Two Lakehead concrete canoes racing on a lake

Lakehead University

Concrete Canoe Team

#ALLABOARD

We design it. We build it. Then we find out just how fast concrete can move.

Who we are

Built by students. Tested up north.

We are a team of senior-year civil engineering students designing, building, and racing a concrete canoe. We travel across Canada to compete in the Canadian National Concrete Canoe Competition, hosted by the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering, and race against other universities.

Join the crew

All majors. One canoe.

Concrete canoe is open to students from every major—not just civil engineering. Whether you want to help design, build, organize, document, or race, there is room on the team.

Ask about joining

Short answer

Yes, it floats.

The question we always get

Does it float?

By experimenting with lightweight aggregates and strategic air entrapment, we can design concrete near the density of water. Coupled with structural reinforcement, we create a canoe that is lightweight, yet durable enough for the rough waters of Northern Ontario.

Part materials science, part structural engineering, and—at first glance—a little bit of witchcraft.

The competition

Concrete. Canoes. Across Canada.

The Canadian National Concrete Canoe Competition (CNCCC) is Canada’s premier university-level civil engineering competition. For more than 30 years, teams have designed, built, presented, and raced canoes made entirely of concrete. Organized by the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering (CSCE), it is one of North America’s longest-running engineering competitions and brings together universities from across Canada.