The thrill of excitement

Andrew- 4th place, Pete- 2nd place, Nicholas- 1st place in their divisions!

Well, another Pinewood Derby has come and gone.  Cars have been laboriously built after hours of scrutiny and nitpicking.  Dads have returned to their inner child, sometimes showing more excitement than the children.  Moms have had to break their boys (Dads and children) from their race car mania and hypnotism, sometimes having to lure them back inside with trickery.  The boys remind me of preschoolers who are glued to their moms before school and won't let go; only it's not mom the boys are glued to, it's those cars.  Heck, some of the dads have brought their saws inside and worked at the kitchen table!   Saw, sand, paint, oil and then repeat (for those of us who have more than one boy in scouts).  If it is like this now, what will it be like when the boys near "the driving age" and start piddling around with real cars and engines?  I know Pete spent many hours with his head stuck in a hood when he was growing up.

You might be wondering how I can stand the mess, the silliness of racing homemade Matchcars all day; because it's fun!  Families come to the big event ready to race, cameras in hand.  The scouts run crazy through the church hall and around the grassy field, breaking planters and knocking down full-sized American flags.  All of this happens while the grown-ups are either setting up or cleaning up; maybe even catching up with a friend they haven't seen in awhile. 

Then when the race begins, the kids stuff themselves with pizza, chips, Coke and cookies from the snack stand because the parents are so engrossed in the standings and placement of their babies (cars, not boys).  The day is long and drawn out as each race has to be absolutely perfect and deemed 100% acceptable from the higher-ups.  Children become tired and cranky.  They have tummy aches and just want to go home and play electronics.  Some cry because they didn't get a trophy, and some even resort to violence as their limits soar.

~sigh~  Now why was it I liked this?  Oh yeah... because my boys competed (and won)!