I spent seven years participating in Science Olympiad building and technology events. I won 17 awards in the Bridge Building, Tower Building, & Boomilever events, including seven 1st places. In the spring of 2004, I took first place at the Georgia State Finals in Bridge Building, breaking a 4-year efficiency record with my bridge.

I can’t explain my fascination with bridges. I do know that I have enjoyed looking about bridges for as long as I can remember. My fascination grew as I began to discover how bridges work. Then one day, my mom introduced me to Science Olympiad (where would we be without moms?). Early bridge:

I started building model bridges in 2000 for Science Olympiad. That first year my partner and I only built one bridge, which took 2nd place at our regional competition. After the second year, my partner and coach moved to another state. At that point, I was still very green in building bridges. But I was a determined little guy, and built over 50 bridges the third year (2002).

That was when I really started to learn. Mostly by trial and error, I found a lot of designs that didn’t work and some that did. That year I won my regional competition and took 4th at the Georgia Science Olympiad State tournament. I was greatly disappointed at not making the top three. My disappointment doubled when I learned that I missed 2nd place by only two grams.

I was determined to do better the next year. I began to study the theory behind what makes a bridge work. I made only about 10 bridges that year, working hard to perfect each one. The hard work paid off and when the regional tournament came around and I won 1st place. At the award ceremony, the tournament director called my bridge, “The most magnificent bridge design I have ever seen.”

Testing at Regionals:

That year I also won the State tournament in Bridge Building with this bridge. That bridge holds a special place in my heart, and is the only intact bridge I still have.

In my high school years, I entered the Science Olympiad tower and boomilever building competitions. In 2005, my tower placed 2nd in the state. Had my team advanced to the national tournament, my tower would have been in the top 15. 15th in the nation isn’t too bad.

Testing a tower:

On June 6th, 2005, I got a business license to start selling popsicle bridge plans online. My business name is naturally enough, Garrett’s Bridges. My goal is to help students in making model bridges. Sometimes they are given a project and just have no idea where to start. That is where my plans come in. Currently I am selling only popsicle bridge plans, but hope to add other types of bridges in time.

Now:
Now I build bridges for fun when I have the time, which unfortunately isn’t often anymore. My latest project has been taking pictures of the historic bridges in Georgia. My brother, cousin, and I filmed a video on the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge this year which was a blast.

I am currently attending Prairie Bible College in Three Hills, Alberta. I am doing a one-year outdoor education and leadership program. At this point I plan on continuing my education in either the Outdoor Education or Camping Ministry degree here at Prairie. I have a personal blog at www.garrettboon.com.

2008

Contact Information:
Garrett Boon
Email: webmaster@garrettsbridges.com