Challenge day was June 3 ^rd 2010 and in all ten schools and 265 students were keen to compete. To ensure the smooth running of the day we’d invited a number of retired tradesmen to come and assist Rotarians in the role of supervisors. All indications from these individuals are that they enjoyed the involvement and would be willing to do so again.

We were advised just prior to Easter that the SA Division of Engineers Australia had advised that they were unable to assist with the Challenge this year. Primarily this meant that there had been no direct contact with the schools regarding the 2010 Challenge and there was a suggestion that the timeframe was now very tight.

The Rotary Club of Port Pirie Vocational Sub Committee decided to pursue the Challenge alone and so the journey began.

PP John Banfield who had been coordinator for the past 3 years provided lots of support and the Manual of Procedure that he had put together was invaluable. Within a few days we have eight schools indicate their willingness to participate. Burra High School indicated that they would have trouble with numbers so were encouraged to partner with another school and Jamestown HS came to the party. What a move this turned out to be. Whyalla HS then contacted the University of Newcastle to ask if they could be included. This was a good problem to have.

Sponsorship proved to be a challenge of its own. Some monies were held over from last year’s sponsors and it took some time to identify how much and from which companies the money came from. In addition we were advised that Engineers Australia had contacted these sponsors to advise them of the situation and ask that the money be used for this year’s event. Once this was sorted out it was realised that additional sponsorship was required to ensure that the Challenge was not run at a loss.

Nyrstar continued the great support they have provided to the Challenge since it first came to Pirie in 2007. WorleyParsons, an International Engineering Consultancy group also came aboard with support and we thank both companies. Those companies whose sponsorship from last year, carried over to this year are, BHP Billiton, Pt Pirie Regional Council, One Steel and Southern Flinders Regional Development Board. Without this support, such events as the Challenge don’t happen and we are grateful not only for the support, but because we are able to be a part of it.

 Activities were Mission to Mars, Gold Fever, ElectraCITY, Flight of the Navigator, Catapult, Heli-Rescue, Puff Puff Golf and Escape from the Lost World with lots of fun. Terry and Janice Burns from the University of Newcastle facilitated the activities for the day and their enthusiasm was contagious.

 Congratulations go to the combined team of Burra and Jamestown Schools who took out the Challenge, closely followed by St Marks College and Kadina Memorial High. Mr Stuart Johnson of WorleyParsons was on hand to present the winning trophies.

The Challenge this year involved nine teams from ten schools and our evaluation suggests that the days events should be limited to eight because of the space available and the number of volunteers required. In our efforts to continue offering the Challenge to schools in this area we have asked the University to schedule two days for us next year. While it will mean a considerable amount of additional time in administration it will also allow up to sixteen schools to participate. To allow schools to schedule the Challenge into their timetable they will be advised of the date during the last semester in 2010.

 The Schools involved in 2010 were:

Booleroo Centre Area School, John Pirie HS, Gladstone HS, Roxby Downs Area School, Mid North Christian College, St Marks College, Kadina Memorial High, Burra HS, Jamestown HS and Whyalla HS and we look forward to seeing them all next year.

 2010 was a great Challenge and we look forward to our own challenge in 2011.