Slightly more than a week away from the regional Odyssey of the Mind competition, team members of Cullowhee Valley School’s Insomniac Lederhosen scramble about the classroom floor gluing scraps of fabric to poster board, stripping wires, banging on a trash can lid and decorating a Styrofoam cooler. The scene is just slightly short of chaos.

“It’s next week!” squeaks an incredulous voice from the back of the room, overhearing team coaches’ discussion of the impending event.

“Anybody who has some self esteem to lose, just come help me,” cracks Colin Martin, who in sixth grade is one of the team’s three youngest members, as he heads over to color in some rough spots on a large banner bearing the words “Public Arts Depreciation.”

Seventh-graders Edward Madill and Austin Wilkes wander over and pick up two markers, folding their already lanky bodies knees-to-chest, like awkward origami cranes, as they sit in Munchkin-sized chairs. Madill’s mother, Debbie, is the team’s coach as well as a CVS Kindergarten teacher. Her classroom is the team’s headquarters for after-school rehearsals.

Odyssey of the Mind, or OM for short, is an international educational program that provides creative problem-solving scenarios for students from Kindergarten through college. In the annual competition, each team of five to seven students tackles a “problem” that requires a mix of math, science and arts skills — and above all creative thinking — to solve. Each year the problems are slightly different but focus on key components such as structure building, traversing an obstacle course or performing a skit.

There is no right or wrong answer, but, teams are scored on how well they address the spirit of the problem and achieve the goals set forth.

For example, in this year’s Crazy Columns problem, teams must build a structure made only of balsa wood and glue. The structure must weigh no more than 15 grams, be at least 8 inches high and cost no more than $125 to build. Team members have eight minutes to stack regulation weights on top of the structure until it breaks.

Oh, and then there’s the style portion of the program — so that the judges are entertained while this nerve wracking, weight stacking is going on.

In Get the Message, teams test their communication skills by presenting an original story told three times over — once using a primitive method of communication, once using an evolved method, and once using a futuristic method. The primitive and evolved methods must come from an OM provided list. Grunts, drumming, dancing, newspapers, telegraph, or Internet chat rooms will do. The teams must develop the futuristic method for themselves.

Many OM teams are repeat competitors, building on the knowledge gained from previous years’ problems. The Insomniac Lederhosen, however, are first-timers.

Scribbling between the lines of their banner’s bubble letters, Martin, Madill and Wilkes contemplate their project’s success. As part of the In Your Dreams problem, the team has to perform a skit with three dream sequences —one non-sensical, one funny and one scary. During their scary dream a monster rushes forth and must perform a 180-degree turn. Originally, Martin says, they were going to build a hovercraft for the monster to sit on.

“It was a good idea, but really impractical,” Madill says.

The conversation between Martin and Madill turns boyish, with talk of building the hovercraft over the summer anyway, and maybe launching bottle rockets from its platform.

“You’re insane,” Wilkes says with dismay.

“What else are we going to do this summer, play video games?” Madill quips.

“That would work,” Wilkes murmurs.

With its three girls — Bailey Steele, sixth grade, Alee Shurina, sixth grade and Cadence Railsback, eighth grade — and four boys — Madill, seventh grade, Martin, sixth grade, Colton McGill, seventh grade and Wilkes, seventh grade — the team is a diverse group of musicians, technicians, comedians, quiet types, academically gifted and mainstream students.

“It amazes me how well they work together,” said coach Debbie Madill.

Cooperation between teammates is the key to OM problem solving, as the adults who serve as coaches are more akin to facilitators than instructors. Coaches are not allowed to provide ideas to team members and must serve as a shield from outside influences, such as well-intended parents. Coaches organize meetings, help make deadlines, find people to teach needed skills such as sewing, sawing or welding so that kids may do them on their own for any performance pieces.

“We’ll brainstorm ideas and ask open-ended questions to get them going,” Coach Madill said.

A first time coach, Madill brought on OM veteran Heather Wilkes, a sophomore at Western Carolina University and team member Austin Wilkes’ older sister, to serve as assistant coach. Wilkes has been on the OM circuit as a performer and team coach for five years.

Regional OM competitions have been held in Western North Carolina for nearly 20 years. Though last year none of Western Carolina’s teams moved on from the state level competition to world, teams from Charlotte, Fletcher, Matthews, and Rocky Mount scored well. A team from Clemmons Elementary School took second in its division in the balsa wood structure problem.

The number of OM participants in WNC has declined over the years, most likely due to the program’s poor visibility within local schools, the laborious time commitment and the cost.

Like Quiz Bowl or other academically geared competitions, OM often loses the popularity contest against sports or school plays. Time, on the part of the team members, the coaches and the parents, is a hot commodity, as practices begin several months in advance. CVS’s Insomniac Lederhosen began their work on the In Your Dreams problem six months prior to this Saturday’s competition (March 12) at the Ramsey Regional Activity Center at Western Carolina University. Team practices have involved everything from learning how to use power tools to tie-dying fabric to inventing the kind of noises a rabbit would make in your dreams.

Registration for a single team — which may be a school or other community group — is $135. Additional teams are $100, though there are package deals for multiple members with an individual school district. Another $125 to $140 is needed for each team’s individual budget.

The Insomniac Lederhosen team has received support from its school and its Parent-Teacher Association, which paid all budget and registration costs.

“We’ve gotten a lot of community involvement,” Coach Madill said.

When all is said and done, the Lederhosen are hoping to do as well as any formidable lederhosen would do — hold their own. The experience has been rife with laughter, creative outbursts and bonding between kids who otherwise may never even have met. At the same time there has been worry, stress and, at times, low morale.

Asked whether he’d join a team again next year, Wilkes, his eyes focused on the repetitive sideways movements of his blue marker, simply said, “Probably not, but some of the other kids might. The first year Heather said is always the hardest, but I don’t know.”