By Krystal Smalley
ksmalley@wbcowqel.com

Colonel Crawford pulled the upset on Crestline Wednesday in the annual Great Cardboard Boat Regatta.

After the Bulldogs dominated the competition at the William Ferrell Natatorium for the past four years, the Eagles decided to capitalize on their home pool advantage. By the time the races finished – including an Administrators Race between Buckeye Central principal Mike Martin and Crestline principal Keith Strickler – Colonel Crawford doubled their points lead to win the competition and take home the Traveling Oar.

The Best Engineered boat went to the Colonel Crawford team of Alan Leonhardt, Reis Walker, and Andrew Daubenspeck.

“We really just wanted to make it look like an actual boat,” explained Leonhardt. “We used Gorilla tape to just waterproof it and stuff like that. We had pontoons on the side to make it float pretty good.”

The group of students representing Buckeye Central may have been small in number, but they were mighty in their creativity and designs. The crew of Zoe Rutledge, Makayla Aichholz, and Maddie Gannon took home top prize for Most Creative with a giant duck while a team duo placed third in the Best Engineered category.

Buckeye Central physics teacher Brenda Ruffing was happy with the results her small class produced, especially since it was only the school’s second year in the competition.

“I think it’s wonderful. The girls did a great job. They worked the last month to put these boats together. They were well constructed,” Ruffing said.

She believed the Buckeye Central teams could have won the buoyancy competition if they would have had a few football-sized students to help add weight.

“That makes a difference there, but the girls did great. It feels great to be able to get third place with five girls. I think next year we’ll just bring more boats and hopefully move up in the placings,” said Ruffing.

The Lucas trio of sophomores Treylehn Hart and Michelle Flannigan, and freshman Jonathan Sparks drew sounds of awe when they set their boat in the water.

“I think we did this because I’ve never seen anybody do that before. Just a new idea,” said Hart.

The ingenious new idea saw Hart towing himself down the lane with nothing more than a chain of duct tape and a cardboard gear. Though he only made one successful lap with the chain and gear – the teeth of the pulley became too waterlogged to continue that way for the next two laps – Hart and his team were happy with the day.

“We made two gears and then a belt chain. We just put little slits in it so the slits would sink into the teeth and just go around and push the paddle,” Hart explained. “The first time was great. I thought I was going to do fine until it got waterlogged.”

“We should’ve countered for duct taping our actual teeth on our gears, but we thought it’d be okay because it wouldn’t hit water,” Sparks added.

Hart and Flannigan will not be able to compete in the Cardboard Boat Regatta next year, but Sparks has already planned on the corrections that need to be made.

“I would definitely figure out a new axle setup. Instead of just running it with one belt, I would run two belts that way we could sit back all the way on our boat and use a crank system instead of just . . . grabbing the chain,” Sparks said.

PHOTO GALLERY: The Great Cardboard Boat Regatta 2017

Results from the Great Cardboard Boat Regatta:
Fastest:
1st – Colonel Crawford #9
2nd – Colonel Crawford #1
3rd – Crestline #2
Most Buoyant:
1st – Lucas (693 pounds)
2nd – Crestline (614 pounds)
3rd – Crestline (572 pounds)
Most Creative:
1st – Buckeye Central #2
2nd – Colonel Crawford #6
3rd – Lucas #8
Best Engineered:
1st – Colonel Crawford #8
2nd – Lucas #4
3rd – Buckeye Central #1
Overall:
1st – Colonel Crawford (22 points)
2nd – Lucas (11 points)
3rd – Buckeye Central
4th – Crestline

RELATED CONTENT: Crestline takes home top honors again at Boat Regatta | The Great Cardboard Boat Regatta 2016 (photos) | Enthusiasm, determination floats boats at regatta | The Great Cardboard Boat Regatta 2015 (photos) | Crestline takes home top prize in the Cardboard Boat Regatta | The Great Cardboard Boat Regatta 2014 (photos)