Do Your Best

Frank's Pinewood Derby Car designs become more complex every year. This year we got some assistance from a neighbor with a woodshop who helped Frank make the cuts in the front of the car. The middle is also cut out and there are electronic items glued all over the car for fun. The "headlights" are old ear phones. The car is designed for speed. The weight is all in the back. The front is hollowed out to allow him to add weight in the back. We baked the wood to remove all the moisture. We labored over the axels and wheels to reduce friction. Frank wanted a speed trophy.

And then his mom broke his car. The narrow part in front snapped when I tried to adjust the wheel alignment. And it all happened the night of the check in for the Derby. Frank's Scout Leader helped us epoxy it together and we propped it up to dry. You can see the small piece of duct tape over the repair.

Frank stayed calm during the crisis. We weren't sure his car could be repaired and it couldn't race unless it had four wheels. He helped fix the car and we made it in under the wire for check in. The next day we anxiously awaited the first race and Frank and I high fived each other as the car went across the Finish Line. It finished 4th out of 6 cars in that heat. Frank could not have been happier. He spent the day with his friends and celebrated their speed victories and his own car's ability to at least race, if not win.

In previous years Frank won a trophy for speed. Last year he won a trophy for design / Best in Show for his Joba Chamberlain car (white with blue pinstripes and a picture of Joba on it). This year he won two trophies.



Frank's den leader chose him as the winner of the "Do Your Best" award for the Webelos I Den. The "Do Your Best" award is the award for the boy who showed the best sportsmanship. The other Dens got their awards, and then they announced the overall winners for Speed and Best in Show and "Do Your Best." The den leaders chose Frank as the winner of the "Do Your Best" award for the Pack.

Sometimes the nice guys finish first. And sometimes they just do their best. It's nice that sometimes they get trophies.