Ok. First of all, it's a Pine WOOD Derby, not a Pine BOX Derby. If you call it a Pine Box Derby, the kids roll their eyes and say that would be like driving coffins in a race (ha-ha). A Pine Wood Derby is actually a Boy Scout tradition. Each of the boys is given a block of wood, that they can carve into a car. Then, on a selected day in February, all the Boy Scouts get together and race their cars on a specially-made wooden track. The winners receive all kinds of dap, and the fathers gloat. At the end, it's a pretty good time.Mike and Kathy Geers came and watched our race, which happened to be at our church. Mike was a super sport: he helped Christopher and John use some of his woodworking equipment to sculpt their cars.
(Above and below) Here were some of the entrants for the race.
It's hard to believe that all of these cars came from a block of wood!
Below, you can see the boys checking in. You wouldn't BELIEVE how specific the entrance requirements are: there is an entire page of requirements!!! The cars have to be under 5 ounces: some of the dads got a little argumentative about whether or not the official Boy Scouts of America scale was correct. See the dad with the power drill in the back? He's adding weight to his son's car to make it weigh more: the idea is to get a car to weigh as much as possible under the limit, because dads believe the car will go faster if they weigh more. Some dads get high-tech, and add weights that you can buy specifically for these cars at hobby stores. Other dads simply tape quarters to the bottom of their son's cars. Other dads spray liquid graphite on the axles. (See what I mean about the intensity of this race. Crazy, huh???)
Below, you can see the boys checking in. You wouldn't BELIEVE how specific the entrance requirements are: there is an entire page of requirements!!! The cars have to be under 5 ounces: some of the dads got a little argumentative about whether or not the official Boy Scouts of America scale was correct. See the dad with the power drill in the back? He's adding weight to his son's car to make it weigh more: the idea is to get a car to weigh as much as possible under the limit, because dads believe the car will go faster if they weigh more. Some dads get high-tech, and add weights that you can buy specifically for these cars at hobby stores. Other dads simply tape quarters to the bottom of their son's cars. Other dads spray liquid graphite on the axles. (See what I mean about the intensity of this race. Crazy, huh???)
Notice that I say the DADS do all of this. The dads are super-competitive in this thing. The boys just want to play with their cars.
Below is Den Leader Russ, giving Christopher a special bead for his uniform because this was Christopher's first derby. Russ is a super nice guy. Wouldn't be a bad guy for you to have to get stuck in the woods with for a week without any supplies, either: he even knows how to make his own rope (ha-ha)!
Below, Christopher holds-up his car: a replica of the Batmobile. He finished his 3 heats once in 1st place, and two 2nd places. He didn't end-up winning a ribbon. Amazingly, they actually have computer software now to analyze which scout won. Christopher, did, however, win an award for the car with the "best use of black." He was thrilled. Every scout won an award for the look of their car...
John actually did win an award, even though he is not a scout. John was allowed to enter the "Big Kids" division for little brothers of scouts. He was so proud!
Below is Den Leader Russ, giving Christopher a special bead for his uniform because this was Christopher's first derby. Russ is a super nice guy. Wouldn't be a bad guy for you to have to get stuck in the woods with for a week without any supplies, either: he even knows how to make his own rope (ha-ha)!
Below, Christopher holds-up his car: a replica of the Batmobile. He finished his 3 heats once in 1st place, and two 2nd places. He didn't end-up winning a ribbon. Amazingly, they actually have computer software now to analyze which scout won. Christopher, did, however, win an award for the car with the "best use of black." He was thrilled. Every scout won an award for the look of their car...
John actually did win an award, even though he is not a scout. John was allowed to enter the "Big Kids" division for little brothers of scouts. He was so proud!
