Purchase a kit this Friday at “The Barn” in Clarkrange to participate in the Refuge Community Church’s annual popsicle-stick bridge contest.
Competition Coordinator Jessica Hinton said participants will have two months to use kits that contain 200 popsicle sticks and wood glue to see who can build the strongest bridge possible. Hinton said bridges are put to the test by a hydraulic press to see how much force the bridges can withstand. Hinton said the kids learn critical thinking and problem-solving skills while building their bridges.
“Most of the time our kids are on their phones and just watching other people live their lives,” Hinton said. “We want our kids to live their lives. We want them to get experience, build things, use their creativity, hands-on, and it’s amazing.”
Hinton said the competition has different age groups in which even adults can participate. Hinton said the competition was started several years ago and has grown ever since.
“We have people coming from Cookeville, from Crossville, from Monterey, from Jamestown, from Grimsley, and of course, our low and behold people from Clarkrange. But there is no area that you can or can’t participate from. If you want to drive in to come pay for your kit and drive in for the competition, we would love to have them.”
Hinton said families usually enjoy building the bridge as it allows them to spend quality time as a family. Hinton said participants are so creative that you never see the same bridge twice in this competition.
“Individually, all the bridges look so different,” Hinton said. “But it appears from what I’ve seen from video to video that they just modify their bridge just a little bit from the year prior. Their bridges are a wide variety.”
Hinton said each kit is $20, and they must be picked up between 5pm-7pm this Friday. The competition will be held at “The Barn” in Clarkrange on March 28 at 5pm.