By Gary Ogle
gogle@wbcowqel.com
The waves were rolling and water was churning Wednesday at Colonel Crawford’s William Ferrell Natatorium. But it had nothing to do with the weather.
It was the annual Great Cardboard Boat Regatta for students in Pioneer satellite industrial arts classes at Colonel Crawford, Crestline, and Lucas.
“This is our sixth year,” said Crestline teacher Keith Strickler. “This year we have 31 teams and 92 kids participating. It’s the biggest yet.”
Using cardboard, duct tape and plastic, students designed boats and put them to the test by racing them up and down the pool. Races are conducted one-on-one in heats. Each team selects a member to paddle the boat using a single oar.
“The number one thing is problem solving,” Strickler said about the educational value of the event that is obviously a lot fun for students and a chance to get out of the classroom and into the pool. “They do a lot with measurements and building structures – how do you have something flat and fold it up into a three-dimensional structure.”
Strickler noted there were also concepts discussed in science and physics classes that come into play like displacement, buoyancy, and volume.
Retired Colonel Crawford teacher and administrator Ted Bruner has served as the official starter for each of the regattas and was on hand again Wednesday with his finger on the buzzer. It wasn’t hard for him to identify what he enjoyed most about the event that combines fun with learning.
“Just the kids, they have such a great time,” Bruner said. “Whether they are athletes or engineers, they have a lot of fun and take great pride in their boats.”
One of the boats that Bruner pointed out was a Crestline entry dubbed the Crestline Fire Brigade. One of its unique features was a pump on the stern that sprayed water as the boat went down the pool.
Colonel Crawford student Nash Mollenkopf said his team also tried a unique approach.
“Mostly just trying to do something unique. We went for a circular boat. I haven’t really seen any other boats do that,” Mollenkopf said. “The hardest part of that will be getting it moving and beat the competition.”
There was definitely competition and here are the results:
Fastest:
1st – Crestline team: Olivia Lentz, Marina Kaanova, Cody Cooke, Haylee Black, and Ciara Gray (177 seconds)
2nd – Colonel Crawford Boat #13 (184 seconds)
3rd – Crestline Boat #5 (185 seconds)
Most creative:
1st – Colonel Crawford boat #6 (dragon)
2nd – Crestline boat #4 (racing boat)
3rd (two-way tie) – Colonel Crawford boat #11 (plane) and Crestline boat #2 (fire brigade)
Best engineered:
1st (three-way tie) – Colonel Crawford boat #3, Crestline #4, Crestline #5
2nd – Colonel Crawford boat #2
3rd – Colonel Crawford boat #1
Most buoyant
1st – Colonel Crawford boat #13
A photo gallery from the event can be found on the Photo page.