Main Menu

Log In

More

Park Tudor News

Documentary Reflects on Park School/Park Tudor Catapult Contest
Nearly fifty years ago this week on March 15, 1970 - the Ides of March - Culver Military Academy accepted the challenge to compete against Park School in Indianapolis in the catapult contest that Park School began in 1966. Park built a new trebuchet catapult (counter weight machine) for the competition, the Mars II. A costumed parade and snow flurries marked the occasion. Park was victorious in the landmark event, hurling a 10 pound rock 228 feet. The event was covered nationally by NBC news.
 
Recently posted on YouTube, Support Your Local Catapult is a collection of television, newsprint and a recent interview commemorating a time that Latin students from Park Tudor and North Central and Culver built and fired catapults in nationally recognized competitions that went on for eleven years.
 
The very first attempt at building a “war machine” was made by the Park School Latin class of Bernard Barcio in 1966. Though it was not entirely successful, the idea spread to other Latin programs in town and around the state and eventually coast to coast. More information on the contest is available here.
 
Pictured in the photo (L to R): David Sams ‘73, Bernard Barcio and Lee Alig ‘73, taken when David and Lee interviewed Bernard for the documentary.