Pinewood Derby Racing Fever!

Pinewood Derby Racing Fever!

The new high-tech aluminum Pinewood Derby track system.

Racing fever hit Mitchell 1 on Thursday, May 21 with the second annual Pinewood Derby Day held at Mitchell 1 headquarters in Poway CA. We had over 42 cars competing; all designed by employees of Mitchell 1 and other Snap-on divisions in the U.S., Ireland and England. It was a great day of racing on our brand new high-tech track system featuring race management software that delivers results instantaneously as the cars cross the finish line.

All of the cars were put through a rigorous tech inspection before competing. Mike Alberry, product manager for Mitchell 1 ProDemand, was the race host and coordinator, and was assisted by a professional and hard-working pit crew and judging panel. An enthusiastic crowd of car owners and spectators filled the room throughout the event and raffle prizes were awarded to entrants. The action was streamed live from the Mitchell 1 office in Poway, so Snap-on folks around the world could cheer on their cars in real time. Racers from the Mitchell 1 and King’s Lynn locations swept the slate for “fastest” and “best looking car” divisions.

After six races per car and a total of 42 heats, the final race ended with a very close finish. The winners with the fastest cars were all from Mitchell 1:

1st place: David Block (2.617)
2nd place: Jason Slocum (2.622)
3rd place: Sean Gharabaghli (2.630)

Fastest cars: 1st in center, 2nd on left, 3rd on right.

Winners of the “Best Looking” division were all from the Snap-on King’s Lynn location in Norfolk England:

1st place: Julian Woods
2nd place: Harry Barrett
3rd place: Pedro Roodenburg

Best Looking cars: 1st in center, 2nd on left, 3rd on right.

The winners won a trophy and their 15 seconds of racing fame. Pinewood Derby Day is an annual event held the week before the Indy 500 race in the U.S.

Below are some additional photos from race day (Click images to expand to full size). You can also check out even more photos on the Mitchell 1 Facebook Page.

Winner’s circle.

The lineup of contenders.

Race host and coordinator Mike Alberry, with some race results projected on the wall next to him.

Cars in action.

Host’s view of the computer monitor showing all angles of the racing action.

Raffle prizes and trophies were part of the fun!

About the Author

Jill Schafer

Jill Schafer is the Marketing Communication Manager at Mitchell 1 and has over 20 years of marketing experience with high-technology organizations, including over 10 years in the automotive information industry.