Friday, December 14, 2012

Pinewood Derby 2012

This is THE reason Noah decided to come to Africa! Back in August, he understandably started feeling depressed about leaving his friends and home to move to Africa… that is until Grammy told him about the annual Pinewood Derby Race held at RVA each November.

Each participant starts with 3 blocks of wood.

Pinewood Derby - 01

Michael and Noah glued and carved out this beauty at the woodshop.

Pinewood Derby - 02

Next came the painting.

Pinewood Derby - 03

These are the surf boards which are carried by the Hotwheels “Diora II”

Pinewood Derby - 04

The evening before race day, all the cars are displayed for a special preview.

Pinewood Derby - 05

Trophies are awarded for design as well as speed.

Pinewood Derby - 06

As you can see, some people take this very seriously!

Pinewood Derby - 07

We obviously have many gifted artists/craftsmen at RVA!

Pinewood Derby - 08

But one stood out above the rest! ;)

Pinewood Derby - 10

On race day each year, the Seniors put on “Senior Store” to earn money for their Senior trip to Mombasa (on the east coast of Africa). They sell American donuts, cheeseburgers, pizza, ice cream, soda… it’s like being back in the States! And we pigged out… because we wanted to support the Seniors of course!

Pinewood Derby - 11

The finished masterpiece… about to make its debut on the race track.

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There were 5 heats, so each car had a a chance to race in each lane to rule out any unfair advantages.

Pinewood Derby - 14

Uncle Mark, Aunt Carolyn, Maddie, and Ty cheer from the stands.

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I think this is the longest or second longest track in the country? The results of each heat are posted on the screen for all to see. Noah was happy to come in 4th place in each heat :)

Pinewood Derby - 16

His cousin, Katie, raced her car, too :)

Pinewood Derby - 18

The kids continued the fun up in the stands after their races were done.

Pinewood Derby - 17

It was a long but fun day at the tracks! :)

ps- This post is dedicated to Grammy, who has been asking for pictures of Pinewood Derby for the last 4 weeks! :)

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