Bribery is encouraged, as is artistic talent, and slick dance moves/outfits are rewarded in the US-inspired Canberra Kinetic Sculpture Race on 7 November.

This isn’t your lofty Archibald Prize, it’s more like radical Burning Man festival vibes meets grounded Birdman Rally.

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to create a kinetic (moving) sculpture that is people-powered (e.g. pedalled) and race on both land and water for the sheer glory of winning (no prize money).

It’s only been held in Canberra once (2022), but in California it’s been running for 57 years and sculptures have ended up in the world’s largest museum: The Smithsonian Institution.

Californian-born artist and event organiser Trevor Bulllock said it’s all about “adults having fun so kids want to grow up”.

“That embodies this whole whimsical, kooky race,” Travis said. “It’s perfect for Canberra because of our public art kinetic sculptures and because of Canberra’s unique interest in the kooky arts and being sustainable. Sustainability is a huge aspect of the race because it is human-powered and it is a vision for the future of travel.”

Imagine commuting to work on a giant cockatoo (one of the entries in 2022) or an oversized snail.

“Everyone gets a prize, no technical skills needed,” Travis said. “Anyone from a high school team to a professional welder can enter and win something – and they will win something.”

Judges score each entry on the following categories: art, engineering, speed and pageantry (your song and dance, costume creation).

Unlike the kinetic sculpture race in the US, which is a three-day race covering about 80km, the Canberra version is a couple of kilometres starting at the Carillon.

“I’ve raced in the States 16 times so I have quite a lot of history in the race,” Travis said. “I’ve won best in art, best in pageantry, best campsite, best bribe. The mediocre award was a really fun one to win too because you can’t do anything to try to win it. It’s dead middle of all the score sheets.”

If you need inspiration, some of Travis’s past kinetic sculptures include “Crabba” (a mix of Abba and a crab) which moved sideways, and Shania Train.

Due to the aquatic nature of the race, lifeguards will be on hand to save sinking slugs, as happened in 2022.

“The Slug Terra was the most amazing engineered machine ever – one person but in a five-metre-long slug covered in this stretchy fabric and it had a barbecue bike on the front,” Travis said.

“It was putting out smoke the whole time and when the wind caught it, this guy is pedalling and he’s going backwards. He can’t make it around the buoy and in the end his whole barbecue bike fell into the water.”

Epic fails are also rewarded – the biggest splash and the biggest flip.

“I hope that this race can become an annual thing so that if you fail this year, next year you can fail even harder,” Travis said. “Bribes are welcome and highly encouraged. The best bribe wins.”

You can also apply for funding of up to $1000 to be part of the 2026 Canberra Kinetic Sculpture Race on 7 November. ​Applications close 15 August. Canberra Kinetic Sculpture Race is on Facebook or kineticsculpture.wixsite.com/cksr