Pinewood Derby
| The Pinewood Derby is one of the most popular events in Cub
Scouting. Every year more than a million boys and parents team up to carve,
decorate, weigh, adjust, fret over, and finally race a Pinewood Derby car.
The first Pinewood Derby was held in 1953 by Cub Scout Pack 280 of Manhattan
Beach, California, and as of 1991, more than 81 million Pinewood Derby model
car kits have been sold. The purpose of the Pinewood Derby is to help the
Cub Scout build a team relationship with their parent or helper, experience
the sense of accomplishment and the excitement of competition, learn good
sportsmanship, and to have fun. |
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[ Pinewood Derby - Procedures ] [ Pine Derby Rules ] [ Derby Songs & Yells ] |
RACE DAY SCHEDULE
Saturday, March 28 2009
Charleston Town Center Mall
Center Court
Charleston Town Center Mall on Saturday, March 28.
The Pinewood Derby registration will be held on the 1st. floor of the mall
in front of Macy’s Dept. Store. Registration will begin at 10:00 a.m. and
the championship race will start at 11:00 a.m. All District’s 1st., 2nd.,
and 3rd. place winners along
with each packs 1st. place winner are eligible to compete in the
CHAMPIONSHIP RACE. Each District and Pack needs to verify their winners with
their District Executive and phone those winners names to the Scout Service
Center by March 25. Mark your calendars; start whittling on your pinewood
derby cars, wear good sportsmanship and HAVE FUN.
Pinewood Derby Flyer |
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| For additional information call or write:
Buckskin Council
Boy Scouts of America
2829 Kanawha Blvd., E.
Charleston, WV 25314
(304) 340-3663
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Council Pinewood Derby Results
Congratulations to the winners of the 2009 Buckskin Council Pinewood
Derby that took place at the Charleston Town Center Mall on March 28,
2009. The winners were: 3rd place Dilan Lopez from Pack 8 from Seneca
District, 2nd place Tyler Ball from Pack 94 from Mt. Dominion District
and 1st place Nic Duffield from Pack 202 from Pioneer District. The Best
of Show winner was Elliot Lilly from Pack 384 from Mt. Dominion District
and Good Sportsmanship winner was Dalton Bowman from Pack 2 from Mt.
Dominion District.
Congratulations to all Cub Scouts that participated, all of you ran a
“GREAT” race.
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Buckskin Council - District Pinewood Sites:
Cornstalk District---------------------March 21, 2009
Mt. Rifle District----------------------March 14, 2009
Seneca District------------------------March 21, 2009
Mt. Dominion District-----------------March 21, 2009
Pioneer District-----------------------March 7, 2009
Wilderness District--------------------March 21, 2009
References:
Refer to the Cub Scout Leader How-To Book, pages 9-39 through 9-44, ISBN
0-8395-3832-4.
Suggested Pack Rules
Packs / Districts must meet the
Buckskin Council Pinewood
Derby Rules.
The Pinewood Derby is one of the most popular events in Cub Scouting. Every
year more than a million boys and parents team up to carve, decorate, weigh,
adjust, fret over, and finally race a Pinewood Derby car. The first Pinewood
Derby was held in 1953 by Cub Scout Pack 280C of Manhattan Beach, California,
and as of 1991 (Ref. 1992 BSA Retail Catalog) more than 81 million Pinewood
Derby model car kits have been sold. Wow!!
Participation
Open to all Cub Scouts, Tiger Scouts, parents and leaders.
A Scout’s primary goal in Pinewood Derby should be to:
- Work together with a parent on a joint project
- Acquire a healthy attitude about competition and sportsmanship
- Become more proficient at woodworking
- Survive the experience with all ten fingers
Registration and Inspection
All cars must pass inspection to qualify for the race. Each car must pass
inspection by the race officials before it will be allowed to compete. The
officials have the right to disqualify those cars that do not meet
specifications. Cars not passing inspection for minor infractions, i.e.,
weight, wheel width, loose body trim, will have an opportunity for
re-inspection 10 minutes before close of registration.
Officials decisions are final. The car will be impounded when registered
until the races are complete. After being impounded, repairs will be limited
to replacement of axles/wheels that are broken/lost during the race. Any other
piece of the car that is broken/lost during the race can not be replaced.
Inspection points
- The car must have been made during the current scout year.
- The body in the Official BSA Pinewood Derby Kit must be used.
Available only thru the Council Office or BSA Distributor. The body may
be shaped, hollowed out, or built up from the original block, as long as it
meets all other specifications. Any additions to the original body, i.e.
steering wheels, drivers, decals, paint, weights, etc., must be firmly
attached.
- Axles, wheels and body wood shall be as provided in the official BSA
Pinewood Derby kit. No straight, one piece axles.
It is suggested that cars are raced head to head. You should run double elimination races,
so that imperfections on the track are eliminated. Best two out of three
wins the heat.
Awards will be announced shortly after all heats have been run. The drivers
and their partners will report to the winners circle for their awards as their
names are called.
There will be four divisions; Tiger Cub, Wolf, Bear, and Webelos, with 1st,
2nd, and 3rd place winners in each division. All 1st place winners will race
for the pack champion as well as 2nd, and 3rd place awards. The top three
finishers in each division will race in the district Pinewood Derby.
There can be judging for additional pack awards in the categories such as
MOST UNIQUE, and MOST SCOUT SPIRIT.
There can be an adult/sibling division race held as an exhibition race
before the cub scout Derby starts.
Tips and Hints
FRICTION: One of the best ways to eliminate friction is graphite. A good
dosage may not do wonders for the paint job, but it will for your axles
(hopefully you didn't glue the axles too far in or that will impair the
wheel). Most axles in the kits have burrs on them around the head. De-burr the
axles with a small file.
WEIGHT: It boils down to this, the closer you get to 5 ounces without going
over, the better off you will be. The placement of the weight on the car
(front or back) is an item which has been argued for years. Weight toward the
rear seems to work best, along as the front wheels track straight. Just
remember – gravity is the only power these cars use.
AERODYNAMICS: There are just about as many arguments on this topic as there
are Pinewood Derby racers. It has been tried, several times, to race a car, as
is, straight out of the box with no cutting, shaping or painting of the wood.
These cars seem to perform, on average, just as well as the low, sleek,
aerodynamic models. The bottom line is: Let the boy design the car, and help
him achieve his design! If the adult wants to tinker with the car, tinker with
the wheels and axles. The car design has almost no bearing on the outcome of
the race.
ALIGNMENT: Make sure that the car's wheels are placed as straight as
possible. Place the car on the floor and roll it about 8 to 10 feet. The car
should go in a straight line. Adjust with the axle placement to make double
sure the car will roll straight.
WHEELS and AXLES: Make sure that the axles are glued securely to the wood.
Also ensure that the wheel is not glued to the axle. The wheels are single
most important part. Make sure the wheels are on straight and turn freely.
DESIGN / SHAPE: The finish line uses electronic infrared sensors to detect
the car moving across the finish line. These sensors are directly centered in
each lane of the track. The starting gate of the track uses a bolt in the
center of the track. This is to ensure that the length of roll each car will
have to the finish line sensors will be the same for each car no matter what
the shape of each car is. Keep a high track clearance so that nothing has a
chance to rub on the underside of the car. Remember that the cars straddle a
wood lath as they roll down the track.
PAINT: Let your imagination run wild!! Whether you use 50 coats of hand
rubbed lacquer, olive drab or no paint at all, all it will do is affect the
looks of your car. It will not run any faster or slower whether it's red,
blue, green, yellow, flames, no-flames, or pink polka-dots!! Let the boy paint
the car. Drips of spray paint don't slow the car down.
ACCESSORIES: Glue those Lego and Pokemon characters in! Anything that falls
off in the race stays off. This can lighten you car enough to slow it down.
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Dremel Launches "Pinewood Derby® Days" at Lowe's Home
Improvement Stores with Pinewood Derby® Rotary Tool Accessory Kits
Beginning January 16, 2010, the Dremel Pinewood Derby® Days program has
teamed up with Lowe's Home Improvement for in-store programs on how to build
a winning Pinewood Derby® race car. This represents the second year of a
collaborative effort with Dremel, Lowe's and the Boy Scouts of America to
provide Pinewood Derby® enthusiasts a single resource for all the materials
and know how to create a winning Pinewood Derby® car. The Dremel Pinewood
Derby® Rotary Tool Accessory Kit includes an official Pinewood Derby® car
kit and 18 Dremel accessories for carving, sanding, polishing and cleaning
the race car.
As a special bonus, Dremel will provide everyone attending the in-store
demonstrations a 2010 Pinewood Derby® Days patch (while supplies last) and
10% off the total purchase of any Dremel tool, attachment or accessory
purchase.
To confirm dates and times of the in-store demonstrations in your area,
please check your nearest Lowe's location. For more information on Dremel
Pinewood Derby® Days, visit dremelderby.com. |
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Derby Talk is a forum for Pinewood Derby, Awana Grand Prix,
Kub Kar Rally, Shape N Race Derby, Space Derby, Raingutter Regatta and other
similar races where a child and an adult work together to create a race
vehicle and a lot of fun and memories. |
ABC Pinewood Derby - a free
source of pinewood derby information for beginners and experts.
http://www.pinecar.com/ - Source of race
cars, accessories and great ideas for go faster cars.
http://www.worldforchrist.org/races/cars/ - The science of making a faster
car
Pinewood Derby Car Plans and
Specialty Supplies
Jay's Pinewood
Derby Page A fun site with lots of useful info (such as building cars) and
great pictures!
Micro Wizard - Finish judge kit.
Easy to build and install.
RaceVIEW's Derby Related Links
Pinewood Derby SPEED SECRETS - from
www.indyproducts.com
Kotick - An English
Pinewood Derby
Pinewood How To Video - Top
Secret Pinewood
The Pinewood Derby Mania - A Cub Scout Phenomenon - Pack 215 - Walnut Creek,
CA USA). Pack 215 is also mirrored
here.
Pack 240 Pinewood Derby - The other Pack 240, Anderson, Indiana (there are
more than 2 Pack 240's)
The
Ultimate Pinewood Derby Page - Pack 15 - The Ultimate Pinewood Derby Site -
This site threatens that, "This document will allow you and your son or daughter
to build a winning car." It is well done and has lots of useful information.
Timestoppers by Intelligent Automation Co.
Timestoppers are Pinewood Derby Timers and Pinewood Derby Judges
invented at Intelligent Automation for Pinewood Derby Racing. Timestopper timers
and judging systems have been a favorite of Cub Scouts for over 20 years.
AgentZ - Pinewood Derby
Information
http://usscouts.org/usscouts/pinewood/cspine.html
http://www.three-peaks.net/pinecar.htm
http://www.worldforchrist.org/races/cars/html/INDEX.html
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Hodges Hobby House (WinDerby) is dedicated to helping kids and
parents understand how to achieve maximum speed by combining quality
craftsmanship and knowledge of physics to win the Pinewood Derby®. |
Sources of Cars - On Line Hobby Shops
PineCar - full line of
additions/replacements to standard BSA approved cars, kits, and accessories
Pine-Pro Competition Components - full
line of additions/replacements to standard BSA approved cars, kits, and
accessories
Hodges Hobby House - full line of
additions/replacements to standard BSA approved cars, kits, and accessories
Race Management Software & Tools
RaceVIEW Pinewood Derby Car Software
AgentZ
Pinewood Derby Software
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Our goal is to provide high quality software solutions that
will help with planning and conducting Pinewood Derby, Awana® Grand Prix,
Space Derby, Raingutter Regatta and other similar races. |
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Awana Grand Prix, Pinewood Derby, Kub Kar Rally, and other
similar races can be lots of fun and a great learning experience for the
kids. However, a good race takes a great amount of planning, coordination
and resources. This site is dedicated to providing race coordinators and
leaders with ideas, information and resources to help stage an exciting and
fair race for the children building and racing their handmade creations. |
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THE JUDGE is a compact, rugged, and affordable electronic finish
line that takes the guesswork out of the popular Pinewood Derby races. It
makes use of the very latest technology in electronics, and is exceptionally
well designed and built. But most of all, it is accurate, fair and
impartial. |
Fast Track Electronic Timer from
Micro Wizard
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FAST TRACK pinewood derby timers combine state of the art accuracy
with a professional look that builds enthusiasm for the race. One of our
family of timers will suit your need and eliminate disputes even in the
closest competition. Spectators see results instantly at the finish line. |
NewBold Products Timers and Finish
Lines - Pinewood Derby DT-1000 Digital Timer
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We offer the most flexible, readable and easy to use timer
for the Pinewood Derby, Space Derby or any other derby type event. The same
finish line timer may be used with the Pinewood Derby and Space Derby with
the addition of only the extra sensors. |
Commercially available tracks:
Beta Crafts, Inc.
Route 130, P.O. Box 563
Cranbury, NJ 08512
609-655-1940 "Challenger" Aluminum track.
These are the guys who make the kits for the Boy Scouts for MANY years!
They make the following kits for the BSA: pinewood derby (cars and tractor
trailer), raingutter regatta, space derby. Beta Crafts makes the black-end
flap PWD kits. They do NOT make the PWD kits that have the orange-end flaps.
The "Challenger Track" is the aluminum deck that the Scout Catalog lists.
The extruded aluminum decking is so fast that a 50-foot track is suggested in
place of the standard 32-foot track. It has precision joints that lock on the
track segments. The 50-foot track only requires two 4x8 sheets of plywood. The
dimensions are exactly the same as a standard 32-foot track except that the
flat surface is longer. They will drill the holes for the popular start gates
and timers. They also make an extension that attaches to the top for the truck
big-rig races without having to modify the start gate or anything else!
Piantedosi Oars, Inc.
P.O. Box 643
West Acton, MA 01720
978-263-1814 Fully assembled wood track.
S & W Crafts Mfg.
P.O. Box 5501
Pasadena, CA 91117
626-793-2443
Page revised 01/18/2010
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