Mousetrap Car Construct Day One

On the first day of construction, Paul and I were not able to do very much because we did not have all of the necessary supplies needed. However, we did make some progress. We took our mousetrap and drilled two holes on each end, so we could insert screw holders. These will be used to attach an axle to the mousetrap. One of our main challenges was to find a way to keep the axle from sliding back and forth, because we knew this would decrease the speed we would be able to achieve. Sliding back and forth would create unnecessary friction, resulting in a loss of energy. To stop this we applied duct tape near the screw holders that prevented the axle from sliding, but at the same time did not hinder the spinning of it. We then tested the power that we could generate with our trap attached to the axle. We tinkered with many different ways of attaching a string to the mousetrap and the axle. Should we just wrap it, tape it then wrap it, secure it near the wheels or in the middle of the axle? Finally we came to the conclusion that taping then wrapping it in the middle of the axle would be the best choice. Then we let the trap go to see how many rotations we could get. It turns out that the mousetrap actually generates enough power to possibly do what we are trying to without adding a lever-arm, which is to have the fastest time in five meters. However, we still plan on adding a lever-arm, due to the fact that the more power the better. We are trying to blow the competition away! Next construction day we plan on attaching the wheels and the base.