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James Dessert, a Grade 8 student from Charles Bloom Secondary in Lumby, was the big winner of the 2014 Spaghetti Bridge contest held at òòò½ÎÑ’s Kelowna campus on March 7.

Dessert’s bridge weighed in at a mere 994.99 grams, but more than held its weight as it took on 112.58 kilograms of pressure before collapsing before an enthusiastic crowd of students, parents, teachers and onlookers. Dessert took home $1500 in first place winnings, courtesy of the event’s title sponsor, the Applied Science Technologists and Technicians of British Columbia (ASTTBC).

Fellow Lumby student, Brendan Mattenley, Grade 9, was awarded third place with a 962.44 gram bridge that held 63.10 kilograms. Second place went to the òòò½ÎÑ team led by Glenn Watson, whose 970.64 gram bridge held 70.92 kilograms.

Students from Charles Bloom Secondary are historically strong competitors, typically ranking high in the Secondary category contest results.

Creating engineering marvels out of a common kitchen staple is the order of the day at Spaghetti Bridge. This year, 186 students participated in building bridges in either the demonstration or competition categories. The Spaghetti Bridge world record of 443.58 kilograms was established in Kelowna in 2009 by a team from Hungary and remains intact.

Complete Results

Heavyweight
First - James Dessert, Grade 8, Charles Bloom Secondary, Lumby
Bridge weighed 994.99 grams
Bridge held 112.58 kg

Second - Glenn Watson, Shaun Bliss, Eric Chovancak, òòò½ÎÑ second year Civil Engineering Technology students, Kelowna
Bridge weighed 970.64 grams
Bridge held 70.92 kg

Third - Brendan Mattenley, Grade 9, Charles Bloom Secondary, Lumby
Bridge weighed 962.44 grams
Bridge held 63.10 kg

Team Building
First - Daniel Roodzant, Gaelyn Gilliam, Grade 9, Kings Christian School, Salmon Arm
Second - Kyle Sobon, Jaden Balogh, Rylan Skelton, Connor White, Grade 9, KLO Middle School, Kelowna
Third - Finn Tobin, Ryan Pybus, Sean Steeves, Grade 8, Constable Neil Bruce Middle School, Kelowna

Secondary
First - James Dessert, Grade 8, Charles Bloom Secondary, Lumby
Second - Brendan Mattenley, Grade 9, Charles Bloom Secondary, Lumby
Third - Gary Todd, Grade 9, KLO Middle School, Kelowna