Friday was the annual Pinewood Derby for Cub Scouts. It was Panda's second year of racing. This time he created The Gator. It was a good little car, performing well in each heat of the races. Panda was satisfied with its performance. He's easy to please when there are no determined "winners" of the event. (The last several years, our Pack has elected not to have placements for the races. They focus instead on imagination and fun.)
The Derby has been a part of our spring schedule since 1998 when Stormin' was a Tiger Cub. Incidentally, the Reader's Digest included the Pinewood Derby to be one of "America's 100 Best" in 2006 as "a celebrated rite of spring".
MustangMan has 10 years of experience under his belt as the father assistant to one or more Cubs in creating derby cars. He's thrilled to go back to making only one car each year. Some years he helped with three at a time!
When the movie Down & Derby came out, we knew we had to own it. I remember the year our Pack gave the parents an opportunity to create their own semi to race down the track. (This after a year when a couple of parents were obviously in it to win it, no holds barred.) The hope was that they would be focused enough on their own rig to actually let the Cubs do most of the creating on their own cars.
Obviously, there is something deeply appealing about the Pinewood Derby. Stormin' and Moose were itching to make cars again this year. They talked about putting on a derby in their Boy Scout troop. Even grown men still have a desire to race in the derby. Go figure.
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