The Teams are Chosen. The Wheels are Spinning. Red Bull Dragsterday is Revving up for Race Day!
Thirty-Two Teams Selected to Build Human-Powered Dragsters
DETROIT, Aug. 9 -- The wait is over! The results are in! After hours of poring over more than one hundred would-be drag racers' applications, a panel of judges has decided on 32 teams -- from 14 states across the U.S. -- clever and quick enough to compete in Red Bull Dragsterday. Crafts in all shapes and sizes rolling on three, five, and nine wheels will speed down Woodward Avenue in downtown Detroit on September 10, 2005, in the hope of winning the Grand Prize: an ultimate drag-racing experience at Frank Hawley's NHRA Drag Racing School.
PEDALS AND PONIES AT A DRAG RACE?
Red Bull Dragsterday will require more than just clever engineering and speed. The teams will also be judged on the creativity of their construction and the power of their presentation. Based on individual pre-qualifying runs, the drivers will be placed in single-elimination duels to work their way up through (or out of) brackets until the two fastest vehicles remain. However, what a team lacks in engineering wizardry may be made up for in the imaginative style of their design (which, come to think of it, doesn't even have to look like a car). With entries including "Pedaljet," "Horse-Drawn Dragster," "Rodent Racer," and the "Pope Mobile," it's evident that this contest is all about the complete package.
A few of our drivers have competed in the airborne equivalent of Dragsterday known as Red Bull Flugtag. Flugtag, which means "flying day" in German, is a contest featuring teams who construct handmade, human-powered flying machines that are piloted, dragged, or pushed off a 25-foot ramp into bodies of water such as Lake Michigan, the Hudson River, and Lake Erie. Kirk Marshall, who participated in both the New York and Cleveland Red Bull Flugtag events, says, "It's fun to create something and see if it functions, and since the Dragsterday concept is a little more 'down to earth' than flying, we can actually test our entry and look forward to the chance to race it." Kirk and his team of students from the technology program at Bloomsburg Area High School in Bloomsburg, PA, will be racing the "Rock 'n' Row" dragster.
WHAT? NO GIANT RUBBER BANDS?
Now that our amateur drivers and their pit crews have been selected, they will begin to construct the crazy crafts that will race down the 1/8-mile course. However, there are a few rules of the road that they'll need to follow. First, entries must be made by hand and propelled by humans. Absolutely no version of "stored energy" is allowed: in other words, no rubber bands, batteries or electricity, internal combustion, or solar power; and, of course, no pulley anchors or any other objects may be placed on the street. Acceptable types of propulsion include pedals, gears, wind, internal pulleys, and so on. Vehicles must incorporate at least three wheels, and the dimensions must not exceed 6 feet in width and 20 feet in length.
The Grand Prize is the ultimate drag racing experience at Frank Hawley's NHRA Drag Racing School in Pomona, CA (or cash equivalent of $7,500). Second Prize is a behind-the-scenes, VIP trip to the Indianapolis 500 with Red Bull Cheever Racing (or cash equivalent of $3,000), and Third Prize is a challenging weekend at the Chicago Autobahn Country Club in Joliet, IL (or cash equivalent of $1,500). In addition, there will be a special prize awarded for both the People's Choice and Most Creative Vehicle.
To get a sneak peek of the dragsters, check out the sketchbook at www.redbulldragsterday.com.
LIST OF DRAGSTERS Dragster Name Captain Name Hometown Rock 'n' Row Kirk Marshall Bloomsburg, PA Heidelberg Hotwheel David Lamberti Berkley, MI Wings Neville Chicago, IL Executor Brad McCormick Indianapolis, IN Cyclepathz Special Paul Bailey Boulder, CO Ride for Your Lives Mark Roberts Louisville, KY Batmobile Dave Sadowsky Petersburg, NY Scuderia Pelotas Rossa Dutch Mandel Detroit, MI 105.9 JAMZ Carolyn Austin Detroit, MI You're Doing What on my Due Date?! Nathan Nelson Hazel Park, MI Fly'n Cow Pie Chris Yates Peoria, AZ Pope Mobile Marti Mercuri Reynoldsburg, OH The Creepster Len Von Speedcult New Boston, MI Well 'n' Doughed Joseph Holtzer Eustis, FL Lady Red Bull Asa Gbur Rocky River, OH Coyote's Revenge Todd Volkmer Stow, OH Stanley's Steamer Chad Malec Royal Oak, MI Bull Rustler Frank Judd Rochester, MI Iron Yuppies Caleb Horn Genoa City, WI Blue Devil Baja Raymond Ziegler Southfield, MI Formula One Nathan Schneider Cincinnati, OH Rodent Racer Michael Duff Canton, MI El Matador Robert Carrier New Baltimore, MI Revenge of the Schwartz Nick Underland Portland, OR Super Asurada 01 Morgan Kollin Rochester, MI Matador Tim Dedrick Canton, MI Red Flash Steven Belter Hartland, WI Big Pimpin Mark Wacker Olmsted Twp, OH Drag Bike Steve Gaskey Orange, CA Horse-Drawn Dragster Ronald Jacobs Ferndale, MI The Brown Bomber Kevin Brace Detroit, MI Pedal Jet Amber Charles Dawsonville, GA