Escape from Berkeley (by any non-petroleum means necessary)

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An open road rally from Berkeley to Vegas of alternatively powered vehicles.

Blown Big-Block Biodiesel Benzs' . . .
Fast Fermenting Funny Trucks . . .
Super-stoked Steam Pumpin' Studebakers . . .

. . . it's racing . . . racing . . . racing . . over three days and nights, over various hills and valleys from here to Las. . . Vegas . . . Vegas . . . Vegas . . .

(with likely overnight camps at the ecological curiosities of Mono Lake and Trona superfund site).

Yes, this 4th of July weekend, NASA scientists and junkyard fabricators once again square off in the perennial battle of engineering prowess and creative excess, this time with bragging rights for saving-the-world somewhat hanging in the balance. Where DARPA had the Grand Challenge, the rednecks the Cannonball Run, the truckers a Convoy, and the hippies a bunch of WVO buses broken down on the side of the road, now the collected geek tribes propose to start their "engines" on something other than a petroleum based fuel, and cause their varied schemes for land based transport to not be in Berkeley, and somehow, by some means, show up in Las Vegas three days later, using only fuels/power/motive force scavenged "for free" along the route.

Ethanol obfuscations and soy based scams will not sully the superior engineering imaginations of the gathered. "Fuel" is ubiquitious and the variety of modes for its conversion near limitless. Thus we're not going to let you take any with you; you must find/source/acquire it along the way. Extra points for those who figure out how to do so with some semblance of style and wit.

Everything is permitted (just as long as your power is not from any petroleum base, or currently sold as a motor fuel, and your acquisition of "it" does not require money). A small bump start of 10kwh stored on board (about one gallon of typical liquid fuels) will be allowed to get you going. Otherwise, the full field of power generation and conversion is open for your pleasurable scavenging and creative hacking: biomass gasifiers, fast starch anaerobic digesters, on board sugar stills, solar, steam, pneumatic, creek side hydro and lots of batteries, tesla free energy vortexes, cold fusion, humans, hamsters, etc etc etc.

Want to test out your 40% efficiency triple junction PV cell covered Prius? Or maybe see if your solar thermal driven Ferrite cycle hydrogen producer can keep up with the intake of your fuel cell Honda Civic prototype? We welcome you to join us- and risk getting beat by a local stretched out over a Ducati 900, running on granulated McDonald's napkins.

We plan to have a significant cash prize for the winner. Entities interested in sponsoring such a prize are invited to contact us. At the very least half of all entry fees will go to the purse for the winner.

Special awards for exceptional efforts in the realms of:

- Most difficult engineering problem solved
- Worst idea that might actually be smart
- Smartest idea embarrassed with a terrible implementation
- Most energy conversion steps between source and road
- and the . . . "If Burt were here, he would take his hat off for you" prize

More info will be coming shortly. This is the general announce that this is a go. We have been discussing this internally for months and its time to start building. The shop is now open. We have two working car lifts (and power). Specifics will be elaborated as things develop in the weeks/months ahead.

If you want to participate, please write ( jimmason .(at). whatiamupto .(dot). com) and tell us as much. We are beginning to assemble the list of the interested.