No Weight Allowed???

[Vitamin K]

We haven't done builds yet, but I'll post updates once we start.

I have decided that the kids can add any aesthetic decorations they desire, but we won't add purely to add weight. It seems pretty clear that they don't take the race terribly seriously...which rankles me a little...if you're going to have a race, you should strive to make it fair, IMO, but maybe my competitiveness needs a bit of a time out anyhow.

(Anyhow, we've still got Cub Scout Districts coming up in March!)

Any update on this race? I just noticed the OP said they are not weighing the cars. Wow this seems like a contest to add as much weight with out using metal.

How about glueing on some Rock's it can be the rock and roll mobile.

[Darin McGrew]

I have decided that the kids can add any aesthetic decorations they desire, but we won't add purely to add weight.

My experience with polymer clay (e.g., Fimo, Sculpey, Premo) is that it works very well for custom decorations, but (in a normal derby with a 5oz weight limit) you can't use very much of it without being overweight.

The application of this observation is left as an exercise for the reader.

My wife thought it would be nice to make a "tackle box" car, complete with lures and fishing weights. Lots and lots of fishing weights.

[Speedster]

How about getting a bunch of tungsten putty, cut a wafer car, form the Putty in the shape of the letter 2 (as many as you want) and call it "The Terrible 2's". This way you can have the car weigh whatever you want and have your CM wherever you want.

[Vitamin K]

Maybe I should let the kids build tanks, and we can layer them in depleted uranium.

[Vitamin K]

So, it occurred to me that the rules say nothing about wheel modifications. Nothing at all.

Well now. It may be time for the kids and I to have a little fun with the drill press. I don't have a wheel shaver, but I think that I may be able to rig up something to get the edges smooth. I don't imagine we'll be able to improve much in the way of runout, but we'll definitely be able to kill a lot of rotational mass!

[FatSebastian]

So, it occurred to me that the rules say nothing about wheel modifications.

K, can you post the rules?

[Vitamin K]

So, it occurred to me that the rules say nothing about wheel modifications.

K, can you post the rules?

So now that you ask, I can't find the rules printout, but the rules are all of a few paragraphs, and basically state that no weight additions (coins, paper clips, etc) may be made to the car. And that's about it. Nothing about car dimensions, wheels, shape or anything.

[Davhamm]

I have to wonder, how long have they been doing these races? You might get a lot of unwanted attention if you show up with some really wacked out wheels.

Please take lots of pics, this could be one of the weirdest races out there.

[Vitamin K]

So...my kids had their Awana race tonight! More on that in a minute, but here's a pic of how the cars looked. This one's my daughter's, but my son's is pretty similar.





To install the wheels, I drilled holes like normal for the axles, and then used a forstner bit to recess the hub area.

So, I didn't see the actual races, but they happened on what appeared to be a 32 foot wooden track. My daughter won fastest car of the night. My son won...nothing at all. At first I was shocked, then I asked about the race format.

Turns out that it was single elimination race(!). My son and my daughter raced in the same group, and they were pretty much neck-and-neck (and well ahead of any competitors), but only one car per group advanced to the final rounds, and everybody else was out of the running.

I'd feel worse about it if my son hadn't just brought home a bunch of hardware from his cub scout District Pinewood Derby. Still kind of scratching my head that they can't see how bankrupt a format that was.

Oh well, wha'cha gonna do?

[gpraceman]

Oh well, wha'cha gonna do?

Volunteer to help run the race next year?

Congrats to you and your daughter. Condolences to your son.

[Vitamin K]

Oh well, wha'cha gonna do?

Volunteer to help run the race next year?

Hah, probably not. Their policy requires Awana volunteers to be church members, and we actually belong to a different church (ours doesn't have Awana, so they go to the program at my mother's church). On top of that, after helping run our Pack Derby and then our District Derby, I'm pretty burned out on PWD administration by this point.

I think next year I will just advise them to try hard to be in different groups.

[Darin McGrew]

Still kind of scratching my head that they can't see how bankrupt a format that was.

So they allow heavily modified wheels, but don't allow any "weight" to be added (however they define "weight"), and then they use a single-elimination format.

Well, I suppose it could be worse. They could require four-on-the-floor. And they could eliminate speed winners from the design awards (or vice versa).