Zen and the art of the Pinewood Derby
In school auditoriums, church basements and parish halls across the country, young children and their parents aren't focused on their phones and tablets, they are watching small wooden cars with simple plastic wheels race down a track for glory, perhaps a trophy and most definitely a patch.
For the past 65 years Cub Scouts, siblings, and parents have been designing, cutting and painting simple five ounce blocks of wood into racing machines that can reach speeds of almost 50 miles an hour. It's tradition, there are no advantages of being bigger or stronger, it's whoever builds the best car, or who gets a lucky draw and somehow avoids the best built car. Growing up, I never won a pinewood derby. We used to get our cars cut by an elderly German man who lived on our block and was a carpenter. Then we would paint them. Our Pack would have a big derby night it was always so much fun. But as the 80s moved on, people started using graphite to speed up their wheels, and instead of…
For the past 65 years Cub Scouts, siblings, and parents have been designing, cutting and painting simple five ounce blocks of wood into racing machines that can reach speeds of almost 50 miles an hour. It's tradition, there are no advantages of being bigger or stronger, it's whoever builds the best car, or who gets a lucky draw and somehow avoids the best built car. Growing up, I never won a pinewood derby. We used to get our cars cut by an elderly German man who lived on our block and was a carpenter. Then we would paint them. Our Pack would have a big derby night it was always so much fun. But as the 80s moved on, people started using graphite to speed up their wheels, and instead of…