Sentinel Article on the Pinewood Derby

http://www.newarkadvocate.com/article/20090128/COMMUNITIES02/901280319/1052/COMMUNITIES02

The Flag, a Vet of WWI, and a Classroom Project

(Frank Buckles at the White House last July, who turns 108 on Feb. 1)

This story is so cool to share with the boys in your dens, as they learn about the flag and how it came to be the object of respect and honor that it is today -- http://www.freep.com/article/20090129/NEWS05/901290360

I had heard the story of Bob Heft and his youthful redesign of the flag for 50 stars before, but not with the grade fix detail, let alone the wonderful act of service for our last World War One vet in the US.

Thank you Newark Advocate (and Michael Lehmkuhle)

http://www.newarkadvocate.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Avis=BF&Dato=20090124&Kategori=GRANVILLE&Lopenr=901240803
An album of 31 more pictures!

Pinewood Derby Moments

Here's a sampling of photos from the Jan. 24, 2009 Cub Scout Pack 3 Pinewood Derby. If you go to the Facebook page for Jeff Gill (group tag Denison) you can find more, and with captions.

Race results will be posted here as soon as i get them! [UPDATE: Results should appear at the bottom of this post]


















Courtesy of Tom Esch, race marshal:

Here are the top four finishers in each of this year's Pinewood Derby Races.


Brownies and Daisies:
1 9.38 Bruck, Riley
2 9.435 Unkefer, Hannah
3 9.51 Sutliff, Corrine
4 9.692 Miller, Danielle


Juniors:
1 9.513 Bruck, Taylor
2 9.626 Zehnal, Claire
3 9.638 Crock, Emily
4 9.646 Saigh, Natalie

Tigers:
1 9.629 Fisher, Jimmy
2 9.635 Hauenstein, Bryson
3 9.654 Wagner, Connor
4 9.696 Kunar, Mitchell

Wolves:
1 9.318 Sutliff, Garrett
2 9.532 Maag, Bradley
3 9.551 Blacksten, David
4 9.654 Hock, Nathaniel

Bears:
1 9.534 Windley, Nicholas
2 9.638 Miller, Kevin
3 9.641 Crock, Paul
4 9.734 Miller, Nathan

Webelos I:
1 9.456 Unkefer, Nicholas
2 9.688 Budd, Max
3 9.716 Lukins, Jonny
4 9.776 Zangmeister, Ty

Webelos II:
1 9.428 Fulan, Nicholas
2 9.675 Kosling, Will
3 9.782 Dantzer, Henry
4 9.976 Thompson, Matthew

Pack Championship:
1 9.506 Sutliff, Garrett
2 9.533 Windley, Nicholas
3 9.556 Unkefer, Nicholas
4 9.7 Hauenstein, Bryson

BSA Troop 65:
1 9.292 Wagner, John Allen
2 9.684 Brown, Ethan
3 9.745 Madden, Austen
4 9.811 Ridenour, Ben

Open:
1 9.233 Sutliff, Christian
2 9.413 Ridenour, Ben
3 9.426 Smith, Elliott
4 9.499 Meikle, Lincoln

Pinewood Update from Cubmaster Al

Granville Super Pack 3

Don't wait until the last minute to make those cars!

Granville Lumber is a great resource for getting your initial rough cut down. They enjoy offering this free service to our Cubs and to the Girl Scouts. It really helps to have some good clean and precise initial cuts.

(of course plastic wood works great for nicks and boo boos).

Remember that although parents can help, it is better to let the scout do most of the work. The boys take great pride in this. If there are frustrated parents that are mechanical engineers (at heart), then make your own car and race in the Open Class rather than racing against the kids.

Making a car side by side with your son can be a fun and rewarding learning experience. Each year, by actually doing it, the boys become more comfortable with each piece of the car and with the assembly.

Have fun. Please keep it fair and honest.

No Liquid lubricants - they are against the rules and they give a car a dramatic unfair advantage. Only the dry graphite or moly powdered lubes please.

The Friday open track and open scales are an important part of the car setup - try to make that if at all possible.

And we welcome any adults who wish to help set up the track and the event - GIS Friday at 4pm

Have a great week and we will see you on race day!

Al

January Pack Meeting - Cancelled!

Our standard procedure is that no school means no pack meeting (among other things, the building is likely to be locked and cold). Granville schools are closed for Thursday, Jan. 15, so the monthly third Thursday pack meeting is cancelled. Friday isn't looking too good, either . . .

For Pinewood Derby info leading to weight testing Friday, Jan. 23 and racing on Saturday, Jan. 24, scroll on down for the flyer text, copied at earlier posts. We will continue to post hints and tips here over the next week and a half for Pinewood car crafting -- with sandpaper and model paints, it's never too late!

(Also, info on the Feb. 8 hockey game in Columbus for OSU can be found by scrolling down into the December pack meeting post.)

Meanwhile, here's some quick tips courtesy of Buckskin Council, Charleston WV:

Pinewood Derby Tips and Hints

FRICTION: One of the best ways to eliminate friction is graphite. A good dosage may not do wonders for the paint job, but it will for your axles (hopefully you didn't glue the axles too far in or that will impair the wheel). Most axles in the kits have burrs on them around the head. De-burr the axles with a small file.

WEIGHT: It boils down to this, the closer you get to 5 ounces without going over, the better off you will be. The placement of the weight on the car (front or back) is an item which has been argued for years. Weight toward the rear seems to work best, along as the front wheels track straight. Just remember – gravity is the only power these cars use.

AERODYNAMICS: There are just about as many arguments on this topic as there are Pinewood Derby racers. It has been tried, several times, to race a car, as is, straight out of the box with no cutting, shaping or painting of the wood. These cars seem to perform, on average, just as well as the low, sleek, aerodynamic models. The bottom line is: Let the boy design the car, and help him achieve his design! If the adult wants to tinker with the car, tinker with the wheels and axles. The car design has almost no bearing on the outcome of the race.

ALIGNMENT: Make sure that the car's wheels are placed as straight as possible. Place the car on the floor and roll it about 8 to 10 feet. The car should go in a straight line. Adjust with the axle placement to make double sure the car will roll straight.

WHEELS and AXLES: Make sure that the axles are glued securely to the wood. Also ensure that the wheel is not glued to the axle. The wheels are single most important part. Make sure the wheels are on straight and turn freely.

DESIGN / SHAPE: The finish line uses electronic infrared sensors to detect the car moving across the finish line. These sensors are directly centered in each lane of the track. The starting gate of the track uses a bolt in the center of the track. This is to ensure that the length of roll each car will have to the finish line sensors will be the same for each car no matter what the shape of each car is. Keep a high track clearance so that nothing has a chance to rub on the underside of the car. Remember that the cars straddle a wood lath as they roll down the track.

PAINT: Let your imagination run wild!! Whether you use 50 coats of hand rubbed lacquer, olive drab or no paint at all, all it will do is affect the looks of your car. It will not run any faster or slower whether it's red, blue, green, yellow, flames, no-flames, or pink polka-dots!! Let the boy paint the car. Drips of spray paint don't slow the car down.

ACCESSORIES: Glue those Lego and Pokemon characters in! Anything that falls off in the race stays off. This can lighten you car enough to slow it down.

For much, much more, see http://derbytalk.com