OK this idea sucks, but what the heck I'm reaching here. Tell the contestants they have a big mess to clean up. Near a fairly fast flowing stream with a nearby area of concrete of asphalt (a place to put the mess) the contestants have to build a vacuum cleaner from scratch and the power to run it. The team who sucks the most, wins.

They could use the stream to generate power or make a steam engine type generator and get the water from the river. (if they try and build some type of thing to go into the river how do they get the power from their generator to the vacuum? a hundred of so feet away? and how do you build a vacuum cleaner anyway?)

One hour to clean up.

-- Richard James Retey (theswampie@cs.com), February 12, 2001

Answers

OK OK, this thing has way too many problems, I can see someone getting electrocuted or something. Can see a lot of fun with this idea and trying to carry it out, but it just maybe to dull to many.

Like the idea of building something that requires electricity and having them build the generators to power that something with.

-- Richard James Retey (theswampie@cs.com), February 12, 2001.

I like the idea. Kinda like the pumps from the fireboats but harder. You don't just water to pump/suck, you have other, thicker crap as well, maybe even some nuts and bolts just to make sure the vacuam is really powerful.

Yeah! Ben

-- Ben (bensch@uclink4.berkeley.edu), February 12, 2001.

The idea could work. A well placed GFCI should virtually eliminate a shock hazzard (provided that they are generating AC).

-- Mark Richter (jyw@troyjaycees.org), February 14, 2001.

Okay Hercules! Been reading your Greek mythology? (Seven labors of Hercules? Where he uses the river to clean out the stables?)

-- david ley (david.ley@tyc.state.tx.us), February 15, 2001.