Rigs Head for Harbor in Kinetic Sculpture Race

The start of the fourth annual Ventura Kinetic Sculpture Race on Saturday was only minutes away and the Ojai Condor was wounded and hurting.

The orange three-wheeled contraption was one of 11 participants in the event--a mix of competitive racing, homemade performance art and human ingenuity.

Eyeing his vehicle’s broken axle, Ojai Condor pilot Barry Epstein tugged at his gray goatee, adjusted his cream-colored felt hat and vowed to return in 2002 after going on a diet of fat-burning drinks that make you thin while you sleep.

“It’s the weight. That’s the problem,” the Oak View resident said of the broken car. “Next year, I’ll take Body Solutions.”

All was not lost, though. Members of rival team Wizard’s Revenge of Ventura rode to the rescue atop their four-wheeler, shaped like a giant sea serpent. They used a blow torch to reweld the Condor’s axle in time for the race.

Epstein was thankful for the show of sportsmanship.

“It’s only because we know we can beat these guys,” said Wizard crew member Bill Peet of Sierra Madre. He wore a blue wizard hat adorned with gold trim, silver stars and a matching cape.

And then the contestants were off, after skipping--yes skipping--from the starting line to their rigs parked several feet away.

The Land Sharks pedaled on a tandem bicycle painted gray and equipped with big menacing teeth.

Gorillas in the Rex builder Allen Brown, an Oxnard native who now designs electrical circuits in Oregon, built a wrought-iron bicycle and covered it with stuffed monkeys and gorillas.

Jerry English of Ventura welded a funky red-white-and-blue machine in his craft shop and attached metal and wood blocks to it.

“Look at the smiles on all these people’s faces,” English said of the crowd and the contestants. “That’s why we build these.”

Vehicles were to be no larger than 8 feet wide, 14 feet high and 40 feet long. Each entry was required to be human-powered and seaworthy.

More than 600 people gathered on a dirt field at Ventura Harbor to watch the competitors slog their way through the mile-long course.

The course consisted of four stages: a half-mile land route, a 75-yard timed sprint through a mud pit, a half-mile water race and a final dash across sand.

In previous years, the race started downtown and snaked its way through the Ventura Keys before ending at the harbor.

Moving the free event entirely to the harbor saved about $3,000, said Debbie Giles, a race coordinator and judge. The event was also shortened from two days to one.

“This is a great place to have it,” said Giles, a Ventura resident. “We want to make this the signature event for Ventura, like the Rose Bowl is for Pasadena or the strawberry festival is for Oxnard.”

Event judge Karen Taggart said the local race has its roots in the counterculture of the late 1960s in Eureka, which plays host to a large kinetic race each Memorial Day.

There’s even a kinetic sculpture hall of fame in the nearby Northern California town of Ferndale, said Taggart, an Oxnard resident.

“It’s artists. It’s engineers. It’s something for adults to have fun with,” Taggart said. “It’s a way to have good clean fun and not hurt anybody.”

According to unofficial results, top finishers were Saturnalian, out of Bainbridge, Wash.; Monofly from Corvallis, Ore.; and Wizard’s Revenge of Ventura.

An awards ceremony will be held today from 9 to 11 a.m. at the Greek Restaurant at the harbor.