By Rob Krider

Racerboy

The 24 Hours of LeMons Sears Pointless race last weekend was host to 148 teams racing $500 cars. Once the checkered flag dropped on Saturday night, then the action switched from the world famous twelve turn technical road course of Infineon Raceway to a sloped four lane wooden straight track for teams racing $5 cars –pinewood derby cars. That’s right, dad finally gets to build and race the car!

Since it was a LeMons event, cheating was actually encouraged in the derby. Check out which car won, and how they got it done at Speed:Sport:Life.

By Rob Krider

Racerboy

Most of us gearheads experienced our first competitive car race in the Pinewood Derby. A seven inch long piece of wood, four nails, four plastic wheels and a sloped track –that’s it. Gravity is the only motor in this race. At first glance it seems like there isn’t much to the Pinewood Derby. However, after getting your ass kicked your first year you realize that a Pinewood Derby car can be as complicated as any real race car. Aerodynamics, rolling friction, center of mass, weight, alignment, lane choice, there are all sorts of things that can make the car roll down the track or get stuck halfway down the hill. Of course, as a seven year old kid you have no idea how to change the center mass of a Pinewood Derby car, that’s where dad comes along.

To learn the tricks of the trade on winning a Boy Scouts of America Pinewood Derby check out the Racer Boy column at Speed Sport Life.

Pinewood Derby weigh-in is tonight and I’m down to polishing the axles for my entry in our Cub Scout pack’s Unlimited Class. I’ve Dremeled and filled and sanded and painted. This is the first time I have ever built a car model from a block of wood and it turned out better than I expected. It’s just barely recognizable for what it is supposed to be: a Ford GT40, a car I swear I’ll own one day. Although I’m usually super-competitive, I decided to focus on the design and build it up to be a desk ornament for work. I don’t have a whole lot of hope for it on the track – I’ll be competing against a flock of GM and Ford dads who are by and large engineers with years of experience in this kind of thing. I might have a shot at best-looking, though. I’m also pretty sure that I’ll be building another GT next year. I just can’t get this car out of my system. Got a Pinewood entry to show off? Post up!

It’s that time of year again, when Cub Scouts’ thoughts turn to wood and speed and all things fast. And in the case of some hyperactive parents, quite furious. It’s not uncommon for den leaders to discover cars that were in no way built by scouts. Fortunately, my sons’ pack is reducing that impulse by offering up an open class for parents to compete in this year. What car lover wouldn’t? I’ve cut my blank already (thank you, band saw), and I’ll post my progress on the car as I move along. I’m hoping to knock off a rather famous Kamm-tailed car that’s not an Opel GT. Is it obvious yet? Next step–it’s Dremel time.

Post up your Pinewood entries!