It was an auspicious start to an event that kept the committee in suspense until the registrations came in on Friday, what with teachers' action and soccer tournaments potentially affecting participation. Not to worry, many bridge builders brought their bridges and many people observed the 'crushing' of the bridges at the Sechelt Seniors' Centre, last Saturday, March 10.
Several categories of contestants filled the hall to witness the strongest of the entries. Both traditional and suspension bridges were submitted.
Two testing rigs were set up to measure the number of kilos of force exerted on the models. One was as high as 240 kilos of force submitted by Liam Watson in the family category. Prizes totalling around $2,200 were given out for strength and design aesthetics as well as for strength for elementary, secondary, family/team and open/adult categories. The elementary winning entry exerted more than 162 kilos of force. Model building is part of the school curriculum for children in grades 3 to 7. Schools were encouraged to submit students' models.
Other models on display came from Chatelech Secondary School and from some local professional model builders. This added to the event by providing ideas for locals to consider taking up as a hobby: building robots, cars, planes, etc.
Mike Bakst, the mastermind behind this event, commented on the reasons for his bringing Popsicle bridge building to our community
"We need to encourage young people to test the waters of engineering careers," said Bakst. "Canada needs many trainees in the trades as engineers and skilled technicians. If the young people experience the fun and enjoyment of creating a model, they might consider a career in building the real thing."
To fuel thoughts on careers were educational displays and counsellors from both UBC and BCIT on hand to talk about just that topic: careers in engineering and technical studies. As well, women in engineering was a focal point in a presentation made by UBC engineering student Katherine Dennert.
Some bridge builders, who didn't manage to build strong bridges this time, were each presented with a package of 150 Popsicle sticks as encouragement to practise for their entry into the 3rd annual Popsicle bridge building contest next year.
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