Teams

Originators

Garage Headquarters: Philadelphia, PA

Driver: Jason Cowan

Mechanics: Drew Kunitskiy, Rick Mauro, Aaron Springer

Nuts and Bolts:

Jason Cowan, Drew Kunitskiy, Rick Mauro, and Aaron Springer are Philadelphia twenty-somethings who admit to being very competitive. They go for the win in everything they do – even racing a homemade soapbox car. Drew, the team’s captain, says, “The race is a fun event that gives us a chance to get together with old friends, work as a team to see our vision go from paper to something that actually drives, and -- hopefully -- grabs people’s attention.”

To ensure that everyone in attendance at “The Wall” in Manayunk takes notice, the teammates have chosen a highly recognizable concept: video games. Jason, who will man the steering wheel of their Nintendo-esque racer, explains, “The car will be a combination of wood, metal, and papier mâché, with some plastic elements. We’ll have old Super Mario Brothers music playing, and all of us are going to dress up as Nintendo controllers or characters from the game.” Because they spend their days working at jobs including retail management, sales, and hospital administration, the teammates are devoting their weekends and many weeknights to building a racer that promises to be not only fast, but fun. For instance, when Jason finally gets behind the wheel on September 6, he’ll be practically out of sight between two mock-ups of the Mario Brothers themselves – in other words, he’ll be (ahem) virtually hidden.