About Us

The UVSRC made its debut appearance at the European International Submarine Race (eISR) in Gosport England in July 2018. Since then, we have updated our design, grown our community, and recently returned from our fourth international competition in June of 2023! Below you can meet our Board of Directors and Engineering Leads that make this all possible, as well as browse our past projects, and learn more about the competitions we attend.

Projects

The UVSRC has been designing submarines since 2017. Follow the link bellow to learn about our past submarines.

Our Projects

Competitions

The UVSRC competes in 2 biennial races: the International Submarine Races (ISR) in Washington, D.C; and the European International Submarine Races (eISR) in Gorport England.

Learn More

Meet The Team

The UVic Submarine Racing club is made up of students from across majors and backgrounds. A passion for marine engineering and a shared goal brings them together to work on complex problems as well as grow the community.

Interested in joining? check out the recruitment page to see how to get involved.

Get Involved

Club Executive

The club executive is elected annually by members of the UVSRC, and is responsible for planning the direction of the club in the upcoming year.

President

Graydon Rourke

Graydon is a fourth-year mechanical engineering student with a craving for challenging himself and continually building his engineering design and hands-on skills. Graydon hopes to use his leadership, planning, and communication skills, developed through leadership and international ambassador associations, to help manage pool bookings, find new sponsors, and fundraising. Outside of his academics, Graydon enjoys the outdoors, hiking, skiing, and sailing. He is excited to coordinate and bring in more funding to ultimately to ultimately help the team continue to design and implement new innovative projects and systems for the next competition.

Vice President

John "Jack" Gibbons

Jack is a second-year mechanical engineering student from the United States with a background in aluminum boat-building. Some of his many passions outside academics include high-performance sailing, road cycling, and any excuse he can use to get into the wilderness. Jack joined the club in the spring of 2022, and served as hydrodynamics lead for two semesters. He is excited to be Vice President, where he hopes to support the President, and has plans to physically organize the club’s workspace.

Chief Engineer

Bennett Steers

Bennett is a third-year mechanical engineering student with a strong passion for CAD and manufacturing. Bennett Joined the UVSRC in winter of 2022, and has designed numerous mechanical systems on the submarine including the safety buoy and the hull egress latches. Bennett holds a PADI open water diving certification, and previously co-piloted the UVSRC's submarine at eISR 2022. When he isn't helping the UVSRC, Bennett enjoys mountain biking, working on cars and tinkering with CAD software. Bennett hopes to find ways to help new recruits get involved with the design and manufacturing of the submarine.

Team Leads

The team leads are chosen by the club executive, and are responsible for managing their respective teams to achieve the goals set out by the executive

Electrical Lead

Matthew Sielecki

Matthew is a third-year Biomedical Engineering student with a passion for firmware and circuit board design. Matt had contributed to the design of the control panel in the submarine that displays the speed and the depth. His goals for the team are to add more sensors and data collection to the submarine. His dream is that someday the submarine will be able to permanently transition to electrical steering systems.

Mechanical Lead

Colm Molder

Colm Molder is a dedicated fourth-year mechanical engineering student interested in ocean engineering at UVic. Colm's background spans co-op roles in a hydro project, startup venture, ocean science, and manufacturing, showcasing his diverse expertise. Using his design and analytical skills, he leads the mechanical team in realizing innovative projects. This year, Colm is eager to collaborate with new members, sharing his ocean engineering knowledge. Beyond academics, he's an avid hiker, climber, and skier. Colm's commitment to the team and practical skills make him a valuable leader and he hopes to continue to grow his project management skills.

Hydrodynamics Lead

Sean Cox

Sean is a fourth-year mechanical engineering student that is focusing on fluids and energy systems. He enjoys testing and prototyping designs and using CFD analysis for various optimizations. Sean recently worked on re-designing the propeller system through his capstone project. When he is not studying Sean likes to get outside and go for runs or hikes. Sean hopes to fully implement his re-designed propeller system and continue to do testing on the hydrodynamics of the hull.

Sponsorship Lead

Andrew Dunham

Andrew Dunham is a fourth year computer science student who who specializes in software development but dabbles in firmware and circuit board design. This year Andrew is the electrical and sponsorship lead(s) for the UVSRC

Manufacturing Lead

Summer Johnson

As the manufacturing lead, Summer assists members of the team to create designs that are able to be manufactured using the resources available . Summer graduated from the University of Victoria with a bachelors degree in mechanical engineering, and has previously worked as a machinist creating parts for aeronautical, medical, and research applications. She's done many odd jobs and projects including: octopus intelligence research, 3D printed prosthetics, battle-bots, urchin population research, and psychological research studies into the benefits of project based learning. Outside of work, Summer enjoys crocheting, pottery, and wood-working!

Dive Team

The dive team spans a large array of students, from History to Geology to Engineering. These members include:

Kenna Quirke - Dive lead
Bennett Steers - Pilot
Jordon Prior
Max Maj
Hannah Brown

Each diver must have a diving certification that conforms to ISO 24801-2, such as a PADI or NAUI open water diving certification, and accumulate a minimum of 10 logged dives in order to participate in ISR and eISR. As a goal, the team aims for the divers to have at least 5 additional dives to participate in the ISR competition and to feel confident in the water around the submarine.