Featured Splendid Teapot Racer: Earl Grey 2nd

Earl Grey 2nd is a work of engineering genius!

I'm constantly telling people to keep their racers light, so that the weak remote control car engines can move them. That was not an issue for this racer. It was very heavy, but it didn't matter, since it had powerful duel engines.

Steering was accomplished by slowing down one engine, while speeding up the other.



David Aldridge had traveled all the way from California to race Earl Grey 2nd at the Big River Steampunk Festival in Hannibal, Missouri. I asked him if the TSA had questioned what the teapot racer was and he said, "No, but they insisted on making sure there was nothing in the pot."

David raced both Saturday and Sunday of the Festival.





He received the Most Splendid Course Completion ribbon for this race.


Earl Grey 2nd returned on Sunday with a new addition, flickering "flames" in the coals under the teapot.





David earned the Most Splendid Speed ribbon on Sunday.

Sunday's drag race:

FeaturedTeapot Racer: The Itty Bitty Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Teakini

Rachel Benson's cute little racer had children squealing with laughter at Big River Steampunk Festival on Sept. 1, 2018. As the "Penguin", Rachel entertained the audience, but her uncontrollable teapot racer really stole the show.






It's hard for evil villains to find reliable minions. Penguin's little racer had no desire to follow directions, but she managed to take home the ribbon for "Most Dastardly Driver," which is awarded to the most entertaining cheat.

This video includes the presenting of the the judges' bribes:


The camera overheated and shut down at that point, but she finish the course in 2-minutes, 45-seconds, thanks to the aforementioned cheating.

Featured Teapot Racer: Sir Squeakers

We had three racers this year at Big River Steampunk Festival that were not built on a store-bought remote control car/truck base. The quality of engineering that went into these was amazing! Sir Squeakers was one of these.



Caz Budzinski was the creator of this adorable masterpiece, that included a little mouse driver, who turned his head as he drove.



Bribing the judges with little crocheted Cthulhu toys:



This vehicle had perfect control. Sir Squeaker was only a single point away from winning the Grand Champion ribbon and did win the ribbon for fastest racer.

Featured Teapot Racer: S.P.W. 2.0

Mrs. Tardis (A.K.A. Sadie Fleener) was a first time racer at Big River Steampunk Festival in Hannibal, Missouri. Her teapot racer, S.P.W. 2.0 (Steam Power Wonderland 2.0), competed on Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018.

The Steampunk Pope, blessing the racers:



So many little details to look at, from gears, to Alice in Wonderland themed tags, to Victorian buttons.



She had good control through the teacup slalom and managed the curved "Ramp of Doom" with ease, but the "Seesaw of Indecision" was Mrs. Tardis' undoing. She still finished the course with time to spare, though, with a course completion time of 2-minutes, 36-seconds.

Featured Teapot Racer: Her Majesty's Silver Service

"Why do I always have to go first?!" Mary Dieterich asked, as I called her name to start off the Splendid Teapot Races at Big River Steampunk Festival on Saturday. It is true, she is always first. She was our first racer three years ago, when we had our first teapot races in Hannibal, Missouri. I don't actually plan it this way, she's just always the first person to register in the morning. It is nice to start off the races with someone who knows what they're doing, though.


Practicing before the races:


The bribing of the judges:


Look at the size of that crowd! Despite the extreme heat on Saturday, we had a huge turnout of both racers and spectators. There were 18 registered racers.

Her majesty's Silver Service did well on the Teacup Slalom, but struggled with the ramps, and finished just in the nick of time.


Mary is always a good sport and her teapot racer is adorable!

Featured Teapot Racer: "Ironically Iron Man"

"Ironically Iron Man" was driven by Brigston Wright on September 2nd, 2017 at Big River Steampunk Festival. This was his first time competing in a teapot race.



Early in this race, Iron Man suffered from some audience interference.

These little stunt cars do not steer well and they often tilt backwards and stay that way, but they are fun to watch as they spin all around.

Brigston took it all in stride. He never became worried or upset when his vehicle didn't behave the way it was supposed to. When he realized he was running out of time, he found his own path to the finish line.

Featured Teapot Racer: Bomb-Omb

Bomb-Omb was one of the post popular conversation starters with people passing the Splendid Teapot Racing registration table on Sept. 2, 2017 in Hannibal, Missouri.

This was Thomas Benson's second year competing in the Splendid Teapot Races at Big River Steampunk Festival. He does an awesome job of matching his racer to his costume and hamming it up for the audience, but this year, he forgot a vital element. This is not a teapot. The addition of a spout would have made all the difference.



Just incase he ever decides to re-use the Wario costume and this vehicle again, I found a great idea of where the spout can go without spoiling the integrity of the design. This is a real pair of ceramic teapots created by Deviantart.com user ChocolateFrizz89. The fuse is the spout.



Good showmanship makes up for many faults. The audience really loved watching Wario and his remote controlled bomb.









If you would like to follow Thomas' further adventures, you can subscribe to his YouTube channel, Nerd Buffet
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCM18AUiYF-LCklQrf8wlxZQ

Featured Teapot Racer: "Deadbolt"

"Deadbolt", created and driven by Jacon Williams was the winner of the Splendid Teapot Racing Grand Champion ribbon on Sept. 3, 2017 at Big River Steampunk Festival in Hannibal, Missouri.



A couple points were deducted from "Deadbolt's" over-all score for exceeding the size limit. We had three over-sized teapot racers, so I scheduled them to race last on Sunday, so that any damage done to the course would not affect other racers.



Besides the points deducted for size, the only other deduction was for "quality of bribe" (there had been none). In every other category, Jacon Williams received full marks.

Every teapot racer brings a unique style and personality to the competition. "Deadbolt" may not have been the most elaborately decorated racer, but it won the hearts of the judges with its amazing maneuverability and happy enthusiasm. "Deadbolt" danced and bounced through the course, and even attempted a couple flips, entertaining everyone.




Points were not deducted for falling off the "Ramp of Doom", because the railing had been damaged by the over-sized vehicle that came right before him.

This is such a fun race to watch!

Featured Teapot Racer: Gerard the Garden Butler

Leena Nabulsi and her splendid teapot racer, "Gerard the Garden Butler" competed on day two of the Big River Steampunk Festival in Hannibal, Missouri.





Many of the people passing by the teapot racing display on Sunday, stopped to admire the beauty of this racer. The duct tape roses were a particular source of fascination.



The judges gave Leena high marks in every category, but had to make deductions for the times she touched her vehicle during the race.



This was the race where we started to wonder if the hot weather drains batteries, which continued to be suspected during subsequent races.



"Gerard the Garden Butler" also competed in the drag race. It did not win, getting off to a very slow start, but went straight, which was more than could be said about most of the contestants.

Featured Teapot Racer: Tea Time With Tardis

This is one of those last minute creation stories.

At Big River Steampunk Festival, we did teapot racing both Saturday and Sunday. Blake Frerick and his friends came to the race on Saturday and felt inspired to go find a teapot at one of the downtown Hannibal antique stores and build a racer out of an RC car they already had.

On Sunday, they showed up ready to race.



The racer lost a few points for exceeding the size restrictions, but there was no doubt that it was the fastest racer competing. I have been told that it is not a World record, but "Tea Time With Tardis" finished the course in only 35 seconds, the fastest I've ever seen.



Watch when it gets to the seesaw. This Tardis makes excellent time, while traveling through space.



 Needless to say, "Tea Time With Tardis" took home the ribbon for "Most Splendid Speed".

Featured Teapot Racer: "Tongue Burner"

This week's featured teapot racer is Aidan Harwood's Viking themed racer, "Tongue Burner".



"Tongue Burner" raced both Saturday and Sunday at the Big River Steampunk Festival, but had very different results for the two days.


Bribing the judges:


Aidan did a fantastic job on the obstacle course on Saturday and walked away with the Grand Champion's ribbon.




The tank has excellent maneuverability, but is not fast. As a result, it had barely left the starting line at the drag race, before the winner was declared.

Sunday's race started out fine, but soon turned into a cautionary tale about being sure that you have  fully charged batteries before trying to race.



"Tongue Burner" barely crawled its way through most of the course and wasn't able to finished, because it had required too much manual assistance.



Aidan did not attempt the drag race on Sunday.
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Featured Teapot Racer: "Dragon My Ass"

Jordan Weltha's teapot racer got a lot of attention for its clever name and won the medal for "Most Splendid Design" at the Saturday Splendid Teapot Races at the Big River Steampunk Festival.



"Dragon My Ass" was a complete redesign of Jordan's drag race winning entry from last year, "Tea U Later". It was less cooperative during this year's drag race, though.



There are so many little details on this beautifully designed racer.

Featured Teapot Racer: "Her Majesty's Silver Service"

This adorable little teapot racer was built and raced by veteran teapot racer, Mary Dieterich.



The judges really liked their bribes!







"Her Majesty's Silver Service" was the clear winner of the drag race, as the only vehicle that went straight for the finish line.