In a world where most of the kids are connected, where youngsters rather play video racing games than buy scaled cars, a Ford technician thought that he’d lure his son into liking the old-school way. Not only did it pay out, but the father-son team ended up conducting a record-breaking attempt with an old Hot Wheels track.
It was Ford’s idea to celebrate the National Take Your Child to Work Day. The world record attempt was the brainchild of Ford dynamometer technician Matt West, who had built increasingly large Hot Wheels loops with his six-year-old son Blade at their home in Monroe, Michigan.
After the man’s colleagues had found out, they figured it would be a good idea to celebrate the national day. According to Ford, they created the loop using computer-aided design software called CATIA, which is often used for car design. Once designed, the team asked for the help of Will Brick, general manager of TechShop Detroit, a DIY workshop and fabrication studio. The loop was made out of precisely cut sheets of plywood using a water jet cutter.
The attempt took place in the three-story atrium of the company’s Research and Innovation Center in Dearborn in support of the American automaker’s participation in the national event. The current record of nine feet, nine inches tall was set in Ohio. West and his colleagues managed to break that record, as the Mustang Hot Wheels car completed a 12-foot, six-inch loop.
“In a world where kids are inundated with TVs and tablets, I thought teaching my son with actual moving vehicle models would be so much more rewarding, and then it took on a life of its own,” said West.
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