Pinewood Derby

One more Pinewood Derby down, just one more to go!

Actually, Steve is creating quite a legacy in our ward. Seth came home with the "Fastest Bear" award. That means that Steve has made cars that have placed in the top three every year we've attended. (We missed last year because of our big trip to Washington DC)

The secret of success....polish the axles. Aerodynamics are insignificant. The "three wheels touching" argument makes no sense - same weight distributed over less surface seems to mean more friction on those wheels. Put the weights in the middle to evenly distribute the weight.

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Seth wanted to make an INL bus which made things pretty simple on the design end. They sanded the block of wood. It looked a lot whiter before getting covered with graphite.

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I was in charge of treats and this is what I came up with. ..

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An ice cream sandwich derby car! I must admit I'm kind of proud of myself. The only drawback is that you need help making them quickly before they melted. The church doesn't have a large freezer so I couldn't make them ahead. Nevertheless, I had one adult and five tweens help me assemble and serve them quickly. Yay!

Before the races began Seth was awarded his Bear.

Seth was so nervous about how he placed that he wouldn't go play with everyone while they added up scores and judged the cars. (Everyone won an award based on the design of their car) Finally they announced the last winners were for speed and you could see his whole body relax. He bounced up to get his award as fastest Bear. It was a great ending to a fun night.