Inspire, Fall/Winter 2010

my cedarv i l le How to Race a Cardboard Canoe It’s Friday: race day. Our boat is significantly smaller than the other contenders, but I feel relaxed and confident that we will make it across with a competitive time. It took 30 hours to build my first boat, and we built this one in six hours — we have this down to a science. Valentina Blackburn ’12, who has rowed for the library twice before, takes the back position and navigates the canoe. We brief her sister, newcomer Vawny Kaye Blackburn ’13, on how the race will go. First, you line up on top of the hill by the Stevens Student Center where you can see the race, but as you approach the docks, you’re in the heart of the action, and the pressure starts to build. As you advance in line up to the sidewalks, you put on your game face. Your rowers put on their life jackets and hand over their valuables; if the canoe goes down, watches and cell phones won’t. One final time, I prep the team with the plan, and then it’s time to go. Vawny Kaye is the first one in. I worry about the crossbeams and skin. If her foot punctures the skin, the boat will sink before it travels five feet, and this is the first real test of the boat. It’s a clear indicator of how strong or weak the boat actually is. Valentina boards the canoe with ease, and after some last-minute adjustments, I hand the team their paddles. At the sound of the starting gun, they’re off. I know there’s math and science creating the logic that supports our design, but as I watch our boat glide across the water, I instinctively know: it’s magic. Walking around to the other side of the lake, I see the full-time library staff has come out to cheer and support our team. Our boat beats us to the finish line, a good sign. Valentina tells me the news — we’ve won! We smile for the cameras with our canoe, but it’s not over yet. How to Sink the Competition As we prepare for the demolition derby, I warn the team. The sides on our boat are three to eight inches shorter than the rest. If another boat rams our sides, we will sink. Another danger I know from experience: freshman teams target the library boat. I tell myself that when the boat goes down — and it eventually will — it will have done so honorably. The gun fires, and we race to get the rowers into the boat. Last year, we were so close to victory in the demolition, but we weren’t able to withstand the onslaught of every other freshman boat. As I watch our team, I’m amazed at their canoeing ability. They understand how to sink other boats: side corner shots are better than head-on, and they don’t lose their cool. More than once, I think the fight is over for the library, but the Blackburn sisters are tough competitors. And they win! My brother, Doug Conway ’07, a mechanical engineering grad, calls after the race and asks, “So, where did it fail?” I love telling him, “It didn’t.” The canoe hung tough, handled well, and returned to shore. This year, sweet victory earned the library the trophy and finally that coveted title, revised slightly for us, “Queen of the Lake.” Jillanne Conway ’11 is a mechanical engineering major from Lebanon, Ohio. You may contact her at jillanneconway@cedarville.edu . Top: The Blackburn sisters demonstrate their rowing skills. Middle: The group receives the trophy at the finish line. Bottom: Victory goes to the last surviving boat. Cedarville University 17