Pinewood Derby

The Pinewood Derby is a classic Cub Scout event. It can be the highlight of the year for many Cubs, but it can also get out of hand. Talk to the parents about making sure the Cubs are active participants in the process so it doesn’t become a competition between parents where the Scouts have never touched the cars. It is helpful when you send out information to parents about the rules for them to remember and remind their Scouts that a major purpose of the Pinewood Derby is to have time working on a project with their families, learn how to use tools, and build something creative. Always remind Scouts at the Derby that everyone wants to win but if that is the only way they will be happy then all but one of them will leave sad. 

Rules:

BSA’s Pinewood Derby Car Building Rules

Each local Pinewood Derby committee determines the rules for building and racing cars. The committee will need to make sure their rules don’t conflict with those of the district or council to ensure their members can participate in events at those levels.

According to the BSA’s Cub Scout Leader How-To-Book, the general rules are as follows:

All cars must pass the following inspection to qualify for the race:

  1. Width shall not exceed 2-3/4 inches.
  2. Length shall not exceed 7 inches.
  3. Weight shall not exceed 5 ounces.
  4. Axles, wheels, and body shall be from the materials provided in the kit. Additional wheels can be purchased separately.
  5. Wheel bearings, washers, and bushings are prohibited.
  6. No lubricating oil may be used. Axles may be lubricated with powdered graphite or silicone.
  7. The car shall not ride on any kind of spring.
  8. The car must be free-wheeling, with no starting devices.
  9. No loose materials of any kind are allowed in the car.

Costume Options:

Consider wearing some costumes as the adult leaders. This is a way to show that this is no ordinary Pack meeting. For the Pinewood Derby you could wear coveralls, race helmets, racing goggles and a silk scarf or anything else car  themed.

Decorations:

Decorating the spaces adds to the atmosphere of the Pinewood Derby. It also sends a message that this is clearly not your typical Pack meeting. Consider checkered flag patterns, car and racing posters, balloons and crate paper streamer in the colors of Red, Yellow, and Green to symbolize traffic lights.

Cheers:

Our Pack loves to do Cheers so we work them into most Pack Meetings. For the Pinewood Derby we have used two different cheers through the years.

#1

Cubmaster: (out stretched arms pretending to hold a stearing wheel) VRROOOOOOMMMMMM

Scouts: (make a tire squeal noise)

 

#2

Cubmaster: Beep Beep

Scouts: (make car noises)

Pit Stop Station:

Bring a few extra car kits, especially wheels and axles. A hammer, drill, super glue, and a hot glue gun. It is not uncommon that a car looses a wheel on the track or a car gets dropped by a Scout. Sometimes a car is just a bit over the weight limit. Having a Pit Stop Station can allow a family to do a quick repair that doesn’t slow down the races too long, and avoids a Scout to have to quit the races.

Awards:

There are a variety of awards that can be purchased through your council Scout Shop or at Scoutshop.org. However you can also use free templates to make great looking certificates on your home computer. The Scout shop also sells patches and participant ribbons so that every Scout gets to walk away with something. Many Packs have categories for judging cars that don’t race well so that everyone gets some sort of certificate. Popular categories are: Best Scout Theme, Most Patriotic, Best Details, Most colorful, Best Cartoon or Character, Sports, etc.

Possible Activities:

When Scouts aren’t racing their attention can wonder. Our Pack races one Den at a time. When the Cubs aren’t racing we have a variety of other activities to keep them active and busy. We rotate through the stations so that every Scout gets to do everything. The Cubs love the variety of activities!

The Big Race: This is the main event and is a great time. Remember to remind the Cubs about good sportsmanship. If you race each Den independently have a final Tournament of Den Champions with the first place finisher from each Den. This also brings everyone together and builds Den spirit since all the Tigers will want the Tiger Scout to be the grand champion!

Remote Controlled Cars: Lay out several remote controlled cars. You can give the Scouts a large open space to drive them, or create an obstacle course for them to drive through.

Mini Track Races: Construct a mini track if you are a talented woodworker, or make them by cutting foam pool noodles in half length wise. Then supply a small collection of Hot Wheels or Matchbox cars and the Scouts will have a lot of fun. 

Travel Games: Cubs have a hard time believing there was once a time when cars and vans didn’t have DVD players and we didn’t all have phones and tablets to keep us busy in the car on long trips. Make or purchase travel games like we used to use when we were kids in the car. Also consider a kid friendly book of would you rather questions or a memory match game with car pictures.

Craft Station: Cubs love crafts! There is a tendency to think that the Webelos and Arrows of light are too old and “too cool” for crafts but most of them still really enjoy them. Always be thinking of new crafts, here are two that have been popular.

Use some legal sized paper and a small black paper plate to make a steering wheel and dashboard. Attach the plate with a brass brad and it will allow the steering wheel to turn. Just put out some crayons and markers and they can create their own dash boards.
Cut a paper plate in half and color it. You can add some construction paper for wheels, windows, and lights, or anything else you want to add.

Musicar Chairs: Have the Den play musical chairs, and have the music be automobile themed songs. Make sure you have plenty of space since Cubs can be competitive and chaotic at times. The soundtracks from the Disney/PIXAR Cars movies are a great source of fitting music. Get the whole soundtracks or just download a few songs to a phone.

Engine Building: See if there is a family that has an old motor, sometimes a family has one from an old tractor or lawn mower. If no one has an extra motor talk to a local junkyard or auto shop who may be able to help you find something free or low cost. If the Scouts know what they are doing they can take the motor apart and rebuild it. If they don’t know what they are doing they still have fun exploring the engine and using the tools.

Red Light/Green Light: Have the Den play this classic game. It is simple and free, and Scouts have a great time playing. Have the winner be the traffic caller for the next round.

Photo Booth: Photo booths are always a fun time and they are easy to do. If you want to get fancy you can use some poster board and make a car for the Scouts to take picture in. If you aren’t that crafty just hand a disposable plastic table cloth as a back drop. There are lots of props that can be purchased or made easily. Often time you may not be crafty but another parent is, and this is a great way to start getting a new parent involved.

Cookie Decorating: Make cutout sugar cookies prior to the meeting. The BSA used to sell a Pinewood Derby shaped cookie cutter, but they no longer do. However, it is easy to find a variety of car themed cookie cutters that can still be used. At the station have a few different colors of icing and a variety of candies to decorate the cars with.

Carnival Style Games: It can be very easy to convert some simple materials into car and driving themed games. Your Pack may even already have games that have been used for a Bear Carnival. Here are two examples. One is a traffic light themed cornhole game, and another is a traffic light themed ring toss.

 

If your Pack hasn’t invested in a laser timer, it is highly recommended. We no longer have people missing something and then another parents complaining that their Scout should have won.

Do you have trouble with adults being too competitive and making the Derby all about themselves and “their’ cars instead of letting the Cubs have their own fun? Consider an adult division, where the parents and grandparents can get in on the fun without detracting from the Scouts. Some Packs also do an “Outlaw Division” where anyone youth or adult can compete and there are now rules aside from any need to make sure the track doesn’t get broken.