Bleach Boys Clean Up Well at Cambridge Chemistry Race

On Saturday 10 February, our team of chemists (Lisa, Xavier, Samuel, Kayla and I, known by the team name The Bleach Boys set off for the fifth Cambridge Chemistry Race. Prepped and ready with as many textbooks as we could carry, we were excited to see what the race brought us.

As the start times drew closer, we hastily organised ourselves. As the first questions were unveiled, we set to work. With questions arranged randomly, we all just hoped we would be able to solve these brain bending puzzles. Focusing on quality over quantity, we started off slowly, with a few questions about bananas throwing us out of the loop. Soon we picked up speed, racing down the stairs to get the questions submitted and marked. As the final half hour drew in and the score board disappeared, we were in 18th place, so we continued to strain our brains to the last of their problem-solving ability. As we calculated the servings of radioactive wild boar a human could eat, finished off some complicated organic reaction pathways, and calculated the mass of clotted cream needed to power a bus to Jeremy Clarkson’s farm, the clocked ticked away. As the timer ran out, we handed in our last questions in hope of scoring some last-minute marks.

As we waited for the officials to calculate the final scores, we headed for a relaxing stroll around Cambridge.

Heading back into the lecture theatre was one of the most suspenseful moments of our lives. I’m sure our heart rates were well above 100 bpm. Our heart rates continued to climb when the results ceremony was delayed. Finally, the results were posted. We came 16th with 101 points, an awesome result, and an awesome day. While our brains may have been fried, I can say with confidence that it had been one of the most rewarding things I have done in a long time.

I would like to thank Mr Keyworth, for signing us up but also for giving us a space to practise and a good conversation every team session. I would also like to thank Mr Evans for coming all the way up to Cambridge with us. Finally, I would like to thank Lisa, for she organised us, and kept us all on track.

Leané B

Lower Sixth chemist