Show and Tell

This morning, I took Alex's Soap Box Derby car in for show and tell. I parked the trailer in the covered outdoor basketball court and set the car up behind it – with three trophies and a plaque leaning against the wall. Alex's class came out single-file (with Alex in the lead), then he came up front by his car in front of the entire class, including three teachers and said, "This is my Soap Box Derby car".

We have been trying to prep Alex for this show and tell. Every night this week, we have asked him what he is going to say about his car. We made sure he knew all the stats . . . the track is ¼ mile long, the cars weight 200 pounds and go 35 miles per, we have raced everywhere from Salem to the Canadian border, etc . . . etc . . . etc. And all he could think of to say was "This is my Soap Box Derby car". Then he clammed up. After a few seconds, I started quizzing and prodding him – he responded well. The kids (and teachers) had lots of questions . . . "How many races have you been in?" (Nearly every weekend this summer); "Are you a fan of the Oregon Ducks?" (because the car is green and yellow . . . no, he is a fan of the color green); "Who came up with the car's name, Green Slime?" (Alex did); "Why did you think of that name?" (because the car is green and looks like slime); "Is it a foot brake or a hand brake?" (a foot brake, but Masters Cars have a hand brake); and, of course, "How can I get into racing these?" (by giving your parents a Salem Soap Box Derby Association business card to your parents . . . here, we'll leave a stack with Mrs. Gallo).

Alex then got into the car to demonstrate the racing position; I lifted the back end to demonstrate the slope of the hill. I exaggerated slightly and lifted the wheels to waist level. Alex told me that is how steep Poulsbo is, but not the rest of the tracks. He would know. Then I gave the car a strong push and Alex demonstrated the brake.

With the help of the teachers, Alex paraded the trophies in front of the class, and then they asked if they could touch the car. I said absolutely – I would have let them sit in the car, but there was no way to let all of them sit in it, and not enough time for the entire class to sit in it.

Finally, after 5-10 minutes, we were done. The kids went back to class; I packed the car up and went back to work.