PORT TOWNSEND — The head-turning Kinetic Sculpture Race will celebrate 40 years of events this weekend.
The events will take place in and around Port Townsend Bay on Saturday and Sunday.
Participating teams, both local and traveling, have built their own human-powered racing skulptures, each one a work of art and engineering, said Ric Peregrino, chairman of the Port Townsend Bay Kinetic Sculpture Race (PTKSR).
“The HMS Glory from Corvallis, that’s the largest one that’s likely going to be here,” Peregrino said. “It’s glorious. It’s giant, the wheels are 6 feet, it’s tall, there are five peddlers in there. On the other end, you have people who do things like two bikes welded together.”
Skulptures are constructed from all manner of materials, but most frequently is one or some combination of bike parts, Styrofoam or duct tape.
Port Townsend’s race is the second oldest of its kind, following the original event in Ferndale, Calif., Peregrino said. Now, there are about 17 races in the United States and five internationally, Peregrino said.
The race will honor its traditional tenor by pushing for a kompletely silly event. Organizers have been clear that the event is not to be taken too seriously; it is a matter of weekend shoulder-season fun.
One thing to be taken seriously is traffic and staying out of the way of the careening skulptures. Peregrino said a team of volunteer kinetic kops will be present to keep the race safe. They have the authority to turn the letter c into a letter k if they choose, Peregrino said.
Kostumes and pageantry are encouraged throughout the weekend. “Kook off” is the theme, but Peregrino said the public and the racers should have fun and not to feel restricted in their kostuming choices.
“Some of the sculptures I know, there’s one that’s dressed up like dog food, classic milk-bone,” Peregrino said. “It’s wide open. Another one, macaroni salad, and I’m not sure what the others will bring. Some of them will be a surprise for us.”
Weekend races
There will be a meet and greet at The Old Whiskey Mill, 1038 Water St., on Friday at 6 p.m. Racers can register at this event or online, but Peregrino said racers can try to sign up on Saturday morning, and organizers will do what they can to squeeze them in.
Saturday activities will start with an art parade and kontest. The parade will start at the US Bank at 11 a.m. and proceed down Water Street, eventually arriving at the American Legion Hall, 209 Monroe St.
Those interested in walking in the art parade kontest can find entry forms at https://ptkineticrace.org/art-kontest-and-parade.
“It’s really easy. You don’t have to do any mud, sand and water. Put some artwork and a contraption together and have fun with us,” Peregrino said.
After the parade, skulptures will brake-test on Monroe Street near Seamus Sims Skatepark.
Saturday’s leg of the race will start around 1 p.m., Peregrino said, with racers going through a short circuit before entering the water at the ramp by the salmon club. They will make their way by water to Union Wharf and back.
There’s a kostume ball — The Rosehips Kween Koronation Ball — Saturday at 8 p.m. at the American Legion Hall. Attendees will dance to band MVP Michael Jackson vs. Prince.
The cost is $10 per person at the side door entrance on Water Street. The ball is ages 21 and older.
Pre-registered Rosehip Kween hopefuls will strut for the Krown at 9:30 p.m., telling a joke, sharing a recipe and a talent. The koronation will happen about 11 p.m., when crowds will choose from the judge’s narrowed pool of three potential kweens by yelling the loudest. There will be a decibel meter to judge the winner with exactitude, Peregrino said.
On Sunday, activities will begin by the American Legion Hall at 10 a.m.
Racers will take a sobriety test on Sunday morning, Peregrino said.
Morning events include race team pageantry, where teams will have an opportunity to show off their kostumes on stage.
“It takes quite a while to get through all of the pageantry,” Peregrino said. “Each team gets several minutes on the stage. It’s a bit of herding cats, if you know what I mean.”
The race will start about 1 p.m. and generally lasts for a few hours, Peregrino said.
The race will head uptown, kornering at Aldrich’s Market, head down for the sand course at Fort Worden, then to a mud course at the Jefferson County Fairgrounds. Starting back toward town, racers will ride down San Juan Avenue, through Uptown via Walker Street, to Lawrence Street, then down Monroe Street to the finish line by the American Legion Hall.
For a detailed map of the route, go to https://ptkinetic race.org/racers-page.
All racers will receive some form of prize, with a few of the prizes being cash. One very popular prize is the mediocrity prize, given to the most middle-of-the-pack racer.
There is a racers’ and volunteer dinner, with food provided by PTKSR, not really open to the public, Peregrino said, but if a few stragglers sneak in, they likely won’t be noticed.
“If you wanted to, you could sneak in,” Peregrino said.
Through its earlier years, the organization was less organized, Peregrino said, but when he became the chairman six years ago, the organization became a 501(c)(3) organization. There are currently 10 members on the board.
To volunteer, call Peregrino at 408-247-9599, send an email to info@ptkineticrace.org, or go to the American Legion Hall at 7 p.m. on Thursday.
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Reporter Elijah Sussman can be reached by email at elijah.sussman @sequimgazette.com.
