K is for Kinetic Sculpture Race

 

April marks the 15th anniversary of my blog, so during the A-Z blogging challenge, I will be sharing previous posts from over 2,000 I have written.

For a while, I wrote a Thankful Sunday post every Sunday. I would elaborate on one thing I was thankful for. On this Sunday in May in 2019, I was thankful for the good time I had at the Kinetic Sculpture Race. The races are held on the first Saturday in May every year, so it's coming up soon. I hope we can work it into our schedule again because you never know what you will see, and it's always a fun time.

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I am thankful for a fun day!

Last weekend, Ward and I went with another couple to the Kinetic Sculpture Race in Baltimore. The Kinetic Sculpture Race is one of those things that you have to experience to really understand, but I'll give it a try. It's a 14-mile race with human-powered vehicles that have to go on road, through water, through sand, and through mud. That's the kinetic part of it. The sculpture part is that all of the vehicles are sculpted and decorated, usually embracing the theme for the year. There are prizes at the end, the most coveted one being the finisher in dead middle.

Another way to describe the race is as a fun, festive, silly way to spend the day with lots of smiling people.

The day was perfect weather-wise, with overcast skies and temperatures in the 70s. It was the second time for Ward and I to attend the race so we were able to show the ropes to our friends. They were particularly interested in the engineering of the racers since they coach a kids' team that builds and races human-powered submarines.

I've heard that a picture is worth a thousand words, and in this case, that might be true. Below is a sampling of pictures to give you a taste of the day.

We arrived early so we would be able to see the vehicles up close and talk to the crew members as they put on their final touches. 

Most vehicles were based on bicycles one way or another. However, this one used a pump car like you see on railroad tracks. They individually welded and made each part of their wheels.

On the sides of this one, you can see the flotation devices it will use when it enters the water.

The theme for the race this year was Wheel-ality TV (reality TV). These are two "Real Housewives from Uranus". That's their spaceship behind them.

Each vehicle has to to through a safety check including a brake check where it has to stop on a dime. (The silver cardboard disc on the ground is the 'dime'.)

This was a Hammerhead Shark entry. It was one of several shark themes.

There were teams of all ages from kids to veteran-race adults. The teams came from schools, businesses, and groups of friends who thought it looked like it might be fun to try the race.

You got information for the day from anyone with a chicken. They could be holding a chicken or dressed like one like you see in the background.

This member of security was quite popular in his gold velveteen suit.

The opening ceremonies included the blessing of the feet of the pilots. There was also a drum corp and pom squad from a local high school, an adult chorus that sang the National Anthem and a medley of TV theme songs, the lighting of the Kenetic Torch, and silly speeches. 

After going through local neighborhoods, the race proceeded to the harbor. There contestants entered and exited the water on boat ramps on either side of a pier. This was always a touch and go situation as capsizing and errant steering happen more often than the racers would like. Some entries ended up being pulled by a rope to complete the water portion.

This entry did pretty well. BTW, the wings were done with a 3-D printer.

Always a crowd pleaser is Tic-Toc the Croc. Because of its length (35'), it had to go pretty far beyond the pier to make the turn.

Fifi, the mascot of the race, is an old hand at maneuvering through the different obstacles.

As the day went on, the crowds got larger. Here they're waiting for the next racer to enter the mud pit. After the harbor, the racers go to a park where they go through a sand pit then a mud pit.

The mud was quite a challenge for many of the teams.

We also had fun watching the kids in the mud pit
when the racers finished.

After the mud pit, we were tired, so we headed home with talk of next year's race and the team we might enter one day. So for this day of fun, I am thankful.

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Until next time...