Wonder where I fell short or what I could have done better.

[Dennis]

After finishing 4th in our district race, of course Im racking my brain on how the there could have been such a gap between 1st and 2nd; .050 seems huge to me. Either he had some noncompliant parts installed or maybe running oil. Or maybe he just built a much better car. This is our third year. Our first year winning pack and being invited to districts and a top 5 finish in our eyes is decent; but who doesnt want to win, right!? I guess where im going with this is; after spending months building and testing countless cars and set ups.... Making sure we stay somewhat within in the bounds of our rules( micro interupting the wording without completely breaking) where the hell do i go from here....?

I looked as closely as I could to the top guys wheels and car (which was white) is it possible to run graphite without getting any on the car or outer wheel? Didnt see any at all. So im inclinded to think he was running oil. Am I really faced with cheating our rules completely or compete for a top spot or do we stick to our morals and continue to take lower spots?

 

[DerbyDad4Hire]

The Pinewood derby dilemma! I would say build the best you can in the rules and enjoy the experience.

 

[B_Regal Racing]

After finishing 4th in our district race, of course Im racking my brain on how the there could have been such a gap between 1st and 2nd; .050 seems huge to me.

Let me offer you something to consider: two years ago, I was that far behind JBD, Hurricrane, Bullet, and a few others. It is very possible the builder you are racing against has more experience (maybe he races here, who knows). I have certainly closed the gap to maybe .01 (or less), but those improvements came with building and racing. If you want to get faster, try racing with John when his season starts up; it will help tremendously. I started racing in a league because I wanted to get faster myself. I continue to race because I enjoy the build (although, I would certainly like to win one). Like John said, build the best you can in the rules and just enjoy!

 

[Bubblegum]

Congratulations on your success. You should enjoy what you earned. Please don't feel the need to cheat because there are already enough doing that in scout racing.

Everyone wants to build faster cars consistently. The big question is how. If you have video of your races watch and see where races were won and lost. Did your speeds change? Did your alignment?

We won and placed second overall at districts this year and I know why and where in each race we won. This was our third year at districts and the difference in our results was we built faster cars than last year and the 2017 champion had almost the same time this year and he placed 4th overall.

I am already trying to figure out how to build a faster car for 2019 because all those dads that took pics of our cars are doing the same thing.

 

[Durham68]

FWIW, I ran a white car with graphite in the Pack dad race this year and touched up the paint after graphiting the car so it looked clean.

 

[B_Regal Racing]

I am already trying to figure out how to build a faster car for 2019 because all those dads that took pics of our cars are doing the same thing.

You need to race. No other way around this. AND, ask questions. You need to beat yourself in the following race. Simple.

Start now! I see a race coming in 6 weeks.

 

[Bubblegum]

You need to race. No other way around this. AND, ask questions. You need to beat yourself in the following race. Simple.

Start now! I see a race coming in 6 weeks.

Oh my wife will just love that because she just got her dinning and formal living rooms back.

What race?

Thanks for the advice. I have always gone with beating our cars the next time vs others. MA was a valuable experience and I think I have a starting point for scouts world at the end of June.

How often can an 11 and 8 year old say they qualified for something that big?

I just hope that the headaches are few and far between for it.

I'll keep building and keep asking.for help.

 

[Racing358t]

My son started scouts as a bear. My sons first year he finished 3rd in his den and 5th in district. I remember thinking the fast guys at both pack and district were so much faster that they must have been cheating. But instead of focusing on that we didn't stop after the race and wait for the next scout race season. After a year of research and practice we were able to get much faster. Things went much differently the second scout season race (weblo). My son won the lego class, his den and overall pack with domination. And I took top spot in the dads braggin rights class and in the process unseated the person who won 4 years in a row by being .06 faster than he was running while purposely building a car type (oil and wide wheels) like his. With that came scrutiny from others in the pack. Now we were supposedly the cheaters... Went on to capture 2nd at districts. Moral of the story is that I was wrong in my initial thought of the winner cheating and hard work and perseverance paid off and turned the tables.

Oh, and in the process we got addicted to this hobby. Only playing in one league right now but may see our cars in other leagues soon.

 

[B_Regal Racing]

Derby Dad 4 Hire (John) hosts races in Utah. You box a car up and send it to him and watch the race via a live feed. After the race, John will box it up and return it. You pay a $10 race fee per car and shipping (both ways to and from Utah). Use safe shipping methods and not just bubble wrap; we do it all the time and cars are usually safe.

There is a countdown timer on this forum's home page to the next race (right now, it says 6 weeks). At some point in the future, John will post a race schedule (races are usually monthly). AND, don't just think its adults racing. I do know of one 13 year old kid racing with us and a few others that have raced with us over the past two years. The kid that I know of is quite formidable, finishing mid pack at mid-america with his fastest SS.

You do not need to build a new car each month (each race). What I do is build a car and over the next few months, keep on tuning it to squeeze out everything I can. Well, actually, I have at least two cars running, always tinkering with the slower of the two cars to make it faster. At some point when I believe the car has reached a ceiling, I build another. In one year's time, you can be stiff competition for a newer racer.