Features

On Sunday, June 3, the Berkeley High School Engineering Club (BHEC) designed, built, and successfully launched a trebuchet at the Albany Bulb. While BHEC may not strike a chord with most Berkeley residents, its presence is well known at the high school. 

“We had a great turnout,” said BHEC President John Stevick, 16. “We announced the event and got a lot of interested people to contribute to the cause.” 

The group launched a trebuchet, similar to a catapult, at the Albany Bulb, which runs along the water, making it an ideal location. The trebuchet was traditionally used as a medieval siege engine to smash masonry walls or throw projectiles over them. However, in this case, the trebuchet was built for educational purposes. 

The group spent a total of 10 hours aggressively building and launching their magnum opus. Their hard work started at the break of dawn in Albany and continued until the late afternoon. 

“We carried an actual ton of wood to the site, a half-mile from the parking lot,” said Stevick, describing their work. “When we arrived, everyone went straight to work and got the job done.” 

With the help of a local architect and a math professor, the BHEC has been holding meetings every Tuesday at their high school for the past academic year. They have been spending time planning and discussing ideas to construct an ideal trebuchet. After all this time, the group decided to test their masterpiece by an open shore. 

“We came, we saw, we conquered,” remarked BHEC Treasurer Connie Chan, 16. “I thought that the group planned it, prepared it, and executed it very well.” 

BHEC is a student-run organization, sponsored by Berkeley High School and the University of California’s Tau Beta Pi, an engineering honors society. The group is dedicated to the educational implementation of student engineering. In early 2006, Stevick brought together students interested in engineering and applied mathematics and founded the BHEC. The club is open to all interested students, regardless of previous engineering experience or skill.  

“We have a very large, diverse membership,” said Chan, 16. “Students from a variety of backgrounds came together in BHEC to concentrate their interests on a unifying topic: engineering.” 

Chan, described as a “natural” in engineering by others in the group, created a partnership between Berkeley High School and UC Berkeley. Her work has brought in donations from various groups, including Tau Beta Pi. 

“We’re very proud of the financial relationships we’ve been able to create,” said Stevick. “It wouldn’t be possible without the work of our treasurer, who works tirelessly to promote our club.” 

Many of the young engineers found that their successful launch of the trebuchet was a good first step, but that there is work yet to be done. 

“I thought that this was a good first project for all of us to learn and understand what we can accomplish as a team,” said Kyler Murlas, 17.” However, I hope that as a group, we continue to go above and beyond.” 

In the future, BHEC plans to host a variety of engineering events on their home turf in Berkeley. Interested contributors may send an e-mail to: john.stevick@gmail.com about possible donations. 

Photograph by Rio Bauce 

Members of the Berkeley High Engineering Club assemble a medieval trebuchet at the Albany Bulb on Sunday, June 3. This version of the engine was built in some 10 hours with a ton of wood and lots of planning and enthusiasm.