"Some people were competitive in nature and some people were just there to have the opportunity to do it. Additionally, the Super Kid cars will probably go for more than the Stock and Superstock cars as they were two-seaters specially made to accommodate racers with special needs. The sale will also feature never opened soapbox car kits, which will be priced around $400, she said. Garrod said the cars will probably go for between $100 to $300 depending on condition and age. The club will be selling several of the cars, many of which don sponsors such as Baptist Hospitals of Southeast Texas and DJ's Original Boudain, among others, as well as the racers' names. "You've got to lift those cars off the trailers and lift them on the trailers - there's a lot of manpower that's needed as well," she said. "And we were under the impression that the (Maury Meyers Bridge) was going to be torn down in 2020, 2021 and it's still there."Īs the years have gone by, the makeup of the Rotary Club has gone from mostly older men to now almost all women, Garrod said, which would make the physical aspect of putting on the event more difficult as well. "There just isn't another location," she said. 15 of our favorite spots for Houston's Asian Restaurant Month.France, Astros prospect tearing up Triple-A, set for MLB debut Peyton Manning recalls trash-talk exchange with Texans star J.J.cities for 'nude gardening,' which exists Video: Klein ISD high school coach knocked out intervening in fight.'Swimming pool it is': Large shark reeled in 100 yards away from shore at Texas beach.The 10 best hitters in Houston Astros history.RELATED: Soap Box Derby fun for the whole family But to build one like that here would cost an estimated $2 million taking into account property acquisition and building costs, Garrod said. Such a course exists in Hockley, northwest of Houston. The only other option to continue the derby would be to build a course for it. The club worked with TxDOT to try and find a replacement location, looking at the Brooks Road overpass or even the Willow Street exit downtown, but both either came with too much liability or just weren't feasible. "Fundraising, but also just getting the permits, the barricades, permission to close down the bridge and the streets, getting porta-potties and setting up the course - we had ramps and canopies, we had to have volunteers for the timers and the judges as well as concessions and security, it was a huge endeavor," she said.Īnd though it took a lot of work to put on, the real nail in the coffin is the loss of the location. While the event was a lot of fun to put it on, it also required a lot of work, Garrod said. "We would ship the cars (and) give a stipend to the families of the winners to help with travel expenses," she said. RELATED: Were you 'Seen' at the Soap Box Derby? One of our race winners, who had cerebral palsy, used (the money) to outfit a truck so he could drive it."įirst place finishers got to travel to Akron, Ohio for national races in July, where the All-American Soap Box Derby is held each year, Garrod said. The Super Kids got the same (amounts), but they could use it as needed because most of them were special needs. "The Stock and Superstock (winners) could use that for higher education.they got $500 for third place, $1,000 for second place and $1,500 for first place. "The first three finishers in each division were awarded scholarships," Garrod said. The Soap Box Derby was comprised of three divisions: Stock, Superstock and Super Kid competitors. (It made you) work with your hands and create something and then race it." "(The cars) come in a kit and my grandson and I put them together - we actually had two, we lost one in (Tropical Storm Harvey) so I ordered another kit - and he had to help me assemble it. "Part of (the activity) was getting out of your comfort zone," Spindletop Rotary Past President Shannon Garrod told The Enterprise Thursday. RELATED: Spindletop Rotary Soap Box Derby encourages fun, friendship to noon Saturday at 242 N 18th St., under the Maury Meyers Bridge in Beaumont. The club is hosting a garage sale for the items from 9 a.m. So, Spindletop Rotary is selling the equipment, which includes soapbox cars, weights, ramps and scales, among other gear. That, in conjunction with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic the following year and a change in the organization's makeup, made it almost impossible to conduct the race. 69, the organization suddenly found itself without a venue to host its race. But when the Texas Department of Transportation in 2019 announced plans to remove the Maury Meyers Bridge to make way for the widening of Interstate 10 and U.S.
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