Centre Hall Cub Scouts go racing at Pinewood Derby

CENTRE HALL — St. Luke Lutheran Church was the site of Cub Scout Pack 20’s Feb. 4 Pinewood Derby. The traditional racing event dates back to 1960 in Centre Hall. 

There were 17 cars competing for honors this year. Between rounds of racing, a lunch break was taken by Scouts and a crowd of spectators, where food and drinks were sold as a fundraiser for the pack.

Cubs and their family members worked together to carve the racers from a block of pine, then finished and assembled them. The cars can weigh no more than 5 ounces, and must use the pine block, wheels and axles supplied in the kits.

The gravity-powered cars are guided on a wooden downhill track by a raised strip on each lane. The race is configured so that each Cub gets to race on each of the four lanes on the track. Race data is stored in a laptop computer running specially configured software.

As the derby progressed, there were many very close races, resulting in a four-way tie for second place and a two-way tie for first. Runoff races determined the winners, and when the racing was done, Matthew Musser took first place, Owen Hile took second and Jackson Tomrell took third.

Many of the cars were multi-generational efforts, with family members guiding and assisting the boys, especially with power tools, in their construction.

Matthew Musser had help from his father, Steve Musser, his grandfather Tim Ash and his great-uncle Bob Ash in creating his winning car. Nathan Baird was helped by his parents, Dave and Misty Baird, and his grandfather to create his car, ‘Mini-Red,’ named for its shiny red paint job.

Misty Baird is a co-leader of Pack 20, working with Cubmaster Jesse Weaver, who also served as the official starter for all the heats in the race.

Awards also were given for outstanding car design and construction, including best paint job, most creative, most colorful, craziest design and others.

Pinewood Derby history dates back to 1953 and soon spread to Cub Scout packs across the nation, including Centre Hall’s newly formed Cub Scout Pack 20 in 1960.

The Pinewood Derby has since become a favorite event in Cub Scout packs across the nation. The boys and parents alike look forward to building and racing the little cars. The Cubs learn valuable lessons about craftsmanship, patience and being gracious in victory or in defeat.

Editor’s note: Sam Stitzer won the first Pinewood Derby in Centre Hall in 1960. He still has the car and the plaque he won, and takes it to the derbies as a history lesson for today’s youngsters.