The White Falcon - 18.06.1993, Blaðsíða 4

Seniors use minds, odds and ends to build winning car
Story and photo by
J03 (SW) Andreas Walter
Clockwise from lower left: Westervelt, Reaves, Butler, Allen, Riggs and Barnthouse.
Packing crates, discarded bicycles, card-
board and various odds and ends. Not mate-
rials one would think of used to construct an
award-winning human-powered vehicle.
Yet, six A.T. Mahan High School seniors
set out to tackle a program called ‘Pit Stop*.
This is a part of the Department of Defense
Dependant’s school (DoDDs)-wide Odys-
sey of the Mind program, a think-tank of
sorts for students in the elementary through
high school levels. Participants employ long
term problem-solving methods and group
strategy to overcome various obstacles that
require a whole bunch of mental exercise.
“The objective of ‘Pit Stop’ is to design,
construct and drive a vehicle powered by a
mechanical jack, all for under $100. The
vehicle is required to travel around a marked
course and make one or more pit stops,” said
Bill Riggs, coordinator of Odyssey and multi-
course instructor at the high school.
“I am the coordinator for the students. I
can listen to their concerns and respond to
their questions, yet I am not allowed to actu-
ally help with the thought process or the
construction,” Riggs added.
Thestudents: MattandEmily Allen,Token
Barnthouse, Todd Butler, Brandon Reaves
and Will Westervelt, have spent countless
after-school and weekend hours brainstorm-
ing, designing and constructing the vehicle.
“The steering mechanism is salvaged from
a scooter. The handlebars will be foot oper-
ated because we need to power the vehicle by
hand,” Barnthouse explained.
The students built the frame of the convey-
ance from discarded packing crates. The
platform serves as a seat for the driver and
various anchor points for the front end, jack
mechanism and rear axle.
“The wheels come from junked bicycles.
We needed help to have an axle welded for
the two rear wheels,” Allen said.
The power for the vehicle is required to
come from a mechanical jack. Participants
may use bumper jacks or scissors jacks such
as those from automobiles. This does not
exclude home made designs, a route that the
Mahan seniors chose to take.
“The team figured out a crank-type device
similar to an automobile engine crankshaft.
Once the ‘car’ is mobile, the driver pushes
and pulls on the three-foot wooden arm to
propel it,” Riggs explained.
The process is also used to move the ma-
chine in reverse, a feat which the driver must
demonstrate for at least four feet. Five laps of
the course are required for scoring.
In addition to their driving skills, the stu-
dents are graded on the creativity of the
design, their theme and the overall appear-
ance of the car. The participants can also,
lose points for unsportsmanlike conduct on
vehicular malfunction.
“Since starting the project in early Janu-
ary, the team has competed in two Odyssey
of the Mind competitions, the U.K. West
and the DoDDs European event, placing
first in each,” Riggs stated. “We just re-
turned from the “World” event at the Uni-
versity of Maryland, College Park, Md.,
where we placed 35th in a field of 36 com-
petitors.”
The students lost valuable points when
the body of the car disengaged from the
frame during the final lap.
Man on the Street
The White Falcon wants to know what makes your father so special?
“My father talks to me when I have a prob-
lem and is wonderful, understanding and
supportive.”
Monalisa Vlllaver, 13 years old
“He takes me places, does things for me
and helps me out when I have a problem.”
Erica Allen, 13 years old
“My father is wonderful. He is helpful, and
taught me a lot when I was young.”
Sgt Wayne Johnson, 35th Wing
“A father is your role model, as mine was.
He was a hard worker, fair and treated people
well.”
AMEl(AW) David Sumlin, VP-45
“My father provided good guidance and
direction for me.”
Sgt Darius Butler, 35th Wing
“My father took time to be with us. He
always took us on walks.”
Martina LeBlond, Air Force family
member
4
June 20 is Father’s Day
The White Falcon