Middle schoolers making their move in global contest

When DiDi Starrett, Blake Kidd, Yale Gerber, Prithvi Rudrappa and Jimmy and Cory Chisholm sat down to design and build a vehicle, there seemed to be a world of possibilities to consider.

Should it be powered by air? By water? By a bowling ball?

That's how their first model began, with a seesaw/pump vehicle that moved forward as a bowling ball rolled down one side.

"That proved, well, inefficient," explained 12-year-old Blake.

And then, the six boys from Central Middle School struck gold. They talked a local business into donating a junked wheelchair to their cause. The wheelchair wheels were attached to the back of a tricycle, the battery-powered motor was installed and, voila!

"Even though it wasn't built for racing, it still goes fast," said 10-year-old Cory.

About 5 miles per hour, in fact, but it was enough to earn the team first place in Destination ImagiNation's regional competition and second place in the state competition.

DI, as the competition is better known, is an international problem-solving contest with categories for students in kindergarten through college.

The Central Middle School team now qualifies for the global competition coming up in May in Knoxville, Tenn.

This year's competition involved building a vehicle not powered by human strength and then completing various "side trips" and other tasks at the tournament level. The Cape Girardeau boys began work on their vehicle in September.

They learned about resistors, ohms and, perhaps most important, teamwork.

"We learned the importance of cooperation and how it helps in this kind of situation," Blake said.

"Well, we learned how to act like we were cooperating," added Jimmy.

All first- and second-place winners from the state competition qualify to go on to the global competition. Nearly 15,000 students of all ages will participate, and each team has to pay a $3,000 entry fee.

The six boys are currently trying to raise the money. For information about donating, contact the Cape Girardeau Public Schools Foundation at 651-0555 or go to www.capeschools.org.

cmiller@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 128