A Mario Kart chariot raced through Thornden Park on Saturday afternoon, leaving banana peels in its wake as it became the victor of the first-ever Red Bull Chariot Race at Syracuse University.

The event was part of Sigma Chi’s annual week-long philanthropy event called Derby Days, which raises money for the Children’s Miracle Network. The organization’s funds help families pay their children’s medical costs, The Daily Orange reported on Sept. 20.

Throughout the week, daily competitions were held among the Panhellenic sororities on campus. Each participating sorority was assigned a group of Sigma Chi members to act as their coaches for the week.

The coaches coordinated with their sororities on the daily competitions leading up to the final chariot race. During the week, Facebook newsfeeds were flooded with sorority members changing their profile pictures to graphic designs showcasing Derby Days slogans.

During the week, a dance-off competition between the sororities took place — members cheered and held signs supporting their teams. Many could be seen dragging bags of clothing to the event’s annual clothing drive. Sorority members brought out recipe books to impress the judges during a cook-off competition held at Sigma Chi.

For Saturday’s culminating event, each sorority was given the challenge of creating a wheeled chariot holding one of their coaches that two members would pull through the course. Chariots were judged on creativity of theme, functionality and race results.

The special guest judges of the event were SU basketball players Rakeem Christmas, Matt Lyde-Cajuste and James Southerland. During the event, the three players greeted and signed autographs for young SU basketball fans at the nearby playground.

The interaction between the basketball players and children turned into an impromptu dance-off, yielding cheers from the entire crowd.

“It really is all for children,” said Jordan Smith, a Sigma Chi member who acted as the announcer for the event.

The race was organized in a bracket with two sororities facing off on the haystack-lined course. Teams experimented with different construction methods and themes, creating diverse chariots.

Sororities created various methods to maximize speed, using large garbage cans, shopping carts and bicycle wheels. The themes were just as creative, with chariots decorated as a hamburger, jail cell and even a parody of Sesame Street and Oscar the Grouch.

There were quite a few falls from teams trying to turn the tight corners, and some coaches even fell out of their chariots.

Teams advanced through the brackets leading to the final race between Alpha Xi Delta and Delta Gamma. Both teams remained close on the majority of the course, but on the final turn, AXiD was able to pull ahead.

The team sped through the finish line on its Mario Kart-themed chariot. The coach tossed bananas peels behind him and held a lightning bolt over his head to simulate the Nintendo game.

Delta Gamma, however, had the highest point total, making them the winners of Derby Days 2012.

Jackie Soldano, a sophomore advertising major in Alpha Gamma Delta, said: “This was such a fun week. All the brothers were so nice. Derby Days was definitely a success.”

Published on September 23, 2012 at 11:55 pm

Contact Jen: jbundy@syr.edu