Everyone can fit in - what would you do if you decided to participate in Buggy?
While there is no rule that says you have to stick to one role in Fringe, it can help to understand what the different components of our racing team are. Whatever way you participate, you can be sure that you'll be taking part in a highly competitive team without having to go greek.
Join up and slip into one of the following:
Pushers
Want to help make Bantam fly downhill? Buggies are man-powered. That means that it's the pusher's job to get the buggies to their top speed on the up-hill portions of the course so that gravity can help them fly down the downhill sections. Fringe is proud to have the strongest push team of the independent buggy organizations, and we want everyone to feel encouraged to come out and have fun pushing with us. Whether you're a CMU athlete, a former high-school athlete, or just like to run on the weekends, you can push for Fringe. Be sure to note that pushers come to weekend rolls (practices) in both the fall and spring, and to running and strength workouts led by Push Captains Eric Blood and Lauren Giesey year-round. Attendence is always strongly encouraged, but optional. E-mail Fringe Racing chairman David Alberts or push captains Eric and Lauren, and get ready to run.
Drivers
Want to soar down the course in Brazen? Drivers provide the human touch to the powerful two minutes that comprise a trip around the course. The bravest, most special, and definitely smallest members of the Fringe Racing team, the driver is in charge of piloting the buggy so it goes its fastest and looks its sleekest. Reaching speeds of between 35 and 40 miles per hour at the trickiest part of the course, our fearless drivers keep the name of Fringe in such high regard. They are equipped with standardized safety equipment, and we build our buggies so that they are the absolute safest on the course. Also, they hold the only role in Fringe that cannot accommodate everyone: as the goal of having drivers is to allow us to have buggies that are light and well-driven so that they are fast around the course, most drivers are generally less than 5'2" tall, and petite all around. If you think you would fit the description, know that Fringe is your best choice to drive for: we are the safest team, and have several buggies on the course so that we can allow several drivers to participate. And remember: The intricacies of the mechanics and the strategies of the pushers are only applicable when the driver is strapped inside the buggy - helmet, goggles, and all. Contact our head mechanic, Graydon Loar, or our Head Driver, Brittanie Wine, if you'd like to try out.
Mechanics
Want to tinker with the inner workings of Blizzard? Our mechanics are some of the most motivated and creative in the world of Buggy. They intensely design our buggies to be the fastest, safest, and sleekest on the course. Then, they build the buggies from raw materials, always adapting to new changes in the industry and on campus. Many of our mechanics have said that the hands-on experience they all get in Fringe provides more of an engineering education than CMU itself. As soon as you sign up to be a mechanic, you can get your own hands-on project helping to build the most beautiful buggies on the course - we have earned 1 st Place at the Design Competition for eight years in a row. But do you have to be an engineer to become a Fringe mechanic? Not at all. As long as your motivated and into learning and thinking of cool new ideas, you'll be great to have on the team. Contact our head mechanic, Graydon Loar, or our chairman, David Alberts, to get started.
Flaggers
Flagging and other exciting ways to get involved! Want to be part of Blackjack's drive around the course, but none of the aforementioned roles sound really appealing to you? We always need flaggers, who hold flags at key spots on the course so that the drivers safely know where to go. This is perhaps the most important job on the course while the buggies are rolling. There are plenty of other ways, too, in which you can maintain a modest time commitment to Fringe and still be extremely helpful and an irreplaceable part of the team. Let David Alberts, our chairman, know if you want to help out.