RACING TO THE NAVY'S FUTURE

2026 Promoting Electric Propulsion
(PEP) Collegiate Boat Race
PORTSMOUTH CITY PARK
PORTSMOUTH, VA | APRIL 14 – 16
FREE & OPEN TO PUBLIC
HRMTS has been meeting demand since launching in 2024

Come See the Future of Naval Engineering in Action.

Over 350+ collegiate engineers from over 45 universities will compete in the Promoting Electric Propulsion (PEP) 2026 competition, a national collegiate electric boat race. Over 55 boats are set to race in the Elizabeth River in one of six divisions focusing on critical technologies, like autonomy and manned craft design. These teams will share their engineering processes and demonstrate cutting-edge maritime designs.

Join us in supporting this growing workforce development community and be a part of our Navy’s future!

Learn More, Become A Sponsor, Sign Up To Exhibit

We are excited to see you in April. If you’d like to learn more about PEP26 and how your company can become a sponsor or exhibitor, click below. 

For any questions, please contact ASNE at Education@NavalEngineers.org or 703-836-6727

Learn MoreBecome a sponsorBecome an exhibitor

EVENT SCHEDULE

April 14, 2026

SET UP & QUALIFICATION

April 15, 2026

MANNED RACING & RECEPTION

April 16, 2026

UNMANNED RACING
The event will have qualification on Tuesday, April 14. Qualification and racing on Wednesday, April 15, and racing on Thursday, April 16.

Wednesday, April 15

0815: Mandatory Operators Meeting at Sound System

Wednesday: Manned Displacement Heats

  1. 900: Buffalo (Boat Ramp B)
  2. 900: Carnegie Mellon (Boat Ramp A)
  3. 900: Arkansas Tech (Boat Ramp C)
  4. 1000: Princeton (Boat Ramp C)

Wednesday: Manned Planing Heats

  1. 1000: Stevens (Boat Ramp A)
  2. 1000: Dayton (Boat Ramp B)
  3. 1100: Tennessee (Boat Ramp A)
  4. 1100: Central Connecticut (Boat Ramp C)
  5. 1100: UMEB (Boat Ramp B)
  6. 1200: Cedarville (Boat Ramp A)
  7. 1200: Rutgers (Boat Ramp B)
  8. 1200: Wake Forest (Boat Ramp C)
  9. 1300: Stony Brook (Boat Ramp B)
  10. 1300: Washington College (Boat Ramp A)
  11. 1300: GW (Boat Ramp C)
  12. 1400: Princeton (Boat Ramp A)

Wednesday: Budget Warriors Heats

  1. 1430: Quinnipiac (Boat Ramp B)
  2. 1430: URI (Boat Ramp C)
  3. 1430: ODU (Boat Ramp D)

Thursday, April 16

0815: Mandatory Operators Meeting at Sound System

Thursday: Unmanned Open Heats

  1. 900: UCF (Course A)
  2. 900: Georgia (Course A)
  3. 900: East Carolina (Course A)
  4. 1000: UCONN (Course A)
  5. 1000: Auburn (Course A)
  6. 1100: Buffalo (Course A)
  7. 1100: Mass Maritime (Course A)
  8. 1100: Alabama (Course A)
  9. 1200: Harrisburg (Course A)
  10. 1200: Kentucky (Course A)
  11. 1200: FAU (Course A)
  12. 1300: Arkansas Tech (Course A)
  13. 1300: Texas A&M (Course A)
  14. 1400: Toledo (Course A)
  15. 1400: Elon (Course A)
  16. 1400: Iowa (Course A)
  17. 1100: Delaware (Course A)
  18. 1300: Madison College (Course A)

Thursday: Unmanned Autonomy Heats *

* Note: Only one boat will be on the course at a time. So Boat 1 will run their race, and then Boat 2 will start their race. The times listed here are approximate start times. At PEP25, we ran significantly ahead of schedule after 1100, and we hope that the boats will race quickly and this schedule will be compressed.

  1. 0900: Kentucky (Course B)
  2. 0900: Norfolk State (Course B)
  3. 1000: JHU (Course B)
  4. 1000: William & Mary (Course B)
  5. 1000: Illinois (Course B)
  6. 1100: University of Virginia (Course B)
  7. 1100: Howard (Course B)
  8. 1200: Northeastern (Course B)
  9. 1200: Princeton (Course B)
  10. 1200: Virginia Tech (Course B)
  11. 1300: Stevens (Course B)
  12. 1300: ODU (Course B)
  13. 1400: Longwood (Course B)
  14. 1400: North Carolina State University (Course B)
  15. 1400: VCU (Course B)
  16. 1500: PITT (Course B)
  17. 1500: Stony Brook (Course B)

Thursday: Unmanned Over-the-Horizon Heats

  1. 1000: North Carolina State University (Course A)
  2. 1200: Kentucky (Course A)
Making PEP26 Happen for you.

Our Partners.

Office Of Naval Research Logo
American Society of Naval Engineers logo
HRMTS Logo
Camput 757 logo
Internships Virginia logo

Thank you PEP26 sponsors!

General Dynamics Bath Iron Works
Office of Naval Research - Science & Technology
Corrosion X
LQInsight
Sunrez - Curing at The Speed of Light
UltraTech International, Inc

Pep Competitors

  • University of Alabama
  • Arkansas Tech University
  • Auburn University
  • University at Buffalo
  • Cedarville University
  • Central Connecticut State University
  • University of Delaware
  • University of Dayton
  • University of Georgia
  • Howard University
  • East Carolina University
  • Elon University
  • University of Illinois
  • Longwood University
  • Massachusetts Maritime Academy
  • Madison Area Technical College
  • NC State University
  • Northeastern University
  • Old Dominion University
  • Princeton University
  • Harrisburg University
  • University of Pittsburgh
  • University of Rhode Island
  • Stony Brook University
  • University of Connecticut
  • Quinnipiac University
  • Rutgers University
  • Stevens Institute of Technology
  • University of Tennessee
  • Texas A&M University
  • Florida Atlantic University
  • Johns Hopkins University
  • University of Kentucky
  • University of Virginia
  • Wake Forest University
  • University of Iowa
  • University of Michigan
  • Virginia Commonwealth
  • University Virginia Tech
  • William & Mary
  • Washington College
  • George Washington University
  • Norfolk State University
  • University of Toledo
  • Carnegie Mellon University
  • University of Central Florida