Our Pack’s Pinewood Derby is coming up fast! Here is a rundown of the important information you’ll want ahead of time.
Official Rules (Disregard the dates on this sheet, unless you are in the top three finishers who will qualify to race the following weekend at Districts.)
We can start setting up at 9:00 Saturday Morning (April 13), with weigh-in starting at 10:00.We could use 4 or 5 adults to lend a hand with the setup and weigh-in inspections. The more the merrier… and the quicker the lines will go. Check-ins will close at 11:30, to give us enough time to do the data entry. If it’s all smooth sailing, we intend to release the first heat at high noon! After you check in, you can grab a bite to eat, take a power nap, or just hang out and watch us scurry to get everything working.
We will present awards at the end of the race (technology willing!)
Raceday Guidelines:
First: this is a FUN activity. It is a competition loaded with the thrill of victory and its cousin, the agony of defeat. Scouts take their cues from those around them. Find a reason to get excited about every race, even if it is as simple as clearly having the best-looking car in the field.
Second: Graphite is forever on a school floor. If you want to blow more graphite on your Scout’s car before they check in, please do it outside in the parking lot. PLEASE, NO GRAPHITE APPLICATION IN THE SCHOOL.
Third: I will have a limited tool crib available outside, should you need to make any last-minute adjustments to pass inspection. If you think you may need something in particular, please pack it with you, and share your talents with someone who needs it.
Fourth: The compassionate Cub Scout rule is in effect. Every once in a while, a car will have a catastrophic failure. We all know what that feels like, and we will do our best to get that car back to racing shape for the next round. This does not include minor tweaks and adjustments. It’s something like losing a wheel or other actual failure.
If your Scout needs a hand building his or her car, please reach out to your Den Leader or the Cubmaster and we’ll get it done (there is still time). We want everyone to have great memories of the fun that is Pinewood Derby.
We will also have an outlaw class for aspiring adult and sibling race engineers. Same rules apply, but the outlaws will be scored separately.