Soapbox Derby Debuts at Queen Mary’s

By Joseph Baroud, Contributor

Racers kept their heads down. Their eyes pointed straight ahead as they steered their wheels went for the gold at the All-American Queen’s Cup Soap Box Derby race.

The derby took place Aug. 23 and 24 at the parking lot adjacent to the Queen Mary in Long Beach. A ramp was placed at the beginning of the track. Racers were released from the top, gathering enough speed to push them to the finish line. The finish is 40, or 50 feet ahead of the ramp. Haystacks outlined the track to cushion a driver in the event of a crash and cones divided the two lanes.

Most of the races were neck-and-neck from start to finish. Some ended with about a second, or a second-and-a-half, between them. Some ended with finishes that made your heart skip a beat. That instance alone was enough to fill the gap that separated the racers. Most importantly, none of the races were one-sided, which called for an exciting event.

The races began at 11 a.m. There were four different races for each of the three different classes: stock; super stock; masters. The double elimination race had drivers race each other, mark the time difference, trade wheels and lanes and go at it again. The time difference was recorded after the second race and whoever had a better accumulated time would advance. The switch was made to ensure a fair game.

Eleven-year-old Michael Nuñez placed fourth and brought home a trophy in which happened to be his first ever race. He said his mom persuaded him to race by promising him a surprise if he did. The trophy he won saw to it that he ends the day with two surprises. He said his favorite part of the race was zooming down the ramp at the start. He definitely is going to race again in the future.

Regional Director Brian Graham, said he was looking for a race director who can find racers and permanent venues in Long Beach willing to host annual races. As for the Queen Mary being host to its first soap box derby, Graham wished that the track would’ve been longer, but said they did a great job in providing them the possibility to run a flawless event.

“As a host site the Queen Mary was perfect,” Graham said. “Everything we could want was provided, maybe some things we had maybe not thought about to. We are looking into a longer track and longer ramps for future events. With any program the first time out there are always some things to improve. However, with our intention for this race, we hit a home run.”

Contact Graham by emailing him at rallycomish@aol.com.