Graphite

Some months ago, Weston, his Grandpa Woffinden, and I put together a Pinewood Derby car for the great race. This was Weston's first year. Neither he, nor I, knew what we were doing. I recall from many years ago when I was in Scouting that the Pinewood Derby was largely a collection of dad-made cars that beat the pants off the cars my brothers and I made.

(Infuriating.)

When it was Weston's turn to get involved in this rite of passage, I made sure that I would only guide him and not get too involved in the making of his car. This was going to be his puppy. He designed the car, helped cut it (at a friend's house), sanded it, painted it and helped Grandpa put the weights on. I was not going to go crazy with the wheels, the axles, the paint, the sanding, the graphite (oh, the graphite - I still have bad flashbacks when I hear that word!), or the weights.

Plain and simple - whatever Weston wanted.

Weston's car did great. It came in a close second in just about every single race. He was never blown out. I was very proud of him and how well his little car did. In the end, he didn't place, but he did win the award for the Cub Scouts' favorite car (they all voted). He was very proud of that.

So, I made Weston a deal. Now that he's seen all the other kids' cars, and what went into them, if he wants to jazz up his car next year, I'll help him. But he has to do all the research and do most of the work. He'll still design, shape, sand, and assemble the car. I don't ever want to feel guilty of his car winning because I did most of the work.

Pinewood Derbies are for kids.