TO BUILD A BETTER MOUSETRAP

Teachers measured the distance each vehicle traveled. Brennan's victory run outdistanced her official mark by 1 foot.

Best of Show winners from the Mousetrap Derby were, from left, Andy Pekios, Jefferson School, third place; Tara Duncan, Clippard School, first place; and Travis Weems, Clippard, second place.

Cape Girardeau sixth-graders used their knowledge of kinetic energy, friction, texture and physics to build a vehicle powered by a mousetrap.

Casey Brennan's contraption traveled more than 55 feet Saturday to capture top honors in the second annual Mousetrap Derby. She broke the distance record by seven feet.

Her mousetrap hot rod used plastic coasters for wheels and a glass tube for the axle, but Brennan said the secret to her vehicle's long-distance run may have been the dental floss used to propel the wheels. She experimented with all kind of strings, normal dental floss, fishing line, but the special floss she uses on her braces worked best.

The other secret was the glass tubing, which offered no friction, said Brennan, a student at Franklin School. All the energy went to move the vehicle, she explained. All went well during trial runs Friday. But then the car fell off her desk and the glass rod shattered. A repair job Friday night fixed up the vehicle for Saturday's race-off.

Nikki Burton's vehicle traveled more than 43 feet on old 45 vinyl record wheels for a second place finish. Her secret is graphite on the wheels to reduce friction, making the vehicle roll faster and farther. She is a student at Franklin School.

Stephen Stahr, a student at Alma Schrader, also found a use for old record albums as wheels for his hot rod. His family's record player is broken anyway, he confided. His vehicle traveled more than 30 feet for third place.

He used small 45 records for front wheels and full length albums for the rear wheels. Stahr explained that the big wheels allowed more distance for each revolution, maximizing the energy of the mousetrap.

After his first run, Stahr's car blew an engine (the string broke). He spent some time in the pits, the vehicle traveled the distance.

In addition to a contest for distance, some sixth-graders entered mousetrap vehicles for show.

Tara Duncan from Clippard School won first place with a cute little vehicle with feathers and eyelashes driven by a miniature mouse.

Travis Weems from Clippard won second place with a vehicle that looked a lot like a mouse, and Andy Pekios from Jefferson School won third with his tough-looking dragster.

Express Tire and Auto sponsored the event and provided trophies for the winners.

Students competed at each elementary school Friday, and finalists advanced to the Saturday morning derby. On Saturday all the vehicles moved, although some rolled little more than a foot.

Sixth-grade teachers Mark Cook and Stan Seiler concocted the districtwide competition.

Seiler, who teaches at Alma Schrader, said the project teaches problem solving, the scientific method and gives students a chance to be creative.

"They are also applying their knowledge of simple machines," he said.

Cook, who teaches at Franklin, said one entry used a slingshot method of propulsion he hadn't seen before. Students at the school level tried all sorts of vehicles, including unicycles and one with a styrofoam ball as the single wheel.

The project draws in parents who help students build their vehicles. Cook said parental involvement is encouraged. "I think it's great when parents sit down with their child and take the time to help," he said.

About 100 parents and sibling turned out Saturday morning to cheer on the competitors in the final round, including winning racer Casey Brennan's mother, Kathy, who was on hand with camera in tow to capture the victory for posterity.