The Fastest Pinewood Derby Car Design

Cub Scouts hold first Pinewood Derby

The just barely a year old Cub Scout Pack 191 in Madisonville took part in one of the grandest traditions of scouting Saturday morning – The Pinewood Derby.

Four Dens from Cub Scout Pack 191 met at the Lake Madison Pavilion at 10 a.m. for the first derby since the pack began about one year ago.

“Our motto is, ‘do your best’; nobody was disappointed because if you do your best, you are a winner,” Nicole Edmunds, committee chair for the Cub Scouts, said. 

The Cub Scout pack creates an opportunity for the parents to become involved with their children in activities. It also teaches teamwork, good sportsmanship and how to take care of the environment. The Derby gave parents and children the fun of building a model, or creating a car together. 

Bob Colwell, Cub Master, wanted to thank the First Baptist Church for the use of the track and the City of Madisonville for the use of the Pavilion. He also wanted to acknowledge appreciation to Rev. Wade Phillips and Police Officer Justin Barham, who were impartial judges of the race. Other officers of the pack are Craig Edmunds, Assistant Cub Master, Amanda Emmit, Treasurer, and Alex Canon, Charter Representative. The event became a family event as Seth Edmunds aided in getting the cars off the track after each race, and grandparents looked on from the sidelines. 

When asked what Keith Smith liked about the Cub Scouts, he responded, “Whatever Cutter is excited about, we are excited about. It is a good foundation, and it’s an activity you can do with your kids.”

The Cub Scout Pinewood Derby was a big success. The overall fastest car winner was Luke Edmunds. Frank Emmit took second place and Eben Beebe won third place. Other judged were sportiest, most unusual, most realistic, most creative, raciest design, toughest, fastest looking, best craftsmanship, best paint job, overall design and most scout spirit. Everyone was a winner.

The race track and pit stop created a realistic feature to the event. Janita Johnson, Frank Emmit and Rebecca Williamson worked on the cars as they came in. During an intermission, Luke Edmunds and his father raced to see whose car was the fastest. Luke won.

5 Design Tips for a Pinewood Derby Car | New Car Design

Are you planning to design a Pinewood Derby car? If so, then one of the main decisions you’ll need to make is regarding the car’s design. While there are tons of designs to choose from, some of them are simply better than others are. Here are some of the best tips for choosing your Pinewood Derby car’s design.

1. Choose the Most Creative or Fastest Car award

While it’s possible to win both awards, it’s advisable that you focus on one or the other. The Most Creative car won’t necessarily be a speed demon, while the Fastest Car probably wouldn’t win a beauty pageant. Basically, winning either of these awards requires taking a different approach. So before choosing a design for your car, determine whether you want your car to be a particularly fast or attractive. After making that decision, choosing a particular design will be much easier.

2. Add weight to add momentum

Typically, the weight limit for Pinewood Derby cars is five ounces. The key is for your car to be as close as possible to that weight, without exceeding it. By adding weight to your car, you’ll consequently add more momentum. Ultimately, that will increase the speed of your car. You can buy weights for the car, at a local hobby shop. It’s advisable to place the weights in the back half of the car, in order to maximize the car’s speed.

3. Focus on the wheels and axles

When choosing a design for your Pinewood Derby car, the axles and wheels are some of the most crucial components. In particular, it’s important that you sand, polish, and lubricate the wheels and axles effectively. This will reduce the amount of friction that the axles and wheels experience-which will in turn increase the speed of your car. As a word of caution, always verify that the adjustments you make to the wheels and axles adhere to the Pinewood Derby rules.

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