Saturday, October 07, 2006

Indian Valley Soap Box Derby - October 2006


Every year in October, the Indian Valley Soap Box Derby Association holds a two day Soap Box Derby Race in Souderton, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania on my street. So today, I watched part of the first day of the competition. The youth with the help of business sponsorships build and race some really neat soap box cars.


I took the above picture from my apartment window.



This picture I took street level from the sidewalk.



This is the hill on which they raced down.



Notice that only the helmets of the drivers of these two cars can be seen.



A couple more soap box cars



This is the way they transported the kids and their cars up to the top.



The top - Race's beginning



Another view

25 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hahahaha!!! OMG, those are AWESOME!!!! Very creative! I love all of the different colors & designs! :o) Thank you very much for stopping by! I'm so glad you enjoy my latest work! :o) I have done a couple art shows, not many. It's hard because my work is so original that it's difficult to get into certain shows at times. Thank you again! :o)

Cergie said...

*Est ce que j'ai la berlue ?
N'ai je pas déjà vu ces enfants au volant de leur sacrées machines ?*

How may I believe my asleep half opened eyes ? Last time I came, I did not see one of the two posts and today, I'm just looking at a post I saw yet such a long time ago !!!!

RubySoho said...

Wow, I wish I could have been a part of something like that when I was younger. Me and my dad would have loved that type of challenge. How long has this competition been going on?

p.s. great action shots!

Tim Rice said...

Hi, jon cox. Glad you liked the pictures of this event. And thanks for answering my questions I left on your blog. Keep up your artistic creativity. It helps to make the world a better place.

Hi, cergie. You may recall similar pictures from a practice event some time ago; but this was the actual competition with expensive trophies and all.

Hi, rubysoho. It would have been fun wouldn't it? I don't know exactly how long this has been going on; but I think it may have been going on for over twenty years but on a smaller scale at the beginning. Thanks for your complement regarding my pictures. They were a challenge to get. I discarded many more shots than I kept.

mreddie said...

Looks like a very fun and learning event for the kids - maybe adults too. ec

Murf said...

That looks like fun. Are these actually made out of boxes of soap?

Tim Rice said...

Hi, mreddie. From what I have observed, it does appear to be a fun learning event for both kids and their parents.

Hi, murf. You're closer to the original truth than you might believe. Here is an excerpt from http://www.kidzworld.com/site/p592.htm:

Soap box racing began in 1933 in Dayton, Ohio. It got started when a bunch of kids raced against each other down a hill in cars made from pieces of crap and junk from around the house. These first race cars were made out of orange crates, sheet metal, wheels off a baby stroller and even soap boxes. Year after year the races kept getting bigger and the soap box cars kept getting better. Soon a soap box championship was being held every year with kids and their cars coming to Ohio from all over America. A few years later, the event became international with kids coming from all over the world including Canada, Mexico and South Africa. Races are now held around the world throughout the year with the All-American Soap Box Derby taking place in Akron, Ohio on July 22, 2006.

I might add that many kids now a days buy car kits while the more adventurous ones continue to build them from scratch. The cars raced in the Indian Valley Soap Box Derby appear pretty sharp and often require the sponsorship of a local business to pay the expenses. However, whatever way it is done, the kid has to build the car; parents are not allowed to do it for them. And of course, the car is motor free and runs on gravity pulling it down a hill.

kimber said...

Very cool paintjobs!

Murf said...

Thanks, Tim.

Sam!! said...

Nice n interesting!

Hope u doing fine.

Takecare

sage said...

wow, they've gotten fancer in the decades since I built one--somewhere back in my blog is a photo of me in my car, you may have seen it. Thanks for sharing.

Trailady said...

WHEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!! ;o)

Chica, Cienna, and Cali said...

aren't they cute!!!!!! :)
and i had no clue that such a thing "soap box cars" existed.......adorable :)

backpack_everyday said...

Woow sound fun.....Its so cool

Anonymous said...

those are so cute:D I would have loved riding soap boxes (why do they call them that???) as a kid. Hell, might be fun as an adult, as well.

Ash said...

Very cool!

christina said...

That looks like so much fun! What a great thing to have close to home.

Tim Rice said...

Hi, kimber the worfgrrrl. Thanks for coming by. The youth put a lot of work into these cars as you saw.

Your welcome, murf.

Hi, samrina. Glad you enjoyed it.

Thanks, sage. Over the years these soapbox cars have really developed. I think over twenty years ago some from my church participated in a soapbox car race. And at that time the cars were much more simple. But we live in different times now for good or for bad. I still think it is a neat project for a kid to work on.

Hi, trailady. Exciting!! ? I think so. :)

Thanks, moi. It's generally not a spectator sport at least here in Souderton. I wonder whether that might not be the case elsewhere. If so, that might explain why you haven't heard of it. But it comes right by my hone so I can't miss it. :)

Thanks, backpack_everyday. I think it would be fun. I have heard that these cars fequently reach speeds as high as thirty five miles per hour.

Hi, choochoo. As long as one likes speed, I think it would be fun at any age. And the car is built by the racer. As for why it is called a soapbox car, I think it might have something to do with that early cars in the 1930s were made from soap boxes. I imagine these soap boxes were more like crates.

Thanks, ash.

Thanks, christina. It was fun to watch for a while. And so close to home, one can't do better than have come right by one's own street.

Anonymous said...

Oh, how fun! I want to try it! c",)

Sandy Hatcher-Wallace said...

This looks like so much fun. I wish I was a kid again so I could race one of those cars.

Anonymous said...

The Soap Box Derby: a Souderton classic! Great pictures, Tim :)

Mikaela

Tim Rice said...

Thanks, irene tuazon. This, I think, would be fun to try! :)

Hi, abandoned in pasadena. Maybe we should organize an adult soap box derby. ;)

Thanks, mikaela. It was fun taking pictures of this even.

Ginnie Hart said...

I seem to remember this from last year, Tim :) I'm so glad your area has things like this to keep the kids involved and excited. Like the good ole' days!

Tim Rice said...

Hi, ginnie. You probably do remember this from last year. But I think I got better photographs this year than last. :)

Tim Rice said...

Hi, cari. Glad you like it. Perhaps you're thinking like I that it would be fun to be one of those soap box car drivers. Thanks for coming by.