Why, oh, why would people subject themselves to this? “For the mud of it,” replied Volkslauf’s Sheena Crider. In clear view of Lerdo Jail, ripped manly men and stick-thin teenagers blasted through mud pits on a cold, rainy Saturday that laughed at the idea of Indian summer. If you wanted a hot cup of coffee and a plush armchair, this was not for you. As the Marines or Volkslauf coordinators might say, “If you don’t like it, smile anyway.” Pain is good, they’ll tell you, and more than 1,800 participants in the grueling 11th annual Volkslauf mud run had to be ready for the burn. The obstacle race raises money for the Marine Corps Toys for Tots. Crider, the event’s registration coordinator, said Volkslauf has raised more than $100,000 in its first 10 years. Runners could choose the 10K or 5K. There are some 70 obstacles that require crawling, climbing or just plain hurtling the body through the mud. Giovani Perezchica of McFarland won the 10K men’s race for the third year in a row. A 24-year-old runner for Cal State Bakersfield and Bakersfield College, he trains year-round for these kinds of races. “When you have to go in the water, it feels suffocating,” he said. ” … When you first go in, you’re already tired, you lose your breath.” Those mud pits were popular with onlookers. Andy Rowe and Marshall Pihl got a preview of their fate as runners slogged through dirty water and threw themselves over a wall. The engineers came from San Luis Obispo to race in the 5K with their company team, Cannon Associates. Their race hadn’t started yet. It was 26-year-old Rowe’s first time tearing through such a course. Scared? “No,” he said with a laugh. “Just tired, that’s all.” Pihl, 48, showed more bravado. “Bring it on,” he said. click HERE for photos click HERE for complete results 5K Female Overall winner: Colleen Nathaus 12-19 age group 1. Mia Anderson 2. MacKenzie Morrison 3. Deborah Salcido 20-29 1. Lisbeth Sanchez 2. Allison Mackenzie 3. Christiane Toledo 30-39 1. Colleen Nathaus 2. Deanna Williams 3. Tami Calderwood 40-49 1. Damon Lykins 2. Pamela Hoyer 3. Patricia Corrigan 50-59 1. Melissa Grahek 2. Louanna Banducci 3. Debbie Brown 5K Male Overall winner: Mark Phillips 12-19 1. Conner Fisher 2. Shane O’Malley 3. Ethan McEnroe 20-29 1. Ryan Boehning 2. Monte Myers 3. Damon Wilstead 30-39 1. Scott Humr 2. Casey Bishop 3. Grant Sackewitz 40-49 1. Mark Phillips 2. Rodney Lewis 3. Zef Medina 50-59 1. Larry Boydstun 2. Daniel Vauhn 3. Tom Diaz 60-over 1. Allen Butts 2. Ed Hall 3. Leaonard Villaneva 10K Individual Male 1. Giovani Perezchica 2. Fernando Mendoza 3. Shogo Osawa 10K Individual Female 1. Valerie MacKenzie 2. Brittany Grimes 3. Wendy Trochez Team All Male 1. Javier Amaya team — Down and Dirty Michael Pitts William Bear Juan Flores 2. Damacio Diaz team — Diaz Brothers Gabriel Diaz David Diaz Diego Diaz 3. James Pederson team — Dirty Mambo Cody Creviston Guadalupe Molna Rogelio Reyes Team Mixed 1. Carol Ramirez team — Smog Bog Diving Luis Gonzalez Nestor Ramirez Juan Alferes 2. Kristin Bucley team — Winning Colors Kathy Coyers Craig Gardner Carl Aamont 3. Mark Witcher team — Tehachapi Mountain Cory Witcher Pat Ballard Johnny Smith Military 1. Bruce Allphin Jeff Monroe Charlie Peters Jesse Salazar 2. Dave Winnacker Alex Howard Hank Weeke Dave McElliott 3. Jason Mahill Carlos Palacios Mr. Saei Fredy Rodriguez

I made this model TV antenna years ago out of an old Erector set. It does not work that well as an actual antenna lol of course because it is all one piece. Erector Set is the trade name of a toy construction set that is popular in the United States. Like Meccano that was patented in 1901, it consists of collections of small metal beams with regular holes for nuts, bolts, screws, and mechanical parts such as pulleys, gears, and small electric motors. The Erector Set was invented by A.C. Gilbert in 1911, and was manufactured by the A. C. Gilbert Company at the Erector Square factory in New Haven, Connecticut, from 1913 until its bankruptcy in 1967. The Gabriel company of Lancaster, Pennsylvania bought the Erector name, and continued to make nearly-identical sets into the 1970s and 1980s. Currently sold "Erector" sets are actually Meccano sets manufactured by Meccano S.N. of France, part of the Nikko Group of Japan. They do not have the flanged beams of the original Gilbert Erector Sets. In the U.S., since Jan. 2006, these Erector sets have been distributed by Nikko America. The Erector Set is believed by many to have been the subject of the first national advertising campaign in America for a toy. Its great success made it part of American folk culture, although its popularity has faded in recent decades in the face of competition from molded plastic construction toys, electronics, and other more "modern" toys. Scores, perhaps hundreds, of different Erector Set kits have been made over the decades, most famously the "No. 12 1/2" deluxe kit that came with blueprints for the "Mysterious Walking Giant" robot. An extensive collection of Erector sets, model trains, chemistry sets, radioactivity experimentation kits, microscopes, and other A. C. Gilbert Company scientific and educational children's toys is housed in the Eli Whitney Museum, in Hamden, Connecticut.