Derby Year 2

Again, our "Almost No Rules Pinewood Derby" was a hit. 

Adam hid a pound of nickels inside our entry this year. (Totally legal and allowed.) 

And again, we had to rush to build and paint it the day of the race. Can you tell what it will be? 

Now can you tell? 

I think you probably guessed it. 

There were two categories to enter this year. Gravity Driven and Power Driven. Below are some gravity driven entries.

Below: This was the power driven entry that exploded apart last year. The driver made some modifications and placed a padded box at the end of the track. I tried to take video but was too slow in getting it ready. It literally blew the other contestants off the track and slammed into the box, tipping it over.

 The whole thing was custom designed and  3D printed.

Below: Judson's entry. Quite a fine piece of work. He's our resident wood worker and quilter! (The same Judson who let us go shooting on his property a few years ago for a Dr. Pepper slushy.) 

Below: A friend's entry. 

After drawing names and going three rounds, we open it up to call outs. This is when all the kids gather 'round Adam to put in a request to race their favorite nemesis.

It was fun to see the entries. Everyone was asked to work on their car together as a family. So of course we got all kinds of cars. One family put a brick on top of their car to make it a brick house and give it extra weight.  

This box was full of gun powder and was the only gravity driven car to beat ours. 

This car is made mostly of metal. They would have beaten us if they'd greased the wheels. (Again, totally allowed.)

This continues to be a worthwhile activity. We hear good stories of how the families came up with and created their entry and then couldn't wait until evening so they could race. ("Is it time yet? Is it time yet?) And that's the goal.

I can see this happening a third time. I doubt I'll be the activity specialist any more by then, so I hope whomever takes my place will keep the new tradition going!