Kieran Lee stands next to Virginia Tech’s hybrid electric vehicle, the EcoCAR
Virginia Tech College of Engineering
For Virginia Tech student-athlete Kieran Lee, mechanical engineering, class of 2012, winning the team championship at the 2011 ACC indoor track and field meet last winter ushered in feelings of both excitement and redemption. “I felt like Virginia Tech had something to prove at the [ACC] championship, and winning turned out to be one of my best moments on the track and field team,” said Lee. Lee is also a member of a championship winning academic team, Virginia Tech’s Hybrid Electric Vehicle Team (HEVT).
In June 2011, Virginia Tech’s HEVT placed first in EcoCAR: The Next Challenge, a three-year Advanced Vehicle Technology Competition (AVTC) sponsored by General Motors and the U.S. Department of Energy. Teams from 16 universities throughout the United States and Canada were invited to compete based on a competitive application process. Invited teams were charged with redesigning and re-engineering a stock model Saturn Vue into a more energy-efficient “Chevy EcoCAR,” while still maintaining safety, consumer acceptability and performance.
HEVT produced an extended-range electric vehicle with an impressive 82 miles-per-gallon rating under the supervision of mechanical engineering professor Doug Nelson. For Virginia Tech football fans, HEVT’s competition-winning “Chevy EcoCAR” is featured at College of Engineering tailgates on the Drillfield. Along with other team members, Lee attends outreach events such as tailgates to share messages of sustainability, efficiency and technology with the public.
Like most student athletes, Lee works hard to find a balance between the pressures of schoolwork and athletics. “I’ve been forced to perfect my time management skills,” he shared. His involvement with HEVT and EcoCAR 2: Plugging In to the Future project poses added challenges, but Lee recognizes the benefits of the opportunity. “I’ve always been interested in alternative energy and I hope to go on to do something in the field that benefits society.”
Lee will be well prepared to meet the energy challenges of the future. As a mechanical engineering major with a double minor in green engineering and industrial design, Lee’s academic program will put him on the fast track to success.
On the track, Lee specializes in the 800 meters, 1,500 meters and the mile for Virginia Tech head cross country and distance coach Ben Thomas’ middle-distance squad. He finished 12th overall in the mile at the ACC indoor championship last year. Lee has competed for the varsity track and field team throughout his years at Tech. Originally from Richmond, Va., he ran track for Hermitage High School. “It’s funny. I was actually a wrestler my freshman year. Sophomore year I did [track] to stay in shape for wrestling and realized I was way better at running,” said Lee.
In the College of Engineering’s Advanced Engineering Lab, Lee offers his expertise on the mechanicals subteam for EcoCAR 2: Plugging In to the Future. The new three-year competition, which began this fall, challenges students with the task of reducing the environmental impact of a 2013 Chevrolet Malibu. EcoCAR 2 is the only program of its kind that offers students real-world experience in the automotive engineering field. Lee traveled to Pontiac, Mich., in October to participate in the EcoCAR 2 Fall Workshop hosted by General Motors.
After graduation in May, Lee has his sights set on competing in the European Track and Field Championships. This past summer, he ran for the Crusaders Athletic Club, based in Irishtown Stadium in Dublin, Ireland, while conducting research at Trinity College. Lee is the son of Robyn and Fred Lee, an Ireland native. Thanks to his heritage, Lee is a dual citizen of the United States and Ireland, allowing him the unique opportunity to represent the Irish in competition.
There is no doubt Lee will continue to make an impact in society with both his athletic ability and knowledge of sustainable solutions. “The EcoCAR 2 competition will be invaluable not only to me as a student looking to gain experience in the field, but also to society as a whole,” Lee said. “The competition is changing the way we think about the environmental impact of the automotive industry. I am going to look back on this and think I played a role in making the industry a more sustainable place.”
Written by: Sarah Kilbourne, a senior with a double major in communication and French from Falls Church, Va., Rommelyn Conde, a second year communication graduate student from Virginia Beach, Va., and Katie Wilkes, a senior majoring in communication from Richmond, Va.