Update - we raced again in 2007 as Global Cat-astrophe - here's a flickr gallery of event How To: Sand a Cat
If you cannot see the links to the movies & photos, click here
There are thousands of ways to skin a cat but what about sanding one? Not so easy, is it? Well, here's a great solution - presenting Hello Gritty!
Last February, the New England Belt Sander Racing Association approached the nonprofit I work for, Community Servings, to become the benefiting charity of their annual race. I volunteered at the event and got a taste for the action. This year I wanted to make an impact, to bring a little something to the show.
Together with a dedicated team consisting of a graphic designer, an architect, a science whiz and an Individual Giving Coordinator we decided to assemble a sander that would change the hearts, if not the minds, of the crowds assembled at the Sanderdome at Kenyon Woodworking. We decided that we needed something fresh and different with a decidedly macho edge to it. And, what is more hardcore macho than a little mouthless female adolescent Japanese cat?
Exhibit A - Hello Kitty
In order to adapt Hello Kitty to the sander medium we needed a couple things. Firstly, we needed a belt sander, which was handily supplied by our architect/grease monkey, Mike. And we needed ideas, big ideas to shape this hunk of yellow & black into a throne for Her Kittynesses. The inspirado and finishing touches were provided by Nicole & Emily - the science lady & the designer. Oh, an this year's theme was, in simple terms, medical
Exhibit B - A DeWalt Beltsander
One of the most difficult tasks fell to me - locate & purchase a suitable Kitty for the platform, one that didn't overwhelm the sander or marginalize her starring role. Luckily, Boston has not one but two Hello Kitty themed retail establishments within a 5 minute walk of one another. There's a kiosk in the Prudential Center that failed me and then the much superior Hello Kitty World. There I found what we were looking for but it was unfortunately hugging a giant apple. I have since learned that Hello Kitty is officially 5 apples tall and weighs in at 3 shiny apples. So we had to modify her just a tad, no more apple!
This slideshow shows in greater detail the creative process. After the platform was completed we mounted it on the sander itself, now decked out custom stickers and an agressive racing strip, through a small screw on the top, giving a very clean and airy looking. The only real modification was some guide wheels to keep 'er from hitting the sidewalls (the tracks are 12" wide). The name was actually the last thing we came up with, it seems so obvious now, we like to think it was fate...
Exhibit C - Hello Gritty
We were all comfortable with the look by Saturday morning but her actual track performance was very questionable. We were luckily able to give her a test run before the races started and were delighted to see that she could actually zip down the track without hitting the walls, albeit at a pokey pace.
When all the beltsanders had been registered there was a slight problem. There are two different categories of racer, Stock & Modifed. Stock is just what we did, fancy up a sander without changing the insides. Modifed sanders, on the other hand, are mostly less attractive but contain huge engines and other customizations to let them fly down the track. They asked for volunteers to switch into the Modifed category because they had many many more Stock than Modified. We decided that becauce Hello Gritty wasn't exactly tearing up the track, we should toss her into the Modified, hoping that crowd sympathy and a small act of God might propell us to Gold.
The assembled racers were a sight to behold as this gallery shows.
The races themselves take place on a two laned track that is 50ft for Stock and 75ft for Modified. A good modified racer can come cover that ground in 2.8 seconds easy. The system there is nice & professional a bell is rung and a "christmas tree" countdown starts (two rows of lights red, red, orange, orange and green) - when it hits green you punch a large control button and the juice flows into your creation, hurtling it down the track where it is caught in a cushiony nest at the end. There is a timing circuit in place for photo finishes. Here are some photos of the races, watch the people's heads follow the little machines.
We did just about how we thought we'd do against a giant modified sander. Our competition was known as "Al's Evil Twin". Everyone settles in, the bell rings, the lights flash down (two false starts and you lose, tough but fair!) and I hit the button. Our little creation lurches forward and keeps pace the first 10 feet and then hits it optimal cruising speed which is well below her competitor and Hello Gritty loses in the 1st round, sadly. Here are two movies that document the first heat - Angle One - (3.71MB) & Angle Two (9.28MB).
We consoled ourselves with beers and other exciting races. Lo & behold at the awards ceremony - Hello Gritty was chosen to be "Rookie of the Year" - a good sign that Hello Gritty will make a reappearance for 2007!
Exhibit D - Gritty & Trophy