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January 29, 2012 - He continued to win heat race after heat race. Michael, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Your tips were dead on. The $6.95 I spent was more than worth it. After my son won his first heat race the smile on his face was just priceless. He continued to win heat race after heat race. By the time we made it to the finals my son a Tiger Cub was receiving high fives from older scouts and he was jumping with joy. He won every single heat and took First Place in the Tiger Cub Division for Pack 140. He got to move on to the Overall Division and now the older Scouts were getting a little worried as they should have been. The tips we used from your guide were on the money and my son took First Place in the Overall Division as well. We are going on to the District Finals next month and hope to have more good news. Thanks, Alan and |
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March 21, 2012 - Good luck helping Future Scouts! Thank You for the great success my son Justin had in his very first Pinewood Derby. We did very good. His first heat he beat the field of 8 cars by a whole car length. He then waited for his final round and they had to draw numbers for lane choice.The kids received prizes up to 6 place. He finished a very proud third place...... We are looking forward to next years Derby. He ran his car a total of 4 races and never finished lower than second place.1st,2nd,2nd,1st - to end up third overall.......................... Again thanx for the great tips and good luck on helping future scouts across America.
Justin and Dad
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March 18, 2012 - We absolutely Creamed Them!! Hi Michael,
Just wanted to let you know how we did on derby day.
It was last night and we absolutely creamed them. My son's car won every race. We even had a competition with the adults and his car beat them too. Great ideas.. Thanks. We will use them for the races in the future too... Thanks again Julie |
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March 8, 2012 - My son was thrilled. This was our first race. Michael, We have another success story to add to your winners circle. Yesterday our car (built from your “Design Tips”) posted an over all (6 heat) average time of 2.7283. Officially we came in second, technically we were the fastest car of the day. The first place car had one run (it’s first run) at 2.4 something. We are curious as to what was on those axels or if for some reason a sensor was pre triggered? At the end of 6 heats our car was 260th of a second behind the first place car. The third palace car was .118th of a second behind us. With out a doubt we owned the day. When the complete results are published we will be able to the individual heat times. My son was thrilled. This is our first race. I asked him at the beginning if he wanted to make a pretty car or a fast one. The rest is history. Next year we will make a couple of cars. Thank you for sharing your secrets. $6.95 was well worth the investment to see my son happy and to know that his dad was able to help him achieve his goal. Sincerely, Philip |
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March 3, 2011 - The closest car was 1.5 car lengths behind us!!! Just wanted to let you know the results of our races. We followed your guide and we took first place in our pack. District races are this weekend and we hope to show well there too. The closest car was 1.5 car lengths behind us. We have raced the car approximately thirty times now and no one has come even close. Still undefeated. Thanks for the tips. David Jones, Lubbock |
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February 20, 2011 - My son's car went an undefeated 9-0!!! Michael, Tonight we had our pinewood race for our pack. This was my son's first year and we didn't have a clue on how to build a car. We ordered your guide. I would like to thank you for sharing your knowledge with everyone else. My son's car went an undefeated 9-0. We had 6 den races and went 6-0 winning the Tiger Cub Den. We then had three races against the wolf/bear winner and the weblo winner. We won all 3!!! and went 3-0 in 3 different lanes. We were then named Pack #443, Grand Champion and the car took the overall 1st place trophy. We would have not been able to do this without your guide. I am enclosing some pics.... THANKS AGAIN - Mike and Stephen |
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February 09, 2010 - The looks on their faces and joy we had that day will be remembered for a long time!!! This weekend was our first Pinewood Derby. My seven year old son and I built a car with your help and everything your guide said must have made the difference for us. We won first place in his age division and first place in the whole pack. Also, we built a second car for my 4 year old to race in an open class race and he won first place too! The looks on their faces and the joy we had that day will be remembered for a long time. Thank you so much for sharing. God Bless You! Kim, TX |
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February 02, 2010 - HE hasn't been able to wipe the smile off his face yet!!! Michael, I just wanted you to know that my son's pinewood derby was Sat, Jan 31, and he took home the first place trophy!!! He hasn't been able to wipe the smile off his face yet! His car raced a total of 9 times (including re-races), and never lost once. Tommy is a Tiger Cub, and was up against about 35 other cars. We don't know yet how he did against the rest of the pack. It was our first derby....How exciting! Your tips were well worth the 7 bucks! Thank you so much! Your tips definitely made the difference. We can't wait for next year's derby! Jim Logeman |
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January 12, 2010 - The Smiles on their faces . . Priceless! Michael, FYI, my two son had entries in this years derby. Your manual gave great advice and guidance on not only how to enjoy the process but how to win. Long story short, out of 45 entrants, my son's cars placed first and second. The smiles on their faces....priceless! Thanks again, Ken Manganiello |
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January 26, 2009 - Well Worth the $6.95 Michael, Thanks so much for your file! I was starting from scratch and didn't know remotely where to start. Our scouts are much more basic (no axles and all that), but I was more worried about design and things like that. You have been so helpful and it was well worth the $6.95 to get some direction on what the heck to do. THANKS again! ==Mary== |
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February 24, 2010 - Certainly Found a Winner in Your Guide Michael, I certainly found a winner in your guide. In my son's first year of competition (He's a Tiger Cub) he took first in his den and second in the pack. This weekend, it's on to the District Competition. I'll let you know how he makes out. I'll also send you a picture of the car and 'HARDWARE'; after he's done racing the car. Your simple hints to building a fast car paid off. We had fun, and the hard work paid off because my son sure enjoyed the victory of each heat. I'm already looking forward to next year. Once again thanks. Jeff |
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March 01, 2009 - Beat the Internet Specials 2 Out of 2 Hi Michael, Last night we held our troop's race and we easily finished first! Many thanks in part to you and many of your fine points you brought up. If you remember, I really was resisting the idea of building the wedge, so what my boy and I ultimately did was build two cars. One wedge with the dimensions of the one you sent me and a low wedge like racer that I saw selling on eBay. The two cars both weighed in at exactly 5.0 ounces and both had a center of gravity one inch in front of the rear axle. I used the 'special' axles I bought online, and carefully prepared a complete set as you outlined because I really felt guilty and wanted to use something we made. Went through all the steps for smoothing out as best I could. Did the wheel prep as you said too. Well, we raced both cars against each other before the offical race and the standard wedge had your axle designs on it against the modified wedge with those 'speed' axles. Your versions beat the 'internet specials' by a fraction in two out of two, but my son grew attached to the modified car so against my better judgment, that is the one we entered. And it won easily, hands down. So now we go to the regional next week. I cannot help but to keep thinking about the 'other' car that was actually faster -- your design! Oh well, like I said, the modified winner still incorporated many of your thought and ideas and did sweep our troop. Let you know what happens next week. Thanks again Michael, Bruce |
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