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Pinewood Derby Stories and Photos from Maximum Velocity
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PINEWOOD DERBY MEMORY Competition Among Friends
My son Trey is a Tiger Cub so the Pinewood derby is new to him. It is also a lot more competitive than when I was a scout. Along with helping Trey build his first car, I was roped into helping two of my friends with three cars for their sons (Chris, his brother Will, and Tyler). I really worked at making this a learning experience for the boys. They polished wheels and axles, and cut out the car shapes with help from the dads. The boys also sanded as if the world championship was at stake.
All the boys talked about was how they all were going to go to the district championship (the older boys explained the district race to Trey, so he decided he would be going also). For the older boys this was going to be their big year because they were tired of losing to the same three district qualifiers each year. Fortunately, Tyler raced in a different pack. He in fact won his pack race and went to the districts.
My problem started when the other three (including my son) all won their den races and were ready to duke it out in the final for the three district qualifier spots. The first three rounds they all advanced easily. But in the fourth round Trey had to race against Chris. Chris won the first heat by a few thousandths of a second. Then Trey won the second race by a few thousandths (both moms wanted to quit right there so that everyone would still play together). Well, Chris won the third heat and advanced. Trey raced his way back through the loser's bracket only to face Chris again for 3rd place. The three races were identical to the first, with Chris picking up the last spot for districts and Trey placing 4th overall.
To make matters even worse, Will took 1st place and Tyler took 2nd place so all three of the other boys went to the district championship. Trey was a very good sport in the whole situation, but he reminds me often: "Dad. Chris, Will, and Tyler have to build their cars by themselves next year. Okay?"
Bill Launius Millstadt, IL
From Pinewood Derby Times Volume 1, Issue 13
A pinewood derby memory is an occasional part of the Pinewood Derby Times Newsletter. To subscribe to this free e-newsletter, please visit: www.maximum-velocity.com/subscribe.htm