Northwest Scouters has built the finest Pinewood Derby Track in the Northwest and we are pleased to have it available for rental to Scouts and other organizations.

Tired of having three-hour Pinewood Derby Races?  Let Northwest Scouters manage your next race and your race durations will be significantly improved.  We have completed 40 car races, including presentation of trophies in just over an hour.

The track is based on the "Challenger" Pinewood Derby Track plans.  The framework is built of solid Ash and Birch plywood.  To enable better viewing the track is raised 12" off of the floor.  The racing surface is extruded aluminum so there is virtually no "fast" or "slow" lanes.  We can setup the track in two different start/finish line length configurations.  The "Short Track" configuration is 37' from start to finish line and is the suggested setup for nearly all racing.  The "Long Track"configuration at 45' is typically used for championship races offered at the district or council level.

The starting gate is controlled by a remotely activated solenoid with a laser stating line and a MicroWizard finish line.  All of this is interfaced to a laptop with Grand Prix Race Manager software to run and manage your race!  No more questions on close races as the MicroWizard is accurate to .001 second!

ATTENTION: 2009 RENTAL SCHEDULE Coming Soon!!!

During each race time (10:00am, 12:00pm, and 2:00pm) there will be two or three packs, depending on size, scheduled to run.  The races will be combined but each pack will receive separate printed results.  After all the den races have completed we will advance three scouts from the dens in each pack to the championship run-off.

By combining the racing we can provide more races in a shorter period of time, which means more excitement for the scouts.

The following schedule is tentative based on location availability. (We are working to have all locations finalized by Dec. 1st.)

2009 Dates

    DATE TBD - Redmond (Central Redmond) - Location: First Baptist Church of Redmond
  • 10:00am - TBD   (Car numbers x00 through x29)
  • 10:00am - TBD ; (Car numbers x30 through x59)
  • 10:00am - TBD ; (Car numbers x60 through x89)
  • 12:00pm - TBD ; (Car numbers x00 through x29)
  • 12:00pm - TBD ; (Car numbers x30 through x59)
  • 12:00pm - TBD ; (Car numbers x60 through x89)
  •  2:00pm - TBD   (Car numbers x00 through x29)
  •  2:00pm - TBD   (Car numbers x30 through x59)
  •  2:00pm - TBD   (Car numbers x60 through x89)
    DATE TBD - Redmond (Central Redmond) - Location: First Baptist Church of Redmond
  • 10:00am - TBD   (Car numbers x00 through x29)
  • 10:00am - TBD   (Car numbers x30 through x59)
  • 10:00am - TBD   (Car numbers x60 through x89)
  • 12:00pm - TBD   (Car numbers x00 through x29)
  • 12:00pm - TBD   (Car numbers x30 through x59)
  • 12:00pm - TBD   (Car numbers x60 through x89)
  •  2:00pm - TBD   (Car numbers x00 through x29)
  •  2:00pm - TBD   (Car numbers x30 through x59)
  •  2:00pm - TBD   (Car numbers x60 through x89)
    Other Derbies on the calendar (Special events)
  • January 17th - Kenney Home 10AM til 3PM (West Seattle)
  • TBD - Thunderbird District Derby (Location & Time TBD)
  • TBD - Cascade District Derby - Chevrolet, Cadillac, Hummer, Of Bellevue.
  • May 2nd, 2009 - Sammamish Trails Derby

To help you plan your Pinewood Derby find below a outline of what is provided by Northwest Scouters when renting our track.

Rental costs:  The cost of track rental is $125.00.  The full amount is due within 10 days of reservation to confirm and hold your timeslot.  This will include projection of "real-time" race results projected onto a screen.

Track Setup/Tear-down:  Northwest Scouters will be responsible for track setup and tear-down.

Race Management (computerized):  Northwest Scouters will manage the races.  All races will be conducted by rank and we can provide print-outs of the results upon completion of the racing.  Please see Race Roster below for details on registering cars.

Final weigh-in of cars:  This will add a significant amount of time to the race day.  It is much better for you to arrange a final weigh-in prior to race day.  If necessary we can provide a calibrated scale for your use.

Estimated times for actual races:  We are scheduling 90 Minutes to complete the races.

Track lengths:  A minimum of 50' is needed to setup the short track configuration.  If we are to use the long track configuration we need a total of 60'.  All Pack race events will be configured for the 50' track.  The distric and council level races will be the 60' configuration.

Your unit is responsible for the following:

  • Email a list of racers with car number and racing categories five days prior to race day.  Please review car numbering sequences below:.
  • ALL racer information must be confirmed 30 minutes prior to the start of your races.
  • ALL racer information is final 15 Minutes prior to the scheduled start time. (10:00, 12:00, 2:00) NO EXCEPTIONS!!!
  • ALL Pinewood Derby Cars MUST be at the races location 30 minutes prior to your racing start time
  • NO Car weigh-in's are to be done within 30 minutes of the start of the race time

    • Car Numbering:

    • 1xx = Tigers
    • 2xx = Wolves
    • 3xx = Bears
    • 4xx = Webelos (both 1st and 2nd year)
    • 5xx = Adult/Siblings
    If you are the first pack listed for a timeslot you will use 00 through 29.  If your Pack is listed second you will use 30 through 59.  If your Pack is listed third you will use 60 through 89.  For example: If your pack is the first pack listed for a particular time - Tiger cars numbered 100 through 129, Wolves numbered 200 through 229, Bears numbered 300 through 329 and Webelos numbered from 400 through 429. If your pack is listed second for particular time - Tiger cars numbered 130 through 159, Wolves numbered 230 through 259, Bears numbered 330 through 359 and Webelos numbered from 430 through 459.  Using this type of numbering system will allow us to not have duplicate numbers when racing.

    Placing Car Numbers:  Please be sure every car is properly numbered.  The car number needs to be on the upper back part of each car so it can easily be identified.  Please use a small sticker with bold legible numbers.  (SEE EXAMPLE BELOW)

    Race Roster:  Please download the Pack Roster and save the spreadsheet as “PackXXXRoster.xls”. Use this spreadsheet to enter all your Cub Scout and Adult/Sibling cars as shown.  This spreadsheet MUST be emailed to pwd-track@nwscouters.org no later than 5 days prior to race day!!!  Please DO NOT save it as an Excel 2007 format, please leave the format as is.

    Scheduling a Race:
    When contacting us to schedule a race please include the following:

    • Date/Time
    • Pack Number
    • Contact Name(s)
    • Email
    • Phone Number
    • Number of Scouts in your Pack
    All reservations will be taken in order received.

    For more information please email pwd-track@nwscouters.org

    FAQ:

    Q: As of today, the location is still listed as tentative. Has a location been determined yet?
    A: Not yet,  We are awaiting final paperwork confirming with each location.
    Q: Can we conduct our weigh-in at the race location before the race start?
    A: NO, this causes races to be delayed.  We have never had a race start on time when the weigh-in is done on race day.
    Q: If we do a weigh-in prior to race day, is this final or will you weigh the cars again?
    A: No, once you have weighed your packs cars no additional weigh-in is required.
    Q: Does the weigh-in need to be done before the roster is emailed?
    A: Although it is advisable that weigh-in be completed with the roster it is not required.  NOTE: Changes to the roster are not allowed after it has been submitted.
    Q: Do our cars have to be weighed on the same scale as the other pack we are racing with?
    A: No, Your pack cars will be technically racing against your own pack... Even though they will race with another pack the race results will be separate.
    Q: The two volunteers that are provided by our pack, when will they need to arrive and how long are they committed to? Can these be the same adults that will deliver our cars?
    A: All cars and volunteers must arrive no less than 30 minutes prior to racetime.  Yes.
    Q: Can we use 3 digit numbers on our cars? Our plan was to use 1xx For Tigers, 2xx For Wolves etc. Is this acceptable? How do we avoid duplicating numbers with the pack we are racing with?
    A: Yes, Please see Car Numbering above.
    Q: My pack has more than 30 kids in it, I need more numbers.
    A: No, The numbers are to be assigned by rank, duplicate numbers won't happen when you give each rank the third (hundreds) number.  IE: A Tiger cub is assigned car# (05) when you put it behind his rank number of (1) you get (105).  When you keep up this numbering scheme a Wolf would be (205), a Bear (305), and so on.  The only way you would need more numbers is if you have more than 30 cub scouts in a single rank.
    Q: We only have two first year Webelos and three second year Webelos does it matter to you if we leave them in their own categories or group them together?
    A: Please combine all Webelos together.
    Q: Can we have sibling and adult categories?
    A: Yes, Adults and Siblings love to race also please assign (5xx) numbering for those cars.
    Q: The web site indicates that we need to send a list of racers 1 week prior to the race and then it says we need to send a list 2 days prior to the race. Can you clarify when you need that list?
    A: The first list would be your "expected" racers (many times packs do not have their final list of racers until a couple days prior.) Please finalize the list of racers with any last minutes changes no later than 5 days prior to the race.
    Q: How do you determine what "place" each car comes in?
    A: Each car will race once on each lane and the accumulated time of all four runs will determine which car is the fastest.

    **** Please note:  Last year we had some issues with packs showing up late or not having their rosters finalized.  This caused some MAJOR issues with scheduling and holding up the races with the other packs.  Any Packs that cause issues similar to what we experienced during the 2008 season will be asked to find another venue for the 2009 season.  All race information is due 5 days prior to race day!

    Please be prepared and on time.  If you are not sure about something please ask well in advance!