BRUNSWICK
Two Maine Region 10 Technical High School students took second place in a marine troubleshooting competition Saturday as part of the Maine Boatbuilders Show in Portland.
It wasn’t a bad finish for a school that doesn’t have a marine power program.
Jesse Mitchell and Josh Saxton, both from Harpswell, each earned $700 in scholarship money and a set of Snap- On tools for their finish.
“You can imagine that we are very proud,” said Region 10 director Barry Lohnes.
The duo was matched against six other teams from three other regional technical schools.
Part of the competition was diagnosing starter issues in a balky Evinrude E-Tec outboard motor.
“First we had to perform a written test on marine lingo and things like that,” Mitchell said. “Then there was a regular switch panel with fuel gauge, key switch and lights, pretty much had to find all the problems in there.”
Local knowledge sometimes can fill in where official schooling lacks.
“Our outdoor power class doesn’t cover marine engines. But because Josh and I are from Harpswell, at home is pretty much all the outboard mechanics stuff we get to do,” Mitchell added.
Saxton said the tests were “relatively straightforward,” and that the only complication was a miscue of timing.
“We didn’t actually know it was timed until we were almost out of time,” he said. “We were just taking our time going through every possible thing that (the outboard problem) could’ve been, and then (an official) told us that we only had a few more minutes.”
Saxton, who says he might like to get into wooden boatbuilding after finishing school, figures they’d have found the problem eventually.
Also, he’d like another shot at the competition next year.
“I think I’ll probably do it again,” he said.
Portland Yacht Services and Univeral Technical Institute sponsored the event. Portland Arts and Technology High School students Billy McIntyre and Serena Cobleigh took first place.
jtleonard@timesrecord.com
¦ JESSE MITCHELL and Josh Saxton, both from Harpswell, each earned $700 in scholarship money and a set of Snap-On tools for their finish.
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