Pinewood Derby “1988”

Good Morning,

Yesterday while rummaging through some stuff in the garage I came across a box that contained the Pinewood Derby cars from when Michael was in Cub Scouts.  I don’t get rid of much as you know, so there exist pieces of the past just about everywhere you choose to dig and these were no exception.

As a parent you can get swept up in the activities.  Actually, that is the way it is supposed to work with scouting.  The year was about 1988, Michael then 9 had to build his car for the race and it was just too good of an opportunity/excuse not to jump in and make my own.  The “Pinewood Derby Kit” consisted of a block of wood, axels (nails) and wheels.  The rest was up to the scout, which allowed for creativity and a sense of accomplishment.  As a parent it was difficult not to do too much of the project (a trap some fathers fall into) and let Michael keep possession.  My original Pinewood Derby car had long since disappeared in the wake of growing up and well, you just can’t keep everything no matter how hard you try.  At the time Jon Jr., then 18, was living with and also got wrapped up in the adventure.  We had a basement workshop at the time and we all got busy making our cars.  Michael’s turned out to be a somewhat typical racecar with the number 78 (his birth year) while Jon Jr. was into Ranchero’s and I took the more extreme route with a natural wood body.  Jon Jr. and I couldn’t race for the trophy anyway as only the scouts could do that, but it was a chance for us to “show our stuff” and support Michael in the process.

Michael took first place in the race the year before with #24, so enthusiasm was high for a repeat.

We did a few little extras like turning the wheels and axels on a jeweler’s lathe to true them up.  Using an electronic scale to get the weight just right and then making sure the paint jobs looked the part.  It was fun doing the project with the boys.  Good times and a little competition as well which kept it interesting.

We helped one of the other scouts, Tony with his car.  As I remember his dad was away and couldn’t participate in the build.  Tony’s car got the same treatment as ours, so not to show favoritism.  Knowing his background, it may have been the first time someone actually helped him with something like that.

Somehow in the enthusiasm of the moment of planning this whole thing I volunteered to make the racetrack.  That turned out to be a much bigger project than the car.  I wonder sometimes how I get myself into such things.  Here is a picture of a track, but not the one I built.  There must be a photo somewhere, yep somewhere in the “stuff”

Race day came and the cars ran well.  I don’t recall all of the results, but as luck would have it Tony’s car won and he went home with the trophy.  Not sure that went down so good with Michael at the time, but it was a good lesson in sharing and made it a great day for Tony.

If you are going to share your talents and methods with a competitor, when they win you do as well.  And while it may not have been the competition, it is most certainly the integrity.

Love, Dad