The Ohio Northern University Baja SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) team finished fifth overall at Baja SAE Wisconsin 2012, held June 7-10 at the MGA Research Corporation Proving Grounds in Burlington, Wis.

The event featured 95 colleges and universities and was sponsored by the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

“We are ecstatic with a fifth place finish in Wisconsin. With the large amount of teams attending and the amount of talent there, this was by far one of the toughest competitions we have attended,” said Sean Rutt, a junior mechanical engineering major from Apple Creek, Ohio, and member of the ONU Baja SAE team.

“Last year, the team had great success finishing in the top 10 in all three events; unfortunately, we were not able to compete in all three events this season, but we knew we had the potential to do well in the events we did go to. I’m very proud of everyone’s dedication and hard work throughout the school year to get a completely new car ready to race. Not very often does a brand new car successfully complete a race, let alone finish in the top 10, so we are very happy. We have big dreams for next season and hope to make our way into the top three rankings for the first time in school history.”

In this SAE collegiate design competition, engineering students design and build off-road vehicles that will survive the punishment of rough terrain and water. SAE student teams compete against one another to have their design accepted for manufacture by a fictitious firm.

The winner of Baja SAE Wisconsin 2012 was Universite Laval, of Quebec City, Quebec. Oregon State University placed second, Cornell University finish third, and Ecole De Technologie Superieure of Montreal was fourth.

In addition to Rutt, the members of the ONU Baja SAE team who competed at this event were Brandon Anspach, a senior mechanical engineering major from Rawson; David Cramer, a senior mechanical engineering major from New Washington; Colin Bayman, a junior mechanical engineering major from Urbana; Ryan O’Connor, a sophomore mechanical engineering major from Mason; Tyler Rinehart, a freshman mechanical engineering major from Sebring; Clayton Campbell, a freshman mechanical engineering major from Trenton; James Crawford, a freshman mechanical engineering major from Seville; and James Mong, a freshman mechanical engineering major from Macedonia.