Power Wheels Racing

Where should I start explaining what the heck this is?
How about the quick version: adults (with the hearts of three year olds) armed with welding equipment and various power tools modify little kiddy cars to race around a track against other teams at the Maker Faire (yes it has an E at the end and it's still pronounced fair).  There are some rules: you can't spend over five hundred dollars on your vehicle, it can't be a gas motor (for safety reasons), etc.

Last year I cobbled one together and took it to the Maker Faire in Detroit Michigan (that being the closest).  The vehicle I started out with was a blue kids quad so of course I had to give it a TARDIS theme.

 It didn't end up looking much like the TARDIS but I plan on souping it up for this year.

It wasn't the fastest... in fact it was the second or third slowest, but being Doctor Who themed and being in a crowd of nerds* this helped out.  This the other thing that makes Power Wheels racing so fun.  They have a few different awards.  There's the medal for being the fastest (of course), then there are moxie points, an electronic board with buttons for each team is passed around through the crowd and they can vote for their favorite team.  Thanks to there being an abundance of Whovians there I got quite a few votes, that and I threw candy out to the crowd (yes you can bribe the audience, and yes it is legal in this racing series).

Just recently I went to an auction where they sell just about anything you can imagine, from quads and lawn mowers, to furniture, to antiques, toys, etc.  This was the same auction where I got the original kids quad to make for last years faire.  Anyway just a few weeks ago I went back and found myself the proud owner of a small go-kart frame (among other various sundry things).

This frame will serve as a great chassis for my new and improved racer.  The Detroit Faire will be taking place in July so I only have a few precious weeks to work on this.  Which brings me to an important announcement: I'm going to be slacking off on my blog for a while until after the faire.  I'll still try and post every now and then but obviously I am going to be missing a few weeks.  So have a fun summer.  Come visit the Maker Faire closest to you if you get a chance (you will not be disappointed, even if you don't make a bunch of stuff yourself it's still lots of fun to see what other people have made).  And I'll write to you later!

*When I use the terms geek or nerd to describe someone it is a very high compliment and should not be taken offensively.

If you want to learn more about the Maker Faire, where the closest location for you is or just to see what it's about, you can check out these links:
makerfaire.com
www.facebook.com/MakerFaireDetroit

And while you're at it if you want to see more of a behind the scenes look at what goes into building one of these racers follow my facebook page:
www.facebook.com/MyPowerWheelsRacingTeam