Rajiv Dutta
Being in team Snake, we had the advantage of a lower ground elevation. Team Foxes and Team Bears, both did not have this advantage. They had, instead, very low areas with deep pits and rocks and walls to deal with, which was, of course, a hassle. On May 14th, in particular, the Foxes faced a threat in the form of a gigantic rock. This rock, as shown below, along with an image of their site, had to weigh at least 200 pounds, if not more. On top of this, it was extremely awkward. I came in with my gloves to assist Konrad and Lucas in attempting to move this after they had not been able to. We managed to pick it up a few feet high before failing once again and setting it down for our own safety.
Just then, David suggested that he would grab some straps from his car to pull it out after James actually confirmed that it needed to be removed. Within 20 minutes, James had confirmed, and David grabbed his straps. The straps were placed twice on the sides and once from the front to the back of the rock, along with two ropes to secure everything. Lucas and I grabbed the right end with Konrad, David, and now Cristian, grabbing the right end. Unsurprisingly, this was easy and took around 10 seconds (Possibly less) to get out of the pit and was a great team effort that also doubled as a fun moment. Once it was out, a lot of new digging opportunities arose.
This relates to me because it was a combination of teamwork, fun, and critical thinking (Though David should be given the most credit for that last part). Additionally, this is very relatable as I moved a rock around less than half of that rock’s weight by myself (Not a good idea) out of my own pit (OA 12) once it got in the way. The removal of these big rocks opens the ground up more and removes obstacles for us to dig in. On top of this, the weather was not too hot or cold with a nice sun and slight breeze, and this remains among one of the best days of this excavation. Nothing really is ultra special about this, though sometimes these small types of events make my day.
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