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Pinewood Derby Rookies

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Andrew participated in his first ever pinewood derby about a month after he turned 8-years-old.  Jon helped him cut the car, and that was all that Andrew would let him do.  Andrew sanded it, painted it, and put on the wheels.  When we got to the pinewood derby, we needed to add weight to it.  So, we went to the "adjustment" table and started to tape on some coins.  Real classy-like.


As we were at the table adding weight to his car, Andrew spotted some graphite and asked me what it was for.  Being the rookie-mom that I am, I said, "I don't know, maybe someone used it on their car."  (In hindsight: Duh!  Of course they used it on their car!) Then, we walked away and checked in his car.  Oops!


Notice Andrew's face in this photo?  This is after his car finished his first race.  Um, yeah.  There's a reason there was graphite on the table ... and I felt the shame each and every time Andrew's car was in a race.  Especially because I sat right across from him and watched his eyes fill with tears every.single.time he watched his car cross the finish line five seconds after everyone else's car.


After that first race, he was ready to walk home if I wouldn't take him.  But, we stuck through it and he kept racing his car, even though it barely crossed the finish line.  It was a good learning experience for us all ... how to be good sports, and how to make his car next year a winner.  :-)
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Lynette said…
Rr can't wait to do a pinewood derby...Alan is very much into the races. He rarely wins, though. :) That's so sad you didn't know about the graphite! I wouldn't know anything about it except that my dad did pinewood derbies a lot with my brothers and I remember him weighing the cars -- and Alan reminded me about graphite when he was preparing for the Elder's Quorum Pinewood Derby. I wouldn't know about the stuff (or the reason for it) any other way. :) I can only imagine how he felt each time he raced...He looks so sad...But what a good boy to stick it out, even if it was hard. That is a hard thing to learn. I probably would have just cried...
May 22, 2012
Shilo said…
The first Pinewood Derby's are always the hardest.
Tanis has had his share of losing and it is hard to be the mom and watch the poor kid feel so sad.
After so many years you'll get the hang of it!
May 22, 2012
Aubrey A said…
Oh, sad. I'm so happy though that Andrew did it all by himself! There are always boys (as there were in our ward when Evan did his first pinewood derby) who have their parents do their car. . .needless to say they usually come in first and I think that's unfair. Andrew's a winner in my book. :)
May 22, 2012
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