A team of students from Missouri University of Science and Technology will travel to Orlando, Fla., this month to race an aerodynamically outfitted recumbent trike-style bicycle in the American Society of Mechanical Engineers 2014 Human Powered Vehicle Challenge East Coast Competition.

The competition will be held Friday, April 11, through Sunday, April 13, at the University of Central Florida. Missouri S&T’s Human Powered Vehicle Team will race its bike, dubbed “Banshee,” against teams from universities from around the nation. The competition requires students to design, build and operate a human-powered vehicle for practical use.

The competition is divided into several main events. In the design event, teams are scored on its engineering principles through a written report and technical presentation. The actual racing is split into three sections. The first day of racing features the men’s and women’s speed events, in which teams sprint head-to-head over a short distance. On the second day of racing, teams compete in an endurance event, racing to complete as many laps as possible during a span of several hours.

The Banshee features a carbon fiber fairing, the aerodynamic shell around the vehicle, on a trike-style recumbent bike, with two wheels in the front and one in the back. Green LED lights glow from beneath the fairing. Touchscreen equipment is built into the handlebars to control the vehicle’s lights, horn and turn signals. The vehicle also has a rearview camera.

Dr. Daniel Stutts, an associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at S&T, is the Human Powered Vehicle Team faculty advisor. Nikia Chapman, a junior in geological engineering from Columbia, Mo., is the team leader for the 2013-14 design season. For more information about the event, visit www.asme.org.