Anything Floats Competition 

Anything Floats Competition

By Cassidy O'Brien

The Anything Floats competition is a county-wide Gifted event that four members of Burrell’s team participated in on April 14 at Mt. Pleasant High School. Freshmen David Kleckner, Adam Scheftic, Aaron Holm, and Brayden Snyder came in 4th place with their float that was constructed out of buckets, duct tape, plastic pipes, and wood. The challenge was to build a homemade boat that can travel two lengths of the school pool. The objective of the race was to have two members of the team start out in the boat at one end and propel the boat forward one pool length using homemade oars. At the other end of the pool, the team switched, and the other two members entered the boat and propelled it back to the other end. Kleckner commented on the difficulty of the event, "It was challenging because you had to make sure the boat could float with two people sitting on it." 

The team had no budget limit, but spent around $100, and worked under the guidance of Mr. Zanella in the Woodshop. Milk jugs and buckets were very popular items used by other teams. There was a bit of controversy as to whether or not pool noodles or floatation devices were allowed. Kleckner commented on the other boats' designs, "One team used an air mattress hidden inside a box!  That made for a very stable boat." Because of this county-wide scandal, Mrs. Aranyos is considering hosting the event for the Westmoreland County Gifted Coalition next year instead. Mrs. Aranyos said, "This is a very cool, hands-on event for our students, and they deserve a fair chance to compete. I look forward to working with Mrs. Barbiaux and Mr. Zanella and hosting the event next year in our high school pool!"  

After the competition, Burrell's team enjoyed a filling lunch at Hoss's Steakhouse and dessert at Tropical Smoothie in Murrysville. One thing you can always count on after a Gifted competition is a good lunch.

Photography Contribution:  Mrs. Aranyos