Ben and his Rocket Wagon
There are lots of fun things to do down steep driveways. The whey driveway that lets Dennis make his daily deliveries for our pigs of goat whey from Vermont Butter and Cheese is great for sledding and snowboarding as well as the occasional tub race. Sadly, six months of the year we’re without the ice and snow that makes us go. Problem like this yield to a little ingenuity… Ben figured out a solution – wagon racing!
Ben took an old broken wooden wagon and fixed it up, replacing the dead wheels and changing the draw tongue to a steering mechanism with a handlebars.
Building the steering mechanism gave Ben a chance to learn how to do metal working and use our drill press. A great shop project to end his homeschooling year.
The pneumatic tires give a much smoother ride than the metal rims he had been using at first and the steering mechanism is far better than trying to control the wagon via the old draw bar.
For special effects in this video, the rocket wagon puts smoke out the back using smoke bombs in rocket tubes as he rides it down our farm driveway. Good ol’ country farm fun!
Read more about the rocket wagon and other fun stuff on Ben’s blog. As you watch the movie on Ben’s blog, ask yourself, “Why did the chicken cross the road?!?”
While you’re visiting Ben’s blog also check out his latest comic strip and remember he loves to get comments!
Outdoors: 75°F/48°F Mostly Sunny
Farm House: 75°F/68°F Gardens all planted
Tiny Cottage: 70°F/65°F Bonfire party
Very ingenious. I am going to have to show this to my daughters who will be very jealous that they can’t have a wagon race too. Our yard is flat.
“Sadly, six months of the year we’re without the ice and snow”
You must indeed be well-suited to living in such a wintry climate to make such a comment!
What a great project.
Hi Walter,
Really enjoyed meeting you guys today, thanks so much for having us over!
I am happy I left my house where I was just feeling tired to go out in the sun.
Erik said he loved your farm, and the pool was his favorite, ‘but they really should make it bigger!’ Just passing it on :D
Karen
Aye, the little pool is small but it makes do for the dry times when the upper pond is low. Come fall the upper pond will be back up to full depth of about 8′. You all will just have to come to more bonfires then.
Cheers,
-Walter
i see he is pressing the brake with his farm issue black rubber boots–dead giveaway he’s a farmboy.