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| Scouts Henry Bernard, left, and his brother, Leo Bernard, show off cars while competing in Windham Cub Scout Pack 805's Pinewood Derby races at Windham Middle School last Saturday. PHOTO BY COLLETTE HAYES |
Amid cheers and shouts by family and friends, members of Windham’s Cub Scout Pack 805 showed they had what it takes to earn the checkered flag during the annual Pinewood Derby races at Windham Middle School on Saturday.
As Cub Master Casey Melanson called racers to the track from among a large crowd
that included 43 Cub Scouts, racers made their way to the competition, four at
a time. With unbridled enthusiasm the scouts hopped up on a makeshift milk
crate serving as a step, and with meticulous care and concentration, they
placed their cars side by side on the track.
A starting lever was
flipped and with smooth precision, miniature cars made from blocks of fabricated
pinewood and powered by inertia and gravity only, raced down an inclined track
to the finish line. At the end of the day, Cub Scouts who built the fastest and
best-looking cars took home bragging rights, trophies and a chance to move on
to the Cub Scouts District Pinewood Derby competition.
The Pinewood Derby is a traditional scouting event where each Cub Scout is given a block of pinewood and with an adult’s help, are challenged to design and construct a car that will be the fastest while meeting certain specified requirements.
According to Fourth Grade Webelo Scout Henry Bernard, building a Pinewood Derby
car is fun but a lot of hard work.
Keeping cars within the required guidelines for weight, height, and length, some Cub Scouts can spend weeks designing, carving and painting a simple block of pine along with trying to develop a basic understanding of physics.
A Pinewood Derby car is a rare case in racing where aerodynamics have little effect in the race, but weight does make a significant difference. Therefore, heavy equals fast.
“First you have to think of an idea of what you want your car to look like,” said Bernard. “When you have your idea, you cut the wood with a jigsaw making it into a wedge, sand it down, paint it and put stickers on it. We put graphite on the axles to make the wheels spin faster. Another thing we did is to chisel out a little rectangle on the bottom of the car and put in a lead weight. Weight makes the car go faster but you have to be careful because the car can’t weigh more than 5 ounces.”
Cub Scouts repeated the Scout Law and Scout Oath at the beginning of the Pinewood Derby and were encouraged to keep both as the center focus of the competitive derby learning experience.
"Winners are based on time,” said Melanson.
She said that the top five winners advance to the Casco Bay District Pinewood Derby competition.
Scouts earn bragging rights as well as trophies, but they also gain an understanding of good sportsmanship, being supportive of each other and in all circumstances striving to do their best.
The Windham Pinewood Derby contained something for everyone involved. Parents,
siblings and Boy Scouts from Troop 805 were invited to build a derby car and to
earn awards as they competed in their own division in this year’s local competition.
Results of this year’s racing:
Pack 805 Pinewood Derby Winners
1st Place – Calvin Conant – Bear, 3rd - 191.28
2nd Place – Kaleb Spencer – Arrow of Light, 5th – 190.70
3rd Place – Eli Souther – Webelos, 4th – 187.89
4th Place - Colin Erde – Webelos, 4th – 187.87
5th Place – Brad Jorgensen- Bears, 3rd – 187.17
Calvin Conant set a track record at 192.42.
Best in Show
Evan Moulton, Lions, K
Oliver Wertanen, Tigers, 1st
Leo Bernard, Wolves, 2nd
Joseph McArdle, Bears, 3rd
Henry Bernard, Webelos, 4th
Byron Davis, Arrow of Light, 5th
Overall Best in Show
Cameron Beckwith, Bears
Parent, Sibling, Boy Scout Troop 805 Race Winners
Parent Race Winner was Tim Melanson, 188.16
Sibling Race Winner was Benjamin Conant, 187.94
Boy Scout Troop 805 Race Winner was Matthew Melanson, 190.07 <
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