The Undergraduate Student Government Association (USGA) hosted the Charger Chariot Race.

The champions of the 2017 Chariot Race were the men of Kappa Gamma Rho, with their cooler-themed chariot driven by Evan Tyler and Liam Heslin. The boys were pleased with their victory.

“We do this every year, and it feels great to win…feeling like a champion,” said Hestin.

The event, a USGA tradition, is hosted every year during homecoming. As many as ten teams participate for the race and each team builds their chariots to carry one rider while another team member pulls them to victory.

“We want to spread as much Charger Spirit as we can in honor of Blue-Out this homecoming weekend,” said USGA President, Nicolette Angelli.

Three teams participated in this year’s Chariot Races: Kappa Gamma Rho, Hermandad de Sigma Iota Alpha Inc. (SIA), and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.

The prizes included cash to the winning organization’s budget, to be used however they please, and USGA points towards their club status. The third-place winners received $60 with 3 USGA points, second-place walked home with $125 and 4 points total, and first-place won the top prize of $200 and 5 USGA points for their club’s status.

Third-place went to the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. The drivers included club members Austin Thomas and Ben Klemme. Though a mechanical error caused the ride to fall behind, the club was not disappointed and laughed it off.

“We participated last year and won,” said Thomas and Klemme. “We had fun and wanted to get our names out there.”

Second place was won by the women of SIA, who designed their chariot as a unicorn with a red, blue, and yellow mane in honor of their club’s mascot and colors. This team, too, wanted to have a good time. Participants Dareika Palmer and Amber Marreno said that they were satisfied with their second-place victory

“It’s all about school spirit, and having a good time during Homecoming weekend…we had a lot of fun,”  they said.