Chariot challenge

Mary A. Castillo

A black chariot with a grinning, red-eyed monster emblem led the

crowd. It was followed by another, painted in camouflage and pulled by

three boys dressed to match.

The procession of 11 chariots rivaled the scene from “Ben Hur.”

Some were built low to the ground, one sported wooden wheels, and the

pink chariot with white boa feather trim and carpeting was quite stylish.

The event was the culmination of Mike Goodrich’s four-week lesson in

Roman history. Eleven teams of sixth-graders at Mesa View Middle School

used bicycle wheels, plywood, two-by-fours and whatever else they could

find in the garage to build their chariots. Each team was limited to one

rider and three runners.

“Ours took about a week to finish,” said Owen Tran, the rider of

Tsunami.

He admitted that during test runs they found a few problems. But he

was confident all the bugs were worked out and that they had a chance to

beat chariot No. 9.

Kevin Sellers, the rider of chariot No. 1 (a.k.a. “the shadow”),

agreed with Owen.

“We have to look out for No. 9,” he said as he tucked his bicycle

helmet under his arm.

Finally, the 11 chariots lined up in numerical order about 20 feet

from the start line. Parents with cameras and camcorders descended upon

the scene. The first four teams gavepresentations about the process of

designing and building their chariot.

“We researched books to see the type of architecture they used,” said

Andrew Paskil, one of the runners for chariot No.3.

Fellow runner Allison Dutcher explained that they didn’t use a solid

front for better aerodynamics.

When Goodrich asked Andrew how he fared being the only guy on a team

of three girls, the crowd laughed.

“It was very hard to agree, but we figured it out,” he said.

When team No. 3 wheeled its chariot back into the lineup, something

was wrong with the much-feared chariot No. 9.

Steven Tomasek, the rider, suspected sabotage.

“We won every practice run,” he said. “But when we came to school this

morning, we found a wobbly wheel.”

Two fathers came over to help. While everyone else broke for lunch,

Chris Murphy and Brandon Ishimoto removed the axle, straightened it and

then screwed the wheels back on.

Team No. 5, whose chariot was black with yellow trim and the Olympic

rings painted on the front, were less competitive.

“We just wanted to do something together,” Evelyn Hytopoulos said.

“And we thought it would be fun,” Christina Kuehn said.

Goodrich blew the whistle. It was time to race.

Teams discussed last-minute strategies as they adjusted the straps of

their bicycle helmets. Four chariots faced the finish line.

With his eye on team No. 1, parent John Carpenter said, “This has been

a great project for them. They learned that they can build something of

substance other than Legos.”

The race whistle rang through the air, and the teams were off. Eleven

matches whittled away the competitors.

Goodrich quickly explained his methodology.

“I not only wanted the students to experience Roman history but also

to understand how the technology of the past was the doorway to

technology now,” he said.

At the end of the final race, chariot No. 9 claimed victory.

* MARY A. CASTILLO is a news assistant with Times Community News. She

can be reached at (714) 965-7177 or by e-mail at o7

mary.castillo@latimes.com

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