Soap Craft Magazine Popular Books

Soap Craft Magazine Biography & Facts

The Soap Box Derby is a youth-oriented soap box car racing program which has been running in the United States since 1934. Proclaimed "the greatest amateur racing event in the world", the program culminates each July at the FirstEnergy All-American Soap Box Derby World Championship held at Derby Downs in Akron, Ohio, with winners from their local communities travelling from across the US, Canada, Germany and Japan to compete. 2024 will mark the 86th running of the All-American since its inception in 1934 in Dayton, Ohio, having missed four years (1942–1945) during World War II and one (2020) during the COVID pandemic. Cars competing in the program race downhill, propelled by gravity alone. The Soap Box Derby expanded quickly across the US from the very beginning, bolstered largely by a generous financial campaign by its national sponsor, Chevrolet Motor Company. At the same time there was enthusiastic support from coast to coast of numerous local newspapers that published aggressively during the summer months when races were held, with stories boasting of their own community races and of their Champion travelling to Akron with dreams of capturing a National title and hometown glory. In 1936 the All-American had its own purpose-built track constructed at what is now Derby Downs, with some communities across America following suit with tracks of their own. Its greatest years occurred during the fifties and sixties when viewer turnout at the All-American reached 100,000 spectators, and racer participation was at an all-time high. From the very beginning, technical and car-design innovation happened rapidly, so Derby officials drafted ways of governing the sport so that it did not become too hazardous as speed records were being challenged. At Derby Downs the track length was shortened twice to slow the cars down. The seventies brought significant changes, beginning with the introduction of girls to the sport in 1971. The following year Chevrolet dropped its sponsorship, sending Derby Downs into a tailspin that threatened its very future. Racer enrollment plummeted the following year. In 1973 a scandal hit Derby Downs with the discovery that their World Champion had cheated, and was thus disqualified, further exacerbating an uncertain future. In 1975 Karren Stead won the World Championship, the first of many girls that would go on to claim the title. Finally there was Derby's decision to divide the competition with the introduction of the Junior Division kit cars in 1976. As fiscal challenges continued, the Derby instituted new guidelines by redrafting the Official race divisions into three: Stock, Super Stock and Masters. With them came the prefabricated fiber glass kit racers which kids could now purchase, this to appeal to a new generation of racers uncomfortable with constructing their own cars from scratch, as well as to help Derby effectively meet its financial obligations. Leading into the 21st century the Soap Box Derby has continued to expand with the inclusion of the Rally Program racers at the All-American in 1993, the creation of the Ultimate Speed Challenge in 2004 and the Legacy Division in 2019. Introduction The Soap Box Derby, promoted as "the greatest amateur racing event in the world," is a largely volunteer-driven, family-oriented sporting activity for youth conducted across the US and around the world. Local or regional races are held yearly, with winners from each sent to compete at the All-American Soap Box Derby World Championship, officially the FirstEnergy All-American Soap Box Derby World Championship, which occurs every July at Derby Downs in Akron, Ohio. Oversight is by the International Soap Box Derby organization, or ISBD, run by a paid administrative staff headquartered at Derby Downs, a term also used metonymically to describe said organization. The name Soap Box Derby is a registered trademark, and used to identify the sport overall, with those actively involved referring to it simply as "Derby." The official name FirstEnergy All-American Soap Box Derby is used solely to identify the annual World Championship race itself, and referred to similarly as "the All-American." Eligibility to race in the Soap Box Derby is open to anyone aged 7 through 20, with participants divided by age into three Official Divisions, with a specific car design assigned for each: Stock, the entry level division for ages 7–13, Super Stock, for mid-level kids ages 9–18, and Masters, the senior level for ages 10–20 and a design where the occupant rides in the fully reclined position. Cars come un-assembled in kits purchased from the ISBD, the only visibly common component of all three designs being the Official wheels sets which are available for purchase as well. While working with a mentor is permitted, kids are expected to assemble the cars themselves in order to develop the skills necessary for the car to pass inspection before they are qualified to race. Beginnings Kids playing on home-made scooters and go karts in the 1930s was not an unfamiliar sight in the streets of America, and racing in organized events was an inevitable outcome of it. As early as 1904 Germany conducted its first soapbox race for kids, and in 1914 there was the Junior Vanderbilt Cup in Venice, California that held a kids race as well. The Soap Box Derby story began on June 10, 1933 when six boys were racing homemade push carts in Dayton, Ohio, among them William Condit whose father suggested they have a race and that he would contact the local newspaper to have them cover it. The other participants were Dean Gattwood, Tracey Geiger, Jr., Robert Gravett, James P. Hobstetter and William Pickrel, Jr.. Of the six, Condit won that race, with Gravett taking second. Myron Scott, a 25-year-old photojournalist for the Dayton Daily News looking for ideas for its Sunday Picture Page, was one of two photographers that got the call, and accepting the assignment ventured out to investigate. Seeing the appeal of a kids story like this he asked the boys to return in two weeks with more of their friends so he could host a race of his own. When they did nineteen showed up, bringing with them racers made of packing crates and soap boxes, sheets of tin and whatever else they could find. The race was held on Big Hill Road in Oakwood, a south-side neighborhood of Dayton, with a crowd of onlookers coming to watch. Seizing on a publicity opportunity, Scott decided to plan an even bigger city-wide event with the support of his employer, the Dayton Daily News, which recognized the hope-inspiring and goodwill nature of the story—especially during the Depression. It posted advertisements of it almost daily to stir interest, and included an application which stipulated "for anything on four wheels that will coast" for the kids to fill out. A date was set for August 19, 1933, to host a parade, the race to occur a day after, and the location chosen as Burkhardt Hill, a straight, westbound slope on Burdhardt Ave.... Discover the Soap Craft Magazine popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Soap Craft Magazine books.