Baltimore Kinetic Sculpture Race |
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Gone Phishin’
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Gone Phishin’ brought a mash-up of fish and phishing to life in kinetic sculpture. For this madcap visual, kinetic, and performance art, the judges awarded Team 1800 Lbs the coveted Art Award. Look closely and you'll see one pilot is talking on a phone, just after crossing the starting line at AVAM. |
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A sign atop their sculpture enthusiastically beckoned spectators to call their phone number. Cheerful crocheted cephalopods dangled nearby. |
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Anytime someone called this phone number, it rang to an old-fashioned Western Electric 500 rotary dial landline telephone fastened to the sculpture. There’s something soothing about an old-fashioned phone ringing and hearing a real human voice on the other side. Team members answered over 400 calls throughout the day. Even while the sculpture was in motion, foot brakes enabled one of the two pilots to pick up the phone while driving. Callers were pitched dubious schemes including extended warranty policies, resolution of unpaid traffic citations if the caller provided “the middle 3 digits of your social security number and your dog’s prescription medication”, and timeshares for an exclusive resort island “just south of Antarctica”. |
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These 6-foot wheels were originally the medium size of 3 wheel diameters from Loose Cannon & the Gun Show Collective in 2013 (thirteen years ago!). They’re hand-made tubular steel rolled into a circle, with the cable spokes tension trued using turnbuckles. For traction, they’re wrapped in kernmantle rope that was brightly colored until they met the mud. |
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Hold on, I’ve got another call. |
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This chassis retained last year’s foot-operated friction caliper stagecoach brakes, but also added a fancy new handlebar hydraulic disc brakes from a motorcycle scrapyard. |
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The Rampmaster sounded the purple trombone once a sculpture was cleared to enter the water. |
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All it takes to create a great splash are a forward-facing surface on the sculpture to plow the water, and a strong enough frame not to crumple under intense stress. |
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The rear drive wheel on land also served as a paddlewheel on water. For water steering, each pilot powered an independent 16-inch propeller that went forward or backward to provide superb differential-drive maneuverability. Even when one side failed (set screws loosened, the same lesson resolved just this year on Meep Meep above), one bi-directional propeller still provided smooth steering. |
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Their mandatory sock creature was a bubble-blowing googly-eyed octopus. Here’s their anachronistic wizardry connecting the desk dial phone to the modern 5G cellular network, complete with USB and POTS power in a waterproof box. Somebody should submit Gone Phishin’ to the 2600 Hacker Quarterly. |
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They needed pushing through the sand and mud. One key requirement is that those pushing need someplace to push that’s directly connected to the chassis frame. A semicircle welded to the frame of this sculpture in 2025 continued to do the trick, compared to challenges faced in 2024. |
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Even with five pit crew members pushing on the hoop, and the two pilots pedaling as hard as they could, another crew member cranked on the wheel itself to get through the mud. Watch your fingers! |
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Smiles all around, and maybe a bit chilly. |
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Team 1800 Lbs has entered sixteen times since 2007:
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| Want to See the Next Race? For an email reminder 1 month before the race on Saturday 1 May 2027, and when the 2027 Spectator’s Guide is available, join the Spectator Mailing List! |
| Were you in the race? Please contact Tom Jones if you have anything to add or update, or would like high-res photos of your team’s entry. |