Click on a thumbnail sketch to see the full size picture.

Frogasaurus Rex didn't race Arcata. We haven't been there for several years. But I thought I would visit this year to see how much had changed.

Kinetic Labs

The Kinetic Labs in Arcata is a magical place. You just have to see it to really understand what I mean. Of course it is a hotbed of activity the night before the race. Racers and their support crews finishing the decorations and costumes.

On the left Ken Beidleman was using a roller to put dappled paint onto Frill Seeker, his 40 foot iguana (including the detachable tail). At the back on the left Dwayne Flatmo was signing his creation, Extreme Makeover, and adding credits. And on the right June Moxon attached fur to Scaredy Cat while her many supporters added teeth to the dog heads for the chase crew. Meanwhile other of her supporters practiced their song and dance. And that is just three of the 8 teams that were working in the labs. Also receiving varying degrees of attention were Arcata Baywatch, Pyramid, Cheese.

The ambience is greatly enhanced by the many former KSR bodies and memorabelia hanging from the walls and ceiling and stuffed into various corners.

But beyond the flurry of activity is the general feeling of joy and excitement. Everybody is here because he wants to be. And they have purpose and direction. They are creating something of wonder. I know of no place or time that compares.

Saturday - Road and Sand

The Arcata race has a long history and is well attended. As race vehicles stream into the square the excitement grows and the large crowd presses close, making it sometimes hard to move the vehicle.

This boy was ecstatic to sit in Red Rocket.		Not a Kinetic Sculpture Racer, but this girl had a wonderful dragon puppet.
	I think this was called Cyclops. I don't know how he was able to do anything more than the road part of the race.	This is Swiss Cheese Incident. Be sure to check out the movie posted below!
The TV news was there. They are interviewing Ken, one of the regular winners of best art, and the creater of Frill Seeker.			Speaking of frequent art winners, here is Dwayne Flatmo with Extreme Makeover.
	The third frequent art winner is June Moxon, with Scaredy Cat. As well as good art, she fields the most amazing crews. Ken, Dwayne, and June are professional artists.	Peace Peddler, a fast Kinetic Sculpture Racer.
Kinetic Choo Choo by Peter Wagner. Peter started this KSR with a riding lawnmower. Back then it was called That's A Mower, Eh?			This rather unusual KSR is Unwheeldy. Dave Hershberger built this in Pasadena.
The Arcata race is well attended. This is just a small part of the crowd.			Al Krause created Whale Of A Time. Al's vehicles frequently take top speed.
	Here comes Frill Seeker	Followed by it's tail

After several miles of road there came the sand. Lots of sand.

This year there was about four miles of sand. This is an endurance test for racers. In past races there has been as much as 13 miles.
	This new route had less beach sand and more dunes, not necessarily an improvement since beach sand is often damp. Dead Mans Drop preceded by Dead Childs Drop, shown here. It is a narrow and deeply ravined descent. Very nasty.
Melvin's critters rocks up and down. They have a clever mechanism to drive it. Here Melvin is starting down Dead Man's Drop.

Dead Man's Drop is a frighteningly steep sand decline. At the bottom is a narrow path between the trees. It is important to maintain control. Alex has provided this video showing several of the KSRs going down.

The Swiss Cheese Incident, the second one shown, flipped on while going down Dead Man's Drop. Her face ended up in the sand with her helmet suffocating her. People had to remove her helmet so she could breathe.

A later vehicle to descend, Disco Inferno, fires up their flame thrower on the way down. That would be an exceptionally scary vehicle to crash!

The movie then segues into Sunday's water crossing.

	But before that, on Saturday, the KSRs collected at a town square in Eureka. I was deputized to direct traffic. I never wanted to be a cop. That experience reinforced my feelings. I really don't like telling people what to do.
While there, we nearly had a serious accident. A woman's foot got caught in wires while she was stepping off the back of the radio truck. It's a wonder she was able to keep her head from hitting the ground when she fell. We all breathed a sigh of relief that she was uninjured.

Sunday - Water and Road and Camp

	Gang Green of Team Chaos, broke up in the water. They were using the pontoon support style that I had developed in 1996 for Rex. One of the segments cantilevered out. This is the second vehicle that I know of to copy my design. And both have had trouble. I guess I've been lucky.
Henry Ford Goes Fishing was created by Elliot Naess
	Buffy the Killer Bunny was very late Sunday morning. They had many repairs that morning.

At the end of the day we all went to the campground. This is one feature of the Arcata-Ferndale race which is unique as far as I know. I think it is the only Kinetic Sculpture Race where the racers are required to camp, and to carry their camping gear on their sculpture during the race.

Naturally the camp area becomes a big party.

	Marshmallow farm next to camp. ;->	Rusted auto hulks washing up from the river.
Melvin was caught littering at water entry when a water bottle inadvertently fell from their sculture. In recompense, they collected bottles along the beach. Here she attempts to bribe her way out of the offense.			The new Rudabega Queen was crowned. This woman is hot stuff. She apparently frequents the strip join in Eureka. Her dancing at the campsite was more constrained, in consideration of the kids present.
This year had far more flame devices that I had seen in the past. As well as the KSR Disco Inferno...		we also had this remote controlled Sputter Torch
This year a new tradition started, what I am calling "Burning Chicken". One of the guys built a Kinetic Chicken sculpture on the beach and then burned it. It was quite dramatic. A tribute to Burning Man? Perhaps.

Monday

I missed the third day of the race because I needed to get back home. It included more road, another water crossing, and slimey slope. And of course, it included the awards banquet.

Unless otherwise noted, all pictures above were taken by Allen Brown.

Copyright 2005, 2006 C. Allen Brown