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Puzzles and SolutionsTop
Puzzles and Solutions
| Puzzle | Author | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3UP! (Mario) | Mike Sylvia | normal | hard | solution |
| Economy of Scale (Phileas Fogg) | Joseph DeVincentis | normal | hard | solution |
| Travelogue (Gulliver) | Mike Booth and Paul Melamud | normal | hard | solution |
| Travelogue Photos | normal | hard | ||
| Double Dealing (Huckleberry Finn) | Nathan Fung | normal | hard | solution |
| Roll It! (Dick Dastardly & Muttley) | Craig Kasper | normal | hard | solution |
| Shape Up, Man! (Marty McFly) | Joseph DeVincentis | normal | hard | solution |
| Lesson Learned (The Tortoise and The Hare) | Nathan Fung | normal | hard | solution |
| Hur-ticulture (Ben Hur) | Corey Plover | normal | hard | solution |
| Winning Ways (The Flash) | Nathan Fung | normal | hard | solution |
| New World Odyssey (Odysseus) | Nathan Fung | normal | hard | solution |
| Doing Laps (Anakin Skywalker) | Craig Kasper | normal | hard | solution |
| The Road Goes Ever On (Frodo) | Joseph DeVincentis | normal | hard | solution |
| Vanity Plates (Speed Racer) | Nathan Fung | normal | hard | solution |
| Elimination Clues (meta) | Joseph DeVincentis and the team | normal | hard | solution |
| Checkered Flag (meta) | Corey Plover and the team | normal | hard | solution |
Teams also received the following documents either just before the start or during the race:
In this event, teams had two goals: finish the race and find out who has been sabotaging the other racers in the race. Each of the 13 main puzzles in the event corresponded to one fictional racer in the race and provided two answers: a hazard and a password. The hazard answers and the Elimination clues obtained at each checkpoint could be used to solve the Elimination Clues meta, which allowed teams to finish the race. In order to determine who had been sabotaging other racers, the password answers were then used to solve the Checkered Flag meta.
Event SummaryTop
The starter (played by Mike Booth) made an announcement that the Great Race of the Balloon, Autogyro, Pirogue, Hoof, and Limousine society was about to begin. Each team had a designated racer who may or may not have been in costume, though teams were encouraged to have racers dress in costumes featuring whimsical vehicles.
Each of these racers was also provided with secret instructions to stage a humorous start to the race. When the starter waved his green flag, the racers started out in two different directions. They actually just went around opposite sides of the Gardner museum, and met again on the other side, in the Simmons College quad.
Meanwhile, one racer was left behind. This racer, Clark Kent, was unable to move from the start. He was found to have been sabotaged by an unknown person who inserted a piece of kryptonite in his bag. The racers found another sabotaged racer who had lost half his bicycle. Both sabotaged racers encouraged the solving teams to look for clues about this sabotage by solving puzzles related to each racer. They would find one hazard and one password as solutions to each puzzle. Teams also received two puzzles and a copy of the course map at each site (making 4 initial puzzles in all). Teams could visit three checkpoints on the course (outside the Museum of Fine Arts at the corner of Forsyth Way and Huntington Avenue, at the war memorial in the park, and at the corner of Agassiz Road and Fenway) to receive additional puzzles when they solved certain combinations of puzzles, as well as to check answers.
One of the initial packets also included an offer for a free answer. Teams could visit the starter at any time during the event to get an assignment for a place to photograph one of their team members, with the provision that the locations got closer the later you went. When they returned with the photograph, or any time thereafter in the event, they could ask the starter for the complete answer (hazard plus password) to any of the 13 racer puzzles. The locations (not all actually used) were Hopkinton (if they asked too early), Suffolk Downs, the marathon finish line near the Boston Public Library, Landmark Center, the CITGO sign, and the track around Cobe field (in the park at the fens).
At the end of the event, the starter announced the winning teams and handed out prizes, which included little trophy cups for the winners and the game Mille Bornes for the best costume to the racer of team Azote. But we also found that Mario had somehow won the actual race, despite having been sabotaged during the race. Mario was now unmasked as actually being Rob "Boston Rob" Mariano, multiple-time contestant on Survivor and The Amazing Race. Having failed to win The Amazing Race, he tried to win BAPHL's Great Race by sabotaging Mario and then taking his place in the race. The final clue revealed this information: MARIO IS CONCEALING AN AMAZING BOSTON IDENTITY. In fact, the MARIO who won the race was MARIANO, concealing the AN from his name. For his acts of sabotage he was disqualified and our solving team Azote was declared the winners.
Event Photos
Photos from the event are available.
Team ResultsTop
22 teams competed in the race; 19 in the Formula 1 (hard) division, and 3 in the Grassroots Motorsports (normal) division. Out of those teams, 9 Formula 1 teams finished the event before we closed it around 6:30 PM.
These teams and their finish times are as follows:
| Azote | 4:25 PM |
| 111 Mice | 5:21 PM |
| Hot Rod Stock Flyers Association (HRSFA) | 5:26 PM |
| Large Scantron Collider | 5:31 PM |
| Pop N' Loch Ness Monsters | 5:38 PM |
| Death from Above | 6:13 PM |
| The Sons of Tamarkin | 6:13 PM |
| For The Galaxy | 6:14 PM |
| Tortoise Wins by a Hare | 6:20 PM |