Dg8 is our local, neighborhood scout. As an 8 year old he has the opportunity for the next few years to participate in the pinewood derby races with his troop. This year was his first year, and I do mean his. I'm not a fan of father's who put more effort into their son's pinewood derby car than their sons do.
So we bought the kit. He marked the profile of the shape he wanted from his car and I cut it out on the bandsaw. He sanded the car, stained it...yes stained it because he wanted the natural wood to show through, polished the axels while I held the drill and adivsed, determined the placement of the weight, put on the cars number, placed graphite on the wheels and axels and made sure the wheels were square and level.
I advised. I looked up ideas on the internet, bought the weights, showed him how to sand and stain, let him put on the numbers even though I didn't think they were perfect (he did though), taught him how to polish the axels as he did so and I did push on the wheels instead of using a hammer.
It was his first race. As we sat there pre-race he said, "I don't think I'm going to do very good." I said, "Son, you don't plant a seed thinking the things not going to come up. You did your best, let's see what happens." Later he admitted he was doubting himself.
Race 1 Heat 1: 2nd place
Race 2 Heat 1: 1st place
Race 3 Heat 1: 1st place
Race 4 Heat 1: 1st place and advance to the 2nd and final heat
Race 1 Heat 2: 1st place
Race 2 Heat 2: 1st place
Race 3 Heat 2: 2nd place
Race 4 Heat 2: 1st place
Overall Performance: 2nd place out of 37 cars and 3 troops. Not bad for a Doubting Thomas!
We looked up some stuff on the internet, but in retrospect I think it was the profile shape he chose. It may have been serendipitous, but I believe it allowed for the center of gravity to be an inch or so in front of the rear axle. I think the distribution of weight made the car very stable and allowed for a smooth ride. Dg8s car was simple and beautiful. Way to go Dg8.
