DANA POINT – How do you transport 36 odd-shaped items, including large cardboard panels and boxes, in a remote-controlled toy car across a course that includes hairpin turns and a 3-foot-tall ramp?
Oh, and in record time, without crashing or veering off road.
That's the challenge a group of students from Dana Point's Dana Hills High School will tackle this week at the national finals of a high school construction contest sponsored by the Association of Equipment Manufacturers, an international trade group.
The team of seven Dana Hills students – and the only team from California – will compete against 23 other high school teams from across the nation beginning Monday at the association's annual conference in Las Vegas.
"We were astounded that we advanced to the nationals," said team co-captain Gillian Slee, 16, a Dana Hills junior. "We knew so little about construction. Most of the other schools had construction classes at their school. One of the teams builds a home every year."
Read the story from the Orange County Register.