Posted 4/30/12 – Cub Scout Pack 110 of St. Rita held a pinewood derby at the bandshell in Memorial Park, complete with high tech tracks and timers, on screen race results and the most important element seen on the faces of pretty much every kid that participated: FUN! “Races” were divided into heats by age group (Tigers, Wolfs, Bears, and Webelos). Then there was pizza, followed by the finals, with the top racers from each age group competing against each other. The track relayed information to the lap top that calculated equivalent speeds based on track times, with the highest equivalent speed recorded reaching in excess of 160mph!
Here are a couple videos, the first one is a little longer and has some instructions and explanations, followed by video I shot of the Tiger heats, the second video is of the Wolfs, Bears and Webelo heats. Below them, there’s some photos I took of the event, as always, click to enlarge.
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- The Pack’s new track has six lanes, shortening the race day
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- Dozens of kids participated with their hand carved vehicles
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- Weighing the cars out
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- Pinewood derbies have gone hi-tech
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- Last minute adjustments
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- A couple scouts pose with their entries
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- The track announcer
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- Checking in the vehicles
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- More last minute adjustments
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- Top finishers in each division got trophies
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- Top three finishers in Tigers
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- First in several in progression of one heat
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- Top three finishers in Wolfs
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- Two of top three finishers in Bears
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- Top finishers in Webelos
What a fun day, the cars looked great and the kids were so proud! Thanks for coming out, Bill!