OLD FASHIONED SOAPBOX DERBY TO BE RUN ON SPRIGG SATURDAY MORNING

More than 40 area youngsters will race down Sprigg Street Saturday morning, not on inline skates, bicycles or skateboards. They'll be in soap box cars, much to the delight of local baby boomers.

The St. Francis Medical Center Soap Box Derby will take place Saturday, with time trials running between 7 and 9 a.m. The race will begin at 10 a.m.

The race course will be on Sprigg Street near the Blanchard School, and spectators are asked to watch from the east side of the street.

About 43 youngsters between the ages of 9 and 16 have built their soap box cars and are scheduled to race. Nearly half of the contestants are girls.

Derby organizer Dieter Jedan, who also is a member of a race sponsor, the Cape Girardeau Rotary Club, said he thought a soap box derby would be a good family event for the Cape Girardeau area.

"I thought it was something advantageous for the kids. We don't have a lot of family activities where the parents and the kids and the (Rotary) club can work together and add something to the community," he said. "Not only will it strengthen the goals of Rotary, but it also will make the city a better place."

He also said the derby is an excellent activity for kids who aren't athletic or who choose not to participate in athletics.

"We have something for kids that may not be good in sports, where you don't have to be a super athlete and you can participate," he said. "I think we are lacking a lot of things for the child who is not an athletic child. It's a new kind of activity."

Jedan said the youngsters will be attaining speeds of about 25 to 30 miles per hour in kit-produced cars that are weighted to certain guidelines.

"They're pretty much gravity driven," he said. "What really will make a difference is that kids drive straight and that the wheels are oiled well and the weight of the car."

He said the weight of the driver and the car combined cannot exceed 200 pounds.

"The heavier the vehicle and the driver, the faster the speed they ultimately will achieve," he said. "That is the name of the game with gravity."

Jedan said the parts of the race are scheduled to be broadcast by Zimmer Radio, and a winners' circle will be set up after the race at Blanchard school. The top four winners will receive trophies, and all other entrants will receive ribbons.

Major sponsors of the derby are St. Francis Medical Center, Southeast Missouri Hospital, Zimmer Radio, Chap Arnold Insurance Co. and KFVS 12.

Jedan said he expects the derby to be a fun time for kids, parents and families.

"Everyone should come out and support their favorite drivers," he said. "It's a family event and everybody had to participate. The cars could not be put together by one person only, so everybody has a stake in it Mom and Dad, the child and the (Rotary) club."

He also said the youngsters put a lot of time and energy into their cars.

"It's an event that even if you lose, you win. You know you did it. You worked on something," he said. "It takes determination. It takes about four to six hours to put the cars together. So for a youngster, four to six hours is a lifetime. They are pretty proud."