FAIRFIELD — Last fall a seven-member Destination ImagiNation team of Fairfield teens was given a problem to solve: Design and build a vehicle that moves three objects of varying sizes around a game board.

J.P. Elcik (left) and Ellen Schneider, both ninth-graders in Fairfield, work on a project for their Destination ImagiNation team. (Brandi Stafford photo) | ZOOM |

        It was the same problem dozens of other teams across Ohio chose for the 2001-02 season. Each team had several months to work out solutions to the problem.

        Saturday, the top 165 teams from all grade levels in Ohio will converge at Fairfield Senior High School to present their solutions in statewide competition, where they also receive new problems they must solve on the spot. To qualify for the exercise, the teams had to win in their age bracket at the regional level.

        Of the seven teams sponsored by Fairfield Schools, two — Duct Tape Bottle Rockets, made up of students from high school, and Team Name Goes Here, made up of intermediate and middle school students — will compete.

        The younger group faces a different challenge: building a balsa wood structure that can support a heavy weight.

        “There is a huge emphasis on creativity. It's not enough to just solve a problem,” said Randy Oppenheimer, who coaches the team. “It forces them to think creatively and imaginatively. They've got to learn to work together.”

        The top 30 teams will advance to the Global Finals Competition at the University of Tennessee in May. There they will compete with teams from across the United States and 20 countries.

        “Of course I'm nervous. No matter how many times you've been to competition, it's different,” said Erin Ritchie, 18, who is in her fifth year of the contest. “I stay with it because it is so much fun — even when it's 2 in the morning before competition and we're still working out something.”

        Erin's group, Duct Tape Bottle Rockets, redid their vehicle, “Queren,” at least three times as they kept making improvements.

        “You feel really good when it works and you cry when it doesn't,” said teammate Joe Miller, 15.

        Destination ImagiNation's state tournament will be held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The public is invited and admission is free.
       

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