Ethan’s Cub Scout pack meeting this month included a “Raingutter Regatta”. I had never done one of those when I was a scout, so it was a new experience for both of us. A Raingutter Regatta is kind of like a Pinewood Derby, but instead of racing cars on a sloped track, you race boats in a rain gutter, using wind power (blowing) to propel them. In getting ready for the event, I was just hoping it would turn out a little better than last year’s Pinewood Derby.
For that event, Ethan decided to design his race car so as to optimize for the least amount of work possible. It involved two diagonal cuts across the front and rear, with one bonus cut to make a rear bumper. He chose the minimal sanding approach to finishing, put on a layer of blue spray paint, and a James Bond 007 logo on the side, because Bond cars are cool. We went to a craft store in hopes of finding some graphite lubricant for the axles, only to discover the pinewood derby section had been picked over locust-style by others.
So we went with what we had, and it didn’t turn out so well. Ethan’s car came in last place in every single heat. It was a time to teach him about losing gracefully, and with pride for trying.
Ironically, he was given the award for Best Workmanship since it was clear to the Cub Master that Ethan had done what little work there was on his car all by himself. It didn’t seem like a good time to mention that I had actually helped…
Best Workmanship
May 19, 2005
When we learned that the Raingutter Regatta was coming this year, a neighbor mentioned that someone had built a catamaran in the past that had done really well. I had just read an article in Wired magazine about trimarans, and how they have been cleaning up all the world sailboat races (when they weren’t flipping over and dumping their crews into the drink), so I considered suggesting a three-hulled design to Ethan. In the end, though, we found a nice explanation of how to do the catamaran on the Web and went with that.
It had basically the same number of wood cuts as his Pinewood Derby car, so by that measure it was a good design to Ethan. It did involve a little gluing, but that was made up for by the fact that there were no moving parts. The final touch was to adorn the sail with a print-out of a picture of Calvin and Hobbes — the one from the cover of the book Scientific Progress Goes “Boink” where Calvin is making a copy of himself.
On the night of the race, we showed up a few minutes before 7:00 PM. We noticed something odd, though. There were lots of people there already, and Pack Meeting isn’t famous for punctual starts. It turns out that the thing had started at 6:00 that night. Ethan had missed den meeting for a couple of weeks because of another summer activity, and I guess we just didn’t get the word. All was well, though, because they had had some food, and the racing was only just about to begin.
Everyone crowded around the two rain gutters that were laid out on tables, cheering on the youngest scouts who went first. I noticed some of the problems I’d read about on the internet: top-heaviness, sails that spun on their masts when blown on, and general instability.
When Ethan’s turn came to race, he won handily. Then again. And again. Even when the official races were over and times were being figured by the judge, Ethan kept winning all the informal races too.
Racing in the Rain Gutter
July 20, 2006
When the results were announced, Ethan was declared his den’s first place winner, as well as the all-around winner for the whole pack. Wow. That was quite a turn-around from the disappointing Pinewood Derby. I have to say that it was nice to have the chance to teach Ethan about being a good winner.
First Place
July 20, 2006