the flying pig

This lumbering, pedal-powered kontestant in last Sunday's Kinetic Skulpture Race was probably the most noticeable- you could see it coming a mile away.

Here, the Flying Pig approaches Port Townsend Bay for the water portion of the race.

The last entrant into the bay, the Flying Pig heads out on the water as the fire-breathing dragon makes its return.

I should point out: winning this race is not about coming in first.  It takes just the right mixture of zaniness, lackluster performance, bribery and cheating to bring home the coveted Mediocrity Award.  One machine just went in circles after entering the water.  I thought at first it was a design flaw; now I see it could have been a deliberate strategy.

We left the festivities at this point: it's not surprising that a race through water, mud, sand, and hilly streets, in which everyone is trying to finish in the middle, would go on for hours.