Surf to the Junior Summit web site for more information and for application forms. While a toboggan race might not seem overly innovative, this is one is. The mission for contestants is to design, build, and race a toboggan with a concrete running surface. Teams have to design fast, but safe, racing toboggans using a rough, brittle material. The toboggans have to be large enough to seat five people, but they must also weigh less than 136 kilograms.
Teams earn points for design, creativity, and speed.
The University of Waterloo's round toboggan was the overall first place winner. The only round toboggan in the race, the U of W racing machine was made out of a concrete and Fiberglas mix. The U of W team also took top honors for concrete mix design and technical exhibition, recorded the most spectacular run, and came in third place in the team spirit category. Imagine paying over eight million dollars for some old bones. Last October, Chicago's Field Museum of Natural History did just that.