Our Team
My name is Omar, and my Kinetics history goes back to 1996 when I witnessed my first Kinetics race at Boulder Reservoir. Crazy teams building human powered crafts to go over land and water, A-list bands performing right on the beach, and scantily clad young women running around all over the place. What’s not to like?
After several years of good intentions, I finally got around to building a craft which was entered in the 2006 race. Katherine, my significant other, and I took an inexpensive bicycle, some PVC pipe, and a massive amount of Styrofoam and created our first Kinetics craft. We were “Tippy” and “Tappy,” the Official Government Surveillance Mascots. It was an unqualified success– our parade skit got booed off half way through, the craft itself fell apart after 10 feet in the water, and we won the “What were they thinking award.”
OK, so our first year was a bit of a learning experience. PVC pipe is not really designed to be a structural material. Testing our craft in the water before the race can point out critical design flaws. Our skit wasn’t funny enough. After the race ended we dragged what was left of the craft back home and worked on a game plan for 2007.
We allocated a few weeks after the race to recover from the physical, mental, and psychological demands of the race. By the middle of June 2006 we were back in the garage getting our craft in shape. We kept the bicycle and most of the framework. The Styrofoam floats were completely redesigned. When all was said and done, our craft consisted of a bicycle frame surrounded by four large Styrofoam wheels. Our team name was “Back In Time” and our craft was painted to look like a covered wagon. And this version was water tested before the race.
It all paid off on race day. Not only did the craft float, but I was able to peddle my way through about 75 percent of the course. Some design issues slowed me down in the water, so I wasn’t able to finish the race in the time alloted, but I suppose that gives us something to work on for 2008. Also our new skit was a big hit at the parade. By that I mean we didn’t get kicked off stage. We also won the “Unique Style of Propulsion” award for the design of the Styrofoam wheels with integrated paddles.