Pictures From the Pinewood Derby

Here are pictures from the Pinewood Derby and Edible Snowman Contest. Enjoy! Coming soon: Pictures from the Blue and Gold, and the next newsletter!

Pinewood Derby and Blue and Gold

First off, I’d like to say THANK YOU to all of the scouts and parents who participated in the Christmas Parade in December, Christmas Carroling, and our Pinewood Derby! Our Pack was awarded the Third Place in the Christmas Parade, our best showing yet!

We held our Pinewood Derby on January 26th up at the Church. We nearly had 50 participants, making it one of our largest derbies ever. I want to thank everybody for participating, all of the leaders for their supervision, and all of the parents and families for supporting your scouts! Pictures of the Derby and of each den were taken by the folks up at the Metropolis Planet. You can see the pictures at The Metropolis Planet and when our pictures are posted, you can view them here.

Even though our event was a terrific success, it has come to my attention that despite our best efforts, a couple of mistakes occurred. First, it's possible that one boy's time was recorded incorrectly. The parents of the boy were writing their scout’s times down because they were texting their friends about his participation in the race. Their texts are different than the time we recorded, which would have made a difference in the race. I think it is right and fair that we recognize the boy without taking away the accomplishments of anyone else. Second, it looks like in another case, the time was recorded correctly, but the best times weren't circled. Again, I am not pointing fingers here. One leader recorded the times, another reviewed them for the awards, and I looked at them again while I was reading them off. Mistakes happen, and it is not a matter of negligence nor maliciousness. However, one boy was upset when he realized that his time should’ve been recognized and wasn’t. The first boy, for whom there might have been a time discrepancy, was Austin Cohoon. The other boy, whose time wasn’t recognized during the race, was Cobie Copley. I am proud of both of these boys. My sincerest apology goes out to them, and my gratitude to the folks who made me aware of our mistake.

Pinewood Derby Race Winners:
TIGERS
1st: Dalton Ledbetter; 2nd: Austin Cohoon; 3rd: Kody Brookshier; 4th: Nickolas Shinn; 5th: Matt Helm; 6th: Grant Helm; 7th: Jacob Mitchell; 8th: AJ Heine; 9th: AC Heine; 10th: Hayden LaVeau; 11th: Andy Sutton; 12th: Ralph Richardson; 13th: Bryan Walquist
WOLFS
1st: Tristen White; 2nd: Seth Blankenbaker; 3rd: Dylan Copley; 4th: Chris Runion; 5th: Carson McKee; 6th: Samuel Crockett; 7th: Tristen Hoxworth; 8th: Matt McHaney; 9th: Stetson Ramey; 10th: John Bowman; 11th: Caleb Holman; 12th: Julian Russell; 13th: Ethan Atkinson; 14th: Robbie Myers; 15th: Lucas Stahl
BEARS
1st: Riley Alsip; 2nd: Ben Bowlin; 3rd: Caleb Blankenbaker; 4th: Cobie Copley; 5th: Seth Clausen; 6th: Payton Adams
WEBELOS I
1st: Teige Heckenlaible; 2nd: Trentin Scronce; 3rd: Noah Carter
WEBELOS II
1st: Caleb Ashley; 2nd: Doug Bates; 3rd: Zachary Walquist; 4th: Patrick Harvill; 5th: Braden Stamme

Award for Outstanding Design: Tristan Hoxworth; Best Use of Materials: Braden Stamme; Unique Car: Matt Helm; Scout Theme: Riley Alsip; The BRICK Award: Zachary Walquist

We would like to congratulate Adam Cohoon and the Tiger Cubs for winning the Edible Snowman contest this year! Adam’s scouts received the award of a pizza party for their den, and made one of the most inventive snowmen (a Jamaican snowman made of meatballs!) I’ve ever seen.
I also want to thank everybody who was present for Scout Sunday up at the United Methodist Church on the 14th. We had a great turn out.


The next big event in our calendar is THE BLUE AND GOLD BANQUET, a special scout event held in place of our February Pack Meeting, on Saturday, February 27th. This year’s theme for our Blue and Gold Banquet will be “One Hundred Years of Scouting,” and our potluck will be a traditional barbecue. The First Christian Church in Metropolis (across from the Dairy Queen) will host our event. People need to show up with their food dishes at 5:30 p.m. Each den has been assigned some specific foods to bring. If you’re not sure what that is, please contact your den leader. The banquet itself will begin at 6:00 p.m., and the program will begin at 7:00 pm.

EVERYONE in your scout’s life is invited---mom, dad, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, grandmas, grandpas, in-laws and outlaws. We will supply the main course, drinks, and dessert. We ask each family to bring one of the dishes we asked each den to prepare, so that our banquet table will be bountiful. It is very important that you RSVP to me the TOTAL number of people in your family, including your scout, who will be attending the banquet. We need to know how many tables to set up and how much of the main dish, drinks, and other supplies we will need to buy. PLEASE, RSVP to me by mail, by phone, or by email. My address is 113 Lindsey, Metropolis, IL, 62960. My phone is 618) 524-8340, and my email is pugh@shawneelink.net. PLEASE RSVP me back!

What is so special about the Blue and Gold Banquet? This is the celebration of the anniversary of Scouting. This is also the time at which we recognize, through official ceremony, the crossing over of Webelos II scouts from Cub Scouts to Boy Scouts. From that moment on, they are Webelos II no longer. The larger adventure of scouting awaits them. The entire Pack participates in this advancement. We look forward to seeing you there!

THE PINEWOOD DERBY

The time has come once again for the Pinewood Derby! The Pinewood Derby will begin on Tuesday January 26th, at the United Methodist Church basement. Weigh in will be at 6:30 pm. We will begin racing promptly at 7:00 pm. This will also be our Pack meeting for January. Besides having a great race, we will also judge our edible snowman contest. Winners of the snowman contest will get a pizza party for their Den, courtesy of Pack 101.

I hope to see you all there!

Events coming up: Blue and Gold Banquet, February 27th.

See you on Tuesday!

Christmas Carolling and Pack Meeting..

Scouts, this Tuesday, December 15th, we are going to go Christmas Carolling and then have our pack meeting. We will begin by meeeting up at the UM Church parking lot at 5 pm. We will carpool and caravan, scouts and parents, from one assisted living center to the next, until about 7 pm. Then we will all convene back at the church for cookies, hot cocoa, advancements, and GIVING OUT THE POPCORN PRIZES. Two of our scouts won prizes in the Council-wide give-aways.

ITINERARY:
5 pm: Meet at the Church, get music books for carolling from Leslie Bates. Carpool and caravan to these assisted living centers:

Southgate
MNRC
Twin Oaks
Krypton House

Leslie will have the exact order and a sheet with the addresses for each place.

7pm: Reconvene at the church basement for our Pack meeting. We will have hot cocoa and cookies, advancements, popcorn prizes, checks for top sellers, and two special prizes for boys who won items from the Council-wide drawings.

This will be the last event we have until January. In January, we will have our edible snowman contest and a little thing we do called the Pinewood Derby!

Schedule of Events....

First, thank you to all scouts and parents who made our float construction go so smoothly! I especially want to thank Mike and Melissa Rushing for allowing us to take up their garage space for the next few weeks.

Yesterday, Tuesday the 24th, was our popcorn turn in date. Almost everyone turned in their popcorn sales, which was greatly appreciated. If you have not turned in your popcorn sales, please turn your money and order forms into Lisa Gower, at Creations the Florist in Metropolis. In the next few days, I will be calling all folks who have not turned in popcorn money or had undeliverable popcorn. I will help get that popcorn sold or delivered!

Our next events include your regular den meetings, and then on December 5th, Saturday, we will walk and ride with our float in the Metropolis Christmas Parade. We need to meet at Washington Park (across from the Library) at 12:30. The parade will end by the new firestation (across from the Save-A-Lot). Parents, if you are not walking in the parade with your scout, please meet us at the end of the parade route. One of the scout leaders will be with the boys in the Save-A-Lot parking lot. Also, if you want your scout to throw candy, please supply them with their own bag of individually wrapped candies to throw.

On December 15th, Tuesday, we will have our December Pack meeting and will also go Christmas Caroling to the different assisted living centers in town. The plan is as follows: At approximately 5 pm, we will carpool and carvan our Pack to the different assisted living centers, and sing Christmas carols to the residents. At approximately 7 pm, we will return to the UM Church basement and have our Pack meeting, eat hot cocoa and cookies, hand out any advancements and awards, and give the boys any prizes earned for popcorn sales, including cash awards. Then, we are officially off for the rest of the month of December. We will begin den meetings again starting the first full week of January.

In January: The Pinewood Derby! If you want to get a look at our Pinewood Derby, please look through the archives of the website. It is probably the biggest event for the boys, and one they deserve after they have worked so hard to progress through their ranks, and have successfully completed our fund raiser to provide a great program for the rest of the year.

Also in January, we will have our edible snowman contest, in which each den makes a snowman, either by itself or in a scene, but everything in it must be edible! The winning den will get a pizza party courtesy of Pack 101!

I'll see you all at the Christmas Parade,

Roger

The Pinewood Derby 2009

Here are the winners of the Pack 101 Pinewood Derby:

TIGERS:
Damon McHaney, 5th, 2.665
Seth Blankenbaker, 4th, 2.654
Ethan Atkinson, 3rd, 2.614
Julian Russell, 2nd, 2.597
Dylan Copley, 1st, 2.546

WOLFS:
Seth Clausen, 5th, 2.822
Caleb Blankenbaker, 4th, 2.685
Logan Dassing, 3rd, 2.537
Cobie Copley, 2nd, 2.522
Riley Alsip, 1st, 2.462

BEARS:
Ethan Wimer, 5th, 3.782
Kobie Klotz, 4th, 3.237
Terrin Reed, 3rd, 2.867
Trentin Sronce, 2nd, 2.609
Stone Osman, 1st, 2.484

WEBELOS I
Braden Stamme, 4th, 2.898
Caleb Ashley, 3rd, 2.792
Tyler Timmons, 2nd, 2.626
Doug Bates, 1st, 2.515

WEBELOS II
Wesley Olroyd, 2nd, 4.083
Jonathan Hodges, 1st, 2.603

GRAND CHAMPIONS
Jonathan Hodges, 5th, 2.574
Dylan Copley, 4th, 2.555
Doug Bates, 3rd, 2.532
Stone Osman, 2nd, 2.493
Riley Alsip, 1st, 2.468

I want to thank all of the scouts and parents who made our Pinewood Derby a great success. I also want to thank the folks at the Metropolis Planet for taking some great group photos of our Dens. The Wolfs and the Webelos I tied for the best entry in the Edible Snowman Contest, and will share in the prize of a pizza party.


Our next big event will be the Blue and Gold Banquet, which will be held February 27th, 6 pm, at the Metropolis Community Center. All scouts and their families are invited to bring a specific dish and join us for a Mexican Fiesta. We will have food, fun, and be privileged to participate in the last ceremony that the Webelos II will complete as Cub Scouts, the bridging over ceremony.

I look forward to seeing you then,

Roger
Cubmaster, Pack 101

PINEWOOD DERBY----This TUESDAY, February 10th, 6 pm at the UM Church in Metropolis!!!

Everyone,

We had two events planned for this weekend. The first was to sell popcorn at the basketball tournament over at the primary school on Saturday. However,too many things have been pushed to this weekend, so we will gracefully bow out of the event this Saturday. I hope that we will be able to sell popcorn at another event on another Saturday.

This Sunday is Scout Sunday. This Sunday, all scouts are invited to share worship service at the United Methodist Church in Metropolis. The service starts at 10 am. I encourage everybody to attend the service. This is our sponsor's day to recognize the scouts, and our day to thank the church for their support. I hope to see you all there. I would like to fill our section up with scouts and their families. The boys and leaders need to be in uniform.

IMPORTANT UPDATE: PINEWOOD RACERS PLEASE READ: This Pinewood Derby will be this Tuesday, February 10th. Because we have multiple goals to accomplish, I want to start check-in of cars at 6 pm. We will start the races at 6:30, and we will have our meeting and advancements between heats. During the meeting, we will hand out advancements, hand out any popcorn prizes that have yet to be awarded, award prizes for both the Pinewood Derby and the Edible Snowman contest, and go over the Blue and Gold Banquet, including getting your RSVP for the banquet, and also getting you to sign up for the dish you are going to bring to the banquet.

So, to recap: we will skip the popcorn sale tomorrow, but I hope to see everybody at the United Methodist Church this Sunday at their 10 am service; the Pinewood Derby is THIS TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10th, STARTING AT 6 pm. People must be there on time if we intend to get what we need to get done, so please, please, come early!!

I look forward to seeing everybody Sunday and Tuesday.

Roger Pugh
Cubmaster, Pack 101

IMPORTANT!!! Pinewood Derby Rescheduled....AGAIN!!!!!

Cub Scouts and Parents,

In the last few days, the coming ice storm made rescheduling the Pinewood Derby a necessity. The cub scout den leaders were terrific and contacted almost everybody and let them know that we had rescheduled the Pinewood Derby from Tuesday the 27th of January, to Saturday, the 31st of January.

HOWEVER, even though it appeared that this date was available to us at the United Methodist Church here in town, and we were told that we could use the church basement on Saturday, it was not available, and we can't use it Saturday. It would have been headaches and more work for everyone to try to fit us into their already extremely busy schedule, so I agreed to change the date of our Pinewood Derby again.

SO, UNLESS AN ACT OF GOD KEEPS IT FROM HAPPENING, THE PINEWOOD DERBY IS SCHEDULED FOR THIS COMING TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3rd, at 6:30 p.m. AT THE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH IN METROPOLIS. WE WILL CHECK IN CARS AT 6:30 p.m., AND WILL BEGIN RACING AT 7:00 p.m.

PRINTED BELOW IS A SUMMARY OF THE DERBY RULES AND THE NEXT EVENTS THAT ARE COMING UP.

THANKS FOR STICKING WITH US THROUGH THIS TERRIBLE STRETCH OF WEATHER.

First the PINEWOOD DERBY!!! On February 3rd, starting at 6:30 pm, we will have the weigh-in for the pinewood derby cars. For the cub scouts, cars MUST weigh 5 ounces or less. Cars MUST use the orignal materials included in your kit (although you can use add-ons to your kit, as long as the add-ons don’t violate any of the other rules for building your car). Cars MUST use the wheels and axles supplied in the kit. You MUST NOT alter the wheelbase or height of the axles. Changing your cars in any of these ways will likely disqualify your car. Cars that exceed 5 ounces WILL NOT be allowed to race. If you have any questions about whether your car can race, or your design will be allowed, please contact me (pugh@shawneelink.net or 524-8340) to check in advance.

Before you check your cars in on race night, you will have an opportunity right there to add or subtract weight. However, once cars are officially checked in, they can not be altered by scout or parent. If you want to check the weight of your cars in advance, you can do so at the Metropolis Post Office. There will be many prizes awarded, not just for winning your races, so be creative and inventive in your designs, themes, use of materials, and colors. Although races will be run in brackets, the races are purely timed events, with two heats per den. The fastest time wins the race. The actual race will begin at 7 pm. PLEASE come early to check in, because once the race begins, we will not allow cars to be checked in. If there is a special circumstance, I will make the decision regarding allowing the scout to check his car in. Interspersed among heats, we will also conduct our Pack Meeting business, including handing out any advancements and awards, and reminding folks about upcoming events.

Also, I encourage everyone to enter a separate car in the “Open Class” race which we will hold after the cub scouts have completed the Pinewood Derby. Open Class racers follow different design rules: In the Open Class, you are free to add weight, change the wheels, change the wheelbase, and alter your kit, as long as the main part of the body of your car includes the original body supplied in the kit. However, if your car might possibly damage our track, it will not be allowed to race. Again, please contact me in advance if you want a ruling about whether your car will be allowed to race.

While the Pinewood Derby is going on, we will also have our Edible Snowman Contest judged during the races. Dens should be working now on their entry for the contest. There will be a prize awarded to the Den with the best entry. “Best” will include judging on design, use of materials, theme, and presentation.

There are some new events on the Cub Scout calendar: First, Saturday, February 7th, cub scouts are going to set up a table and sell popcorn product that has been returned or was unsold by us. That will happen at the Metropolis Primary School, during the basketball tournament that will be held that day. All scouts who participate will earn a special reward for their service.

Next, February 8th is Scout Sunday, and all of us are requested to be present at the United Methodist Church for their 10:00 am service. Scouts need to be in uniform. This is our day to be recognized by our sponsoring organization, and our opportunity to tell the congregation of the church that we greatly appreciate the use of the church and its resources. Please plan on attending.

Lastly, the Blue and Gold Banquet in February. We will have a fiesta theme for the banquet, and have a specific menu to accompany the theme. Cub Scouts will supply the main dish, drinks, and dessert, but we will need the families of those attending to help supply the side dishes and salads. Each den leader will have a sign up sheet at his or her den meetings in February and will ask you to help us make our banquet table bountiful.

Next Tuesday.....

IS THE PINEWOOD DERBY!!!

Also, the edible snowman contest.

There are some new events on the Cub Scout calendar: First, Saturday, February 7th, cub scouts are going to set up a table and sell popcorn product that has been returned or was unsold by us. That will happen at the Metropolis Primary School, during the basketball tournament that will be held that day. All scouts who participate will earn a special reward for their service.

Next, February 8th is Scout Sunday, and all of us are requested to be present at the United Methodist Church for their 10:00 am service. Scouts need to be in uniform. This is our day to be recognized by our sponsoring organization, and our opportunity to tell the congregation of the church that we greatly appreciate the use of the church and its resources. Please plan on attending.

Lastly, the Blue and Gold Banquet in February. We will have a fiesta theme for the banquet, and have a specific menu to accompany the theme. Cub Scouts will supply the main dish, drinks, and dessert, but we will need the families of those attending to help supply the side dishes and salads. Each den leader will have a sign up sheet at his or her den meetings in February and will ask you to help us make our banquet table bountiful.

Remember, next Tuesday, January 27th, is the Pinewood Derby. Please email or call me if you have any racing questions.

Roger

Here Comes the Pinewood Derby and the Blue And Gold Banquet!

First off, I’d like to say THANK YOU to all of the scouts and parents who participated in the Christmas Parade in December. I wish the weather would have cooperated for Christmas caroling.

In January we have a couple of BIG events planned:

First the PINEWOOD DERBY!!! On January 27th, starting at 6:30 pm, we will have the weigh-in for the pinewood derby cars. For the cub scouts, cars MUST weigh 5 ounces or less. Cars MUST use the orignal materials included in your kit (although you can use add-ons to your kit, as long as the add-ons don’t violate any of the other rules for building your car). Cars MUST use the wheels and axles supplied in the kit. You MUST NOT alter the wheelbase or height of the axles. Changing your cars in any of these ways will likely disqualify your car. Cars that exceed 5 ounces WILL NOT be allowed to race. If you have any questions about whether your car can race, or your design will be allowed, please contact me (pugh@shawneelink.net or 524-8340) to check in advance.

Before you check your cars in on race night, you will have an opportunity right there to add or subtract weight. However, once cars are officially checked in, they can not be altered by scout or parent. If you want to check the weight of your cars in advance, you can do so at the Metropolis Post Office. There will be many prizes awarded, not just for winning your races, so be creative and inventive in your designs, themes, use of materials, and colors. Although races will be run in brackets, the races are purely timed events, with two heats per den. The fastest time wins the race. The actual race will begin at 7 pm. PLEASE come early to check in, because once the race begins, we will not allow cars to be checked in. If there is a special circumstance, I will make the decision regarding allowing the scout to check his car in. Interspersed among heats, we will also conduct our Pack Meeting business, including handing out any advancements and awards, and reminding folks about upcoming events.

Also, I encourage everyone to enter a separate car in the “Open Class” race which we will hold after the cub scouts have completed the Pinewood Derby. Open Class racers follow different design rules: In the Open Class, you are free to add weight, change the wheels, change the wheelbase, and alter your kit, as long as the main part of the body of your car includes the original body supplied in the kit. However, if your car might possibly damage our track, it will not be allowed to race. Again, please contact me in advance if you want a ruling about whether your car will be allowed to race.

While the Pinewood Derby is going on, we will also have our Edible Snowman Contest judged during the races. Dens should be working now on their entry for the contest. There will be a prize awarded to the Den with the best entry. “Best” will include judging on design, use of materials, theme, and presentation.

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The next big event in our calendar is THE BLUE AND GOLD BANQUET, a special scout event held in place of our February Pack Meeting, on Friday, February 27th. The Banquet will begin at 6:00 pm, and the program will begin at 7:00 pm. The Banquet will be held at the new home of the Metropolis Community Center. This year’s theme for our Blue and Gold Banquet will be “Fiesta,” and our potluck will follow that theme as well.

EVERYONE in your scout’s life is invited---mom, dad, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, grandmas, grandpas, in-laws and outlaws. We will supply the main course, drinks, and dessert. We ask each family to bring a large side dish with a Mexican Fiesta theme----salad, vegetables, casserole, etc., so that our banquet table will be bountiful. At the bottom of the newsletter is an RSVP. It is very important that you RSVP either to me, or to your Den Leader the TOTAL number of people who will be attending the banquet, for two reasons: 1: Your Den is decorating your tables. We need to know how many tables to set up, and 2: We’re buying the main dish, drinks, and other supplies. We need to know how much food to prepare. PLEASE, fill out the RSVP and return it, or call, or email an RSVP to me.

What is so special about the Blue and Gold Banquet? This is the celebration of the anniversary of Scouting. This is also the time at which we recognize, through official ceremony, the crossing over of Webelos II scouts from Cub Scouts to Boy Scouts. From that moment on, they are Webelos II no longer. The larger adventure of scouting awaits them. The entire Pack participates in this advancement.

Return RSVP to address below

Blue and Gold Banquet RSVP

Name:______________________________________________________________

Yes, I WILL attend the Blue and Gold Banquet (February 27th, 6:00 pm).

Total number of your party (including scout):____________________

Please either mail this RSVP to: Blue and Gold
113 Lindsey Avenue
Metropolis, IL 62960

or call (618) 524-8340 to confirm your RSVP and the total number of people in your party, or email pugh@shawneelink.net to confirm your RSVP.

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You should be receiving this notice in a newsletter shortly as well.

Thanks,

Roger
Cubmaster, Pack 101

The Pinewood Derby!!!

Our Pinewood Derby was on Tuesday, and it was terrific! Check out the slideshow above of the fun! Please send me any pictures you took, and I'll add them to the slideshow. Tomorrow I will post a list of the fastest racers and their times. Also, look in the Metropolis Planet this week or next for pictures of each Den in Pack 101.

Matt Alsip's tiger Den won the Edible Snowman contest. For their inventive display, they win a pizza party, care of Pack 101!

MARK YOUR CALENDAR: Next month, on February 23rd, we will be hosting our annual Blue and Gold Banquet. It will be held at the Metropolis Community Center, on the square in Metropolis. The event is a potluck, in which Pack 101 provides the main dish, drinks, and a wonderful custom cake for everyone. Every family who attends needs to bring a potluck dish. The whole family, friends, and all who want to celebrate the crossing over of our Webelos II scouts are invited to join us for this special dinner. Stay tuned for more information.

ARE YOU READY!?!?!?

I hope to see EVERYONE, scouts, parents, in-laws and outlaws, at the Pinewood Derby on Tuesday, January 22nd! We will officially begin our weigh-in at 6 pm. We will officially begin the race at 6:30 pm. Throughout the race, we will award advancements, award prizes to winners, and get everybody informed about what will happen next on the Scout calendar. Also, we will judge the Edible Snowman Contest. The winning den will receive a pizza party!

I hope to see you all there!

IT'S HERE AT LAST---THE PINEWOOD DERBY!!!

The headline kind of says it all: The Pinewood Derby is fast approaching!

In January, we have two events that occur: the Edible Snowman Contest and the Pinewood Derby.

Your den leaders should start work on the edible snowman this week or next. The rules for the Edible Snowman Contest are simple: You are to construct a snowman, or a scene featuring a snowman, all out of edible things. I mean, EVERYTHING about the snowman must be edible. You and your den will use your imaginations to design and build your snowman, which will be judged at the January Pack Meeting. We're not talking life size, think edible, think could fit in the center of a table, or could easily be part of a diorama which would fit on a cookie sheet. Your leaders will have some guidance for this project.

Next, the Pinewood Derby! If you haven't already started, you should begin working on your pinewood car right away. Here are the rules for building your Pinewood car.

1. You must use the stock pieces that are in the kit---the wheels, axles, and block of wood.

2. The wheelbase and axle height must remain the same as what was pre-cut on the block of wood.

3. You can take wood away, you can shape it any way that you like as long as you can still meet criteria one and two.

4. You can add weight (lead weights, washers, etc.) but the overall weight of the car can not exceed 5 oz.

5. If you do add weights, they can not project under the car in a way which would interfere with it rolling down the track, or in a way which might interfere with the other car(s) on the track.

6. If you are unsure about any modifications you made to the car, email or call me about it.

Also, you can use lubricants on the axles. A dry lubricant, like graphite, or molybdenum, is recommended. Do not use a grease of some kind, because it might stain or damage the track.

Tips for racing faster: Make absolutely sure the axles are straight and parallel to each other. Before installing the axles, polish them to remove any tiny burrs or imperfections. Next, before installing the wheels, if you have a dremel moto tool, you can use a tiny cloth attachment to buff the axle hole in the wheel, and then smooth and buff the outside rim of the wheel (the flat surface which contacts the track). If the wheels move freely and aren't working against each other, then you have done 99% of what you can do to make your car run as fast as possible.

We will hold the Pinewood Derby on the night of our January Pack Meeting, January 22nd, at the United Methodist Church basement in Metropolis. I encourage boys (and dads) who have raced before to bring their old cars to be featured in our "Hall Of Champions."

We will begin car check-in at 6 pm. We will begin racing promptly at 6:30 pm.

Cars must be checked in before the race begins.

Once cars are checked in, they can not be touched again by the scout until his race begins.

All cars must weigh 5 ounces or less. If the car weighs more than 5 ounces, weight must be removed until it is 5 ounces or less. Only cars 5 ounces or less will be allowed to race.

The race will be in brackets by den, but boys race against time, not each other. Each boy will race two time trials, one for each lane of the track. The fastest racer will advance to a race of champions.

Awards will be given for many different achievements, not just the fastest racers. Other awards include Best Scout Theme, Best Design, Best Colors, Fastest Looking, Most Patriotic, Most Unusual, Best Paint Job, Best "Brick," and many other awards. Prizes and certificates will be awarded to the boys throughout the evening.

After the boys finish their races, and we have officially judged the Edible Snowman Contest, we will host the Open Class Race. The Open Class Race is for anyone who wants to race a modified Pinewood Car. The rules for building in the open class change dramatically. The only stock piece that is required is the block of wood. You must start with that. How much of it is left is up to you, but some element of the car's frame must be the original block of wood. Next, there is no weight limit, except for the reasonable limit that if the weight would damage the track, I won't allow it to race. On these cars, you can change the wheelbase and axle height, but again, if you do, and it interferes with another car's ability to race, or might possible damage the track, I won't let it race. There are no prizes for the Open Class Race, only bragging rights.

Last year's race was great fun. Everybody thoroughly enjoyed themselves. This event is to be shared by everyone, too. So scouts, make sure your parents, siblings, in-laws and outlaws are there, too!

If you have any questions about racing, please contact me through the website.

Roger