Red Bull Energy Drink is a favorite to athletes and hackers alike. It provides a huge surge of energy through a caffenated burst that really gets your blood pumping and your heart racing. On Sunday, the makers of the beverage descended upon Williamsburg, Brooklyn for the Red Bull: Creation event, featuring 16 competing teams from all across the country. Each team was given 72 hours to design and prototype a machine that fell under the designation, ”energy in motion,” and was tasked with moving the weight of a 100 pound person from point A to point B, all without the use of fossil fuels. Using some cooperative ingenuity, on this weekend the energy drink would be used for good. 

The idea of creating a contest where builders have to create a moving vehicle with no fossil fuels combines the best elements of innovation and environmental friendliness. It’s time for everyone to start thinking green and using alternative energy, and with Red Bull tying these initiatives into a fun competition, then everyone wins. Candidly, it would be hard to pick just one favorite creation, as they were all brilliant and were frankly inspiring to stare at. However, there were certainly some highlights. The first of which was a total space saver- it was a mini bike that could fit into a tool box. Because of its size, the tiny vehicle’s wheels spun at a rapid pace once the builder fired it up. Additionally, we spotted a wildly inventive creation that featured a self-contained cooler system. Not only could this bicycle move itself without fossil fuels, but it worked to keep your drinks cold and prevent ice from melting in a harsh summer heat.

Although an intense building competition was brewing throughout the grounds that day, another interesting sight could be found under one of the tents. It’s MakerBot, a revolutionary 3D printing company located right in Brooklyn whose products are designed to be built by anyone with basic technical skills and are frequently described as being about as complicated as assembling items from that famous Swedish furniture store. MakerBot owners can print an array of 3D creations- toys and sculptures of ones own face, for instance. In fact, one of the producers of the Creation event was printing a life size 3D print out of his face, right on stage in front of our eyes.

 

-Alan Smithee