WATSONVILLE — Gravity was not the only force challenging participants in this year’s egg drop contest.
Windy conditions had been present all day leading up to the event, which took place Thursday afternoon between the Civic Plaza and the Watsonville Post Office. Murray Fontes, principal engineer for the City of Watsonville, admitted that it might be extra challenging to hit the mark with the wind factor.
“We might be retrieving eggs from some strange locations this year,” he joked.
And then, a few minutes before the first egg was pushed off the city building, it also began to rain.
“When I said I wanted the drought to end I didn’t mean today!” yelled one attendee, prompting laughter from the crowd as they hurried for shelter.
Despite the weather, participants of the annual event remained enthusiastic, eager to see if their container invention would successfully protect a raw chicken egg from a 60-foot drop to the ground.
Getting its start 15 years ago, the egg drop contest celebrates National Engineers Week, which aims to honor engineers as well as inspire future generations to join the field. Groups from local schools, community programs and even nearby offices come to participate.
Watsonville High School student Cesar Parra, along with classmates, waited below to see if their parachute-dependent contraption would succeed.
“Honestly, it probably won’t,” he said wryly. “But we’re going to try.”
Each egg container must comply with certain regulations, such as being made from a material that won’t shatter on impact and with a circumference below 14 inches. The winner of the contest is whoever’s egg survives the fall without cracking and lands closest to a target.
Employees from the City of Watsonville’s Public Works and Utilities Department once again teamed up to invent a container.
“Ours failed last year,” confessed one member of the team, Lucy Juarez. “We’re hoping to redeem ourselves this time around.”
For the first time this year, a group from the Watsonville Public Library’s youth STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art & Math) program tried their hand at the contest. The library itself also organized a reception and slideshow of previous years for attendees.
Fontes believes it’s the excitement of invention that draws people back to the event every year.
“Also, it’s just a really fun time,” he said.
