Making An Award-Winning Float

At the club’s September 11th meeting, Mike Driskell, the Information Systems Manager at the Arlington Heights Memorial Library, gave a picture presentation of the construction of the last three floats made for the Library for the Arlington Heights Frontier Days parade – a pirate’s sailing ship, a NASA space shuttle, and a steam locomotive.  Each float won first place in 2006, 2007 and 2008 respectively.

These floats were made for a few hundred dollars each by “combining his abilities and creative passion” along with numerous additional volunteers.

 Each of the floats were self-propelled by using a motorized vehicle frame, engine and drive train.  The pirate sailing ship is built on an old motor home, the space shuttle is built on an old 15 passenger van, and the locomotive on an old delivery truck.  Much of the material used in constructing the body of the locomotive came from the original truck itself.