Pinewood Derby: 4th Place

McKay was so excited to participate in our ward's Pinewood Derby race this year. Okay, Dennis was just as, if not a little bit more, excited. The two of them spent weeks planning and creating the perfect car. It was finally decided that the front of McKay's car would look like the car that Uncle Doug made when he was in scouts, and the back of McKay's car would look like the car that Dennis had made when he was the same age. McKay insisted on painting his car black and it had to have a red number 8 and red lightning stripes. After sanding with Dennis's power tools, drilling holes and melting lead into those same holes, and a few coats of paint, the car was ready to race. I am so grateful for Dennis and the time he spent helping McKay with this project. There is no way that I could have turned a block of wood into anything even close to representing a car. That is what dads are for. Moms get to take pictures.

On the day of the race, McKay was sure that he would win a trophy. I tried to kindly let him know that we would be happy just to participate. I didn't want him to be too dissappointed if he did not win with his very first Pinewood Derby car. When I showed up at the church, Dennis informed me that there had been NO rules in place for the construction of these cars. McKay's car was one of the only cars that followed the BSA guidelines and rules. My heart sank. On the first race, McKay's car did well, but he was put into the losers bracket. He came to me and quietly said: I guess I didn't get a trophy. However, in the next three races, McKay's car continued to win. Until, all that was left were four cars to decide 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th place. McKay's car took 4th place and McKay was able to bring home a trophy.