For two hours on Saturday morning, the Downey School cafeteria was transformed into a speedway for cub scouts as 72 pinewood derby cars competed for top honors in Westwood’s annual town-wide Pinewood Derby. When the dust cleared and the top finishers from each den faced off in the final round, Jack Goodwin took home 1st place with his car, “Black Streak.” Jackson Martin came in 2nd with “Red Rebel” and Kyle O’Shea finished 3rd with “Kyle’s Mobile Phone.”
Photos by Mike Russo.
1st place - Jack Goodwin, Black Streak, 10.4544. 2nd place - Jackson Martin, Red Rebel, 10.5381. 3rd place - Kyle O’Shea, Kyle’s Mobile Phone, 10.8174. 4th place - Dylan Crawford, Boss Baby, 10.8253. 5th place - Ethan Walsh, Meow Woof Sweater Hybrid, 10.8283. 6th place - Sam Goodwin, Speedy Sam, 10.8534. 7th place - Mikey Russo, The Penny Racer, 10.8537. 8th place - Sam Cochran, Slick Rick, 10.8732. 9th place - Ben Murphy, Blue Thunder, 10.9548. 10th place - Kieran O’Keefe, Kieran’s Car, 10.9674.
Throughout the race, raffle prizes were awarded. The top three racers from each den and the top overall finishers took home trophies. Charles Goodman won best overall design with “Grasshopper 1.0.”
The first pinewood derby in the United States was held in 1953. Each year, cub scouts receive a block of wood, four nails (axles), and four wheels and are tasked to create the fastest car to race down a track powered only by gravity. The night before the race, scouts present their cars for inspection, during which time they are weighed and adjusted to ensure no car weighs more than five ounces. Then the gym is locked overnight as adult volunteers assemble the track and set up the timing software for race day. On race day, each den (grade level) competes first, then the top three finishers from each den compete in the grand finals.
There will be a display case featuring the winning cars at the Islington branch library in April and at the Main Library in May.
Two Cub Scout packs serve Westwood: Pack 1 Westwood and Pack 1 Islington. For more information about joining scouting, visit beascout.org.
