Teen welds prize-winning ride

The high school senior said the go-cart is not for racing.
By JOHN W. GOODWIN JR.
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
BOARDMAN -- A love for design, building and speed came together in the form of a miniature racer for one Boardman High School senior and now he is reaping rewards and recognition for his hard work.
David Mumaw spent the majority of his junior year in a welding class at Boardman High School building a go-cart -- from the design stage right up to turning the last lug nut. The machine recently placed first in the northeast United States region of the National Industrial Arts Welding Competition. Mumaw received $500 prize money for winning the competition.
Robert Day, Boardman industrial arts metal instructor and Mumaw's adviser for the project, said it is the highest award ever received by an industrial arts project at the school. The project was also a best of show-metal division winner at the Ohio State Fair in July.
Mumaw has been working with metal and building things since starting high school four years ago. He has completed other projects, such as a jack stand and a tool cart, but said building the go-cart was by far the most fun and time consuming project he has undertaken.
Time consuming: During the four months it took to design and build the go-cart, Mumaw worked four hours a day on the project. The student skipped lunch and a study hall to remain in the classroom and complete the project.
"The reason I took the class was to build the go-cart," said Mumaw. "I am definitely going to keep it. I would never sell it because it took me so long to build it, it is like a part of me now."
All totaled the project cost the teen about $1,700. He earned the bulk of the money working part-time at the Sound Shop as an audio-video technician.
Mumaw said he rides the go-cart regularly for fun, but doesn't think he will test its speed in any competition. He said the motor on the machine is made for racing, but other aspects of its design are not and the vehicle could be dangerous in a racing situation.
Plans: Mumaw is looking to study electrical engineering in college because that is where his true career interests lie. However, he hopes to use his skills to build a race car as a hobby.
Mumaw volunteers for Habitat for Humanity projects and charitable fund-raisers. His latest project was a 4-feet-by-6-feet American flag designed with more than 500 seven-watt Christmas lights. The flag was built with help from his younger brother, Brian, and sister, Michele.