Duct tape and cardboard boxes... = Boat!
 

My 12 year old son and his friend spent much of Christmas vacation designing and building a BOAT!
(What better way to use his 10-rolls of duct tape Christmas present) :)

http://www.dariusrudis.com/temp/IMG_1728.jpg

The Recreation Center of Livonia, Michigan held a "Cardboard and Duct Tape Boat Race". The only rules were 1) cardboard and 2) duct tape. No other materials, but not other rules either...

http://www.dariusrudis.com/temp/IMG_1791.jpg

MANY Photos:
http://www.dariusrudis.com/temp

Lukas and Drew did EXTREMELY well in the boat race.

They took 1st in the boat speed race. To say they were superior, would be an understatement, it was no contest!
They took 2nd in creativity (the silver red/white/blue one was 1st, and the dragon took 3rd)

The final contest was who could stay afloat the longest. All the regular (not sealed in duct tape) boxes "melted", and they sank. Lukas and Drew cruised around, with their water bottles (hamming it up), and just waitied and waited.
Controversy: The judge said that everyone could paddle around and get next to other boats and splash some...(thinking the movement might cause those borderline ones to sink). Later Lukas and Drew were next to a boat and slightly pushing them... judge looked at me and said that he would like to disqualify them, so that someone else could win that contest (since Lukas and Drew already won two events). I was ok with it (wont file a complaint). Lukas was quite sore about it, and almost spoiled the day, but later was ok with it.

There were aunts, uncles, cousins, neighbors, friends... = 16 people cheering on the "USS DREWKAS" (Drew & LuKAS) boat.

After the event, and walking thru the locker room, EVERYONE said "nice boat" as it was clearly superior to all the other boats there. Thanks!

They will probably be in the thursday paper, as a reporter/photographer got their names.


[Just had to be the proud papa, and show off with his son...]

Congrats!
 

Its always good to see kids building something they like for themselves, its good for them, and looks like they did a pretty good job at it too! Congrats!You should be proud.

Thats pretty cool! I'm impressed.

Dude, that's awesome! Congrats to the kids. Man, now I want a duct tape and cardboard boat. :D Great job. :)

wow, I'm impresssed.

props to the little dude!!!!:)



-Josh, aka the tireburner

Thanks for sharing that, Darius. I can only imagine how much fun those two had building their boat. He'll remember that the rest of his life. Cool.

E

umm, that gives me an idea?


Most excellent !

That is very impressive. It is good to see them involved in something like that.....you should be proud!

How cool is that?!?!?! Congrats to your son and his friend, and to you! What great engineers! I never even heard of such a thing, cardboard and duct tape boats! How cool! Which boy is your son? The one in the front or back of the boat?


I was always just happy with a big box that made a fort or a imaginary car or spaceship or something!!! If only I knew the potential! :D

My son Lukas is in the front, neighbor Andrew is in the back.

Cool!!! You guys really built a "race boat" Not surprised you won all the speed trials. The Dragon boat looks like a Mardi Gras float!

Congrats! That is cool! All those kids in the Dragon boat look funny, I'll bet it didn't last too long:D.. I bet that was a fun day!

And here I thought duct tape was only good for removing back hair..