Pinewood Derby Cars:
For many former Cub / Boy Scouts, we look forward to the day we can introduce our kids to the enjoyment of designing, building and racing pinewood derby cars. I fondly remember building and racing cars with my father and still have a couple that survived to today. My sons have finally reached the age where we can participate in this incredible event. Competitions like this provide opportunities to introduce my sons and other young boys to the creative design process while having fun along the way.
First, I ask my sons to come up with ideas or features they would like to incorporate into their finished cars. From there we work on general sketches to give us a guide to go on. Next, I translate the sketch and design into a 3D model where it can be refined and finalized. Once each son signs off on the design, we will move to fabricating the actual cars. Each year, my sons becomes more involved in the fabrication process based on their ability to utilize each tool. My ultimate goal is to help them get to a point where he can design and build a car completely on his own, with appropriate supervision of course. As a father and a designer, projects like this provide a unique opportunity to teach practical skills and create lasting experiences.
The three examples below are designs we came up with for the past three years for my oldest son. Coming up soon, we will begin to work on my oldest son's 4th design along with my youngest's first car. I will add these soon.
