the gears, reaching sixth gear in just 20 seconds. The gusting side wind pushes the bike across the grooves left by high-horsepower competitors. I huddle behind the front fairing, striving for aerodynamic perfection. The tachometer climbs, every kilometer per hour crucial for a record-breaking run. After 40 more seconds, I exit the timing trap, ease off the throttle, and depart the course to the left. Then the wait, eight long minutes for my team to pick me and the Aprilia up. The wind feels cool against my sweat-soaked leathers. It felt like a good run—the Aprilia performed flawlessly, revving almost to 15,000 rpm. Was it fast enough?
Meanwhile, my team listens to the radio broadcast as they get closer to me. The timing official announces our speed: 87.766 mph (141.246 kph)—our fastest of the weekend and a 3rd record! The team erupts in cheers, adrenaline released after days of anticipation. A year of hard work, a day of nail biting. All worth it.
Passing the official impound inspection, including meticulous engine measurements, we learn that the new land speed record is officially recorded. Our novice status no longer holds us back; we’ve etched our names into El Mirage history. The desert wind may have challenged us, but our determination and teamwork prevailed.
And so, against the odds, the 50cc Land Speed Racing Team from Oregon State University, together with our mighty Aprilia, made their mark—a testament to passion, perseverance, and the thrill of chasing speed across the desert sands.”
To support this student team for his next challenge, contact the instructor: John Greeven, School of Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon 97331 (USA).
Email: john.greeven@oregonstate.edu
Background Information & next challenge. Mr. John Greeves adds: “We drove 1600 kilometers from Oregon to southern California to attend this competition. We tried to prepare as much as possible because motorsports have a lot of uncertainty and risk. With some luck and good preparation, we were able to achieve our goal of setting a new land speed record. We will compete at the famous Bonneville Salt Flats (Utah) next in the first week of August and hope to continue improving on our performance.”
“This is the video from the event when we made our 3rd and fastest run setting the record for a 3rd time: yes, each run was a record and each run was faster than the previous run”, explains John Greeves (in the photo below, astride the motorbike, surrounded by his students: a winning team!).
Looking to the future. “My goal is to find the support needed to run this project each year with a new group of students in their final year of engineer studies. It is my hope that the exposure we receive from this magazine article will help us find this financial support so we can continue our journey. One additional area of interest is that we are interested in adding an electric motorcycle to the team. I noticed that Aprilia has developed an electric motorcycle which I think would make a terrific model for land speed racing at the student level.”
The Aprilia ELECTRICa project was launched at Eicma international exhibition (Milan, 2022). Here some more info:
wide.piaggiogroup.com/en/articles/products/aprilia-rs-660-extrema-and-aprilia-electrica-project
