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inside.hokiesports.com
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thletes at Virginia Tech have rigorous
schedules that call for the ability to multitask
their academic requirements and athletics
commitments. For junior Brooks Wilding, that usually
means only four to five hours of sleep on certain nights.
Wilding not only wrestles for the Virginia Tech
wrestling program, but he also is pursuing a degree in
aerospace engineering, which includes being a part of the
Hyperloop project at Virginia Tech. His commitment to all
this hard work and dedication comes from his parents.
“My parents are the two biggest motivators inmy life,” Wilding
said. “From a really young age, they instilled the importance of
hard work and not giving up. Whether it’s walking onto the wrestling
team, or balancing a really busy schedule, that’s one of the things they
taught me.”
Wilding grew up in Upper St. Clair, Pennsylvania, which sits just
south of Pittsburgh. Growing up, he watched his two older brothers get
involved with the sport of wrestling, and Wilding followed suit. Sports
played an important role in his childhood, as Wilding also participated
in baseball, football, swimming, track and field and even golf.
Not only did he find success on the playing fields, but he also excelled
in school from an early age.
“I was always good at school,” Wilding said. “My mom would make
us do homework in the summer growing up. From a young age, I just
developed a like for learning.”
Such a desire for learning has fueled Wilding’s interest in one of the
more intriguing projects happening on Virginia Tech’s campus today.
Not too long after arriving in Blacksburg, Wilding became involved with
a project designed to create a fifth mode of transportation for the world.
Brooks Wilding is trying to make a name for
himself on the mat and in the classroom, and the
aerospace engineering major is a part of a Virginia
Tech team working on a rather cool project
by
Nathan Loprete
Special to Inside Hokie Sports
The Hyperloop project, started by businessman Elon Musk, calls
for getting people from places such as Washington D.C. to New York
City in 30 minutes. The project incorporates reduced-pressure tubes
in which pressurized capsules ride on air bearings propelled by linear
induction motors and air compressors.
In other words, this is some heady stuff – only for the smartest and
most creative of Tech students.
Musk founded SpaceX, an aerospace manufacturer and space
transport services company, and he announced a design competition
in 2015 – and Virginia Tech went to work. The team placed fourth,
which allowed it to start the build phase. In January of 2017, the team
competed in the first full-pod competition at SpaceX headquarters in
Los Angeles, California, and again, the group finished fourth.
Wilding joined the team in February to help prepare for the next
competition in August. The team finished seventh after some early
struggles, but looks to bounce back moving forward. For Wilding,
the opportunity to work on such an elite project makes the time
commitment worthwhile.
“For me, it shows how blessed I am to go to school at Virginia Tech,
where you have these opportunities,” Wilding said. “I didn’t really
know what being an engineering major in college was going to look
like. Being able to be a part of a solid team like Hyperloop, it really
shows how strong our academic prowess really is.”
Wilding’s work ethic, fostered at a young age, led him to take harder
math and science classes in high school, and ultimately, created his
current passion in engineering. However, originally Virginia Tech
wasn’t the school on his radar when it came time to choosing a college,
even though both of his parents went to Tech.
Being able to be a part of a solid team like
Hyperloop, it really shows how strong our
academic prowess really is.
Brooks Wilding
on being a part of Tech’s Hyperloop project
GRAPPLING
WITH
MORE
THAN HIS
SPORT
”
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