WORLD’S BIGGEST
OUTHOUSE RACE
IN ALASKA
G'day folks,
Now, this will probably make you smile. An outhouse, also known by many other names, is a small structure,
separate from a main building, which covers a toilet. This is typically
either a pit latrine or a bucket toilet, but other forms of dry toilets
may be encountered. The term may also be used to denote the toilet
itself, not just the structure itself. Here, we call them a Dunny.
Dozens of teams compete in
this annual event in Anchorage, all trying their best to not be number two.
It’s often said that second
place is the first loser, but at the Outhouse
Races in Anchorage, Alaska, no one wants to be number two.
Since 2006, teams have
descended upon downtown Anchorage to compete in the annual race hosted by the
University of Alaska Anchorage's Architecture and Engineering Club. Although
similar races exist around the world, this one is considered the world's
largest and was started by the school as a fundraiser for Habitat for Humanity.
(Each team pays $100 to compete.) The event is part of Fur Rondy,
the city’s two-week winter festival. But while vying to win may be the ultimate
goal (top competitors receive trophy-turned-toilet-paper holders, not to
mention bragging rights), it’s reaching the starting line that often proves to
be the most challenging aspect of the event.
To even compete in the
race, which took place on February 23 this year, teams of ten must first
construct their outhouses and have them inspected by a race committee to ensure
that each one is structurally sound for competition.
Bob Maxwell, the AE Club’s
faculty advisor and an adjunct professor in UAA’s Facilities, Planning and
Construction department (he’s also the event’s emcee), was tasked with giving
the inspected outhouses the final green light. Although building an outhouse
might seem like a relatively straightforward task, designing one that’s mobile
and mounted to a pair of skis or a snowboard adds an unusual twist to the
competition.
Outhouses can be built using any number of materials. Plywood and metal have proven to be popular choices over the years, however teams have also fashioned shopping carts and water tanks into roving restrooms. Besides skis or a snowboard, teams of five (with one person riding inside the outhouse) can use a rope to pull or push bars to thrust their outhouses simultaneously to the finish line.
“We also require that each
outhouse be equipped with a roll of toilet paper,” Maxwell says. “And, of
course, reading material.”
Racing teams can compete in
one of two categories: traditional and unlimited. To comply with
"traditional" specifications, the outhouse must have, at minimum, a
30-inch-by-30-inch base and three walls, whereas "unlimited"
outhouses can be as large as 8-feet wide, 12-feet long and 8-feet tall. During the
race, there must be four pushers or pullers and one helmeted rider. This year
more than a dozen teams competed. While many of the teams are made up of
university students, members of the community also compete, including students
from local middle schools and high schools.
"We once had a team
from Seattle come up two years in a row to race," Maxwell says.
And because the race is
organized by the AE Club, teams put much care into designing outhouses that are
not only easy to maneuver, but also able to stay intact during the competition’s
multiple heats, which are organized in a bracket system similar to those used
during athletic tournaments like March Madness.
Clancy's comment: Looks like heaps of fun, eh?
I'm ...
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