On April 25th we were in Seattle for Tanner to compete in the International Bridge Building Competiton. Tanner competed against all the winners from across the country as well as kids from other countries (like Indonesia, Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guatemala, etc.).
The competition was pretty interesting. Many of the kids had personal coaches who were engineers or physiscs professors. Tanner had, well, me and Jimmy. But when all was said and done, Tanner's bridge took 21st in the world overall. He had an efficiency rating of just under 2000 and his bridge held 80 lbs. before exploding in a pretty spectacular display. Everyone was amazed that he was a freshman and did so well. I guess it is the first time in many years that Nevada placed in the top half of the competition (the other Nevada winner took something like 26th). After the event was over we headed out to be with Erin, the girls and out friends the Ettobis, who live in Washington.
We had a blast with Ettobis and wished we could have stayed longer. We rode the ferry from Seattle to their house and got to visit the Space Needle, Pikes Market and went beachcombing. They also introduced us to Ivars (awesome fish and chips) and we fed seagulls on the pier. Jimmy almost got one gull to swoop down and take a fry out of his mouth! It was a great trip and we came back with lots of shells, a couple of sand dollars, and a ton of great memories both of the bridge competition and the time with the Ettobi family.
