Brownwood High School Advanced Building Trades Class students recently constructed an award winning wooden canoe, and the class took it for a test run at Riverside Park in Brownwood on Thursday morning.

The class successfully floated the canoe for the first time in the Pecan Bayou, and for many of the students, it was their first time to canoe and a quick learning experience in how to steer and balance.  Each student had the opportunity to take a spin the canoe, even their teacher, Cody Smith took the opportunity to see how the canoe performed on the water.  Smith stated that it was “quite a smooth ride.”

Built by seniors Mackey Gibson, John Gies, Steven Arceneaux, Jaime Hernandez, Alexis Garcia, Irene Sanchez and sophomore Bryan Bautista, the canoe took home “Superior” and “Best of Show” ribbons in its category at the USA Skills State Competition which was held in Corpus Christi in March.

Smith stated that he was very impressed with the students’ work and dedication to build the canoe.

“All I can say about this project is wow.  They started in mid-January and consistently worked hard through the entire process,” said Smith.  “…this one must be seen in person to realize the amount of work it takes to build.”

Smith explained that the canoe is made up of 1/4” X 3/4” strips of cedar and basswood and capped with ash inwhales and outwhales.   The plans for the canoe were purchased by the department’s activities account through bearmountainboats.com.  The process of building this project included activities such as steaming wood, gluing and innovative clamping, and working with fiberglass and epoxy.  These young men and ladies learned a lot about woodworking, patience, and determination throughout this process, according to Smith.

The total cost to build the canoe was approximately $2000 in materials, according to Smith.  He explained that the marine quality glue and epoxy, along with the plans were a costly investment.

The canoe is available for purchase and those interested may contact Smith at 325-642-1860.

Pictured above are Mackey Gibson (back) and Jaime Hernandez (front) taking a ride in the canoe on Thursday.  Below are more photos of the students’ outing.

Building Traddes Teacher Cody Smith and Steven Arceneaux try the first run of the canoe in the bayou.

Wade Holden and Levi Collins take a turn.

Seth Owen and Cole Pennington try their luck on the water.

Brandon Muenzler and Matthew Bryant have a successful ride.

Mackey Gibson and Alexis Garcia have a turn.

Michael Livingston and Sean Ludlow take one of the last rides in the canoe on Thursday.