THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, June 24, 1996 TAG: 9606240037
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY GREG BURT, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: 104 lines
Roger F. Morneault was 10 when he started racing cars.
He would spend months in his family's garage sawing, sanding and designing his own gravity-powered creation, then travel five hours to Bangor, Maine, to challenge dozens of other youths down a single hill.
Morneault's consuming drive lasted only three years and he never claimed the checkered flag, but he counts the experience among his fondest childhood memories.
Now 51, Morneault hopes to launch the careers of many more young drivers in Hampton Roads.
He will put the area back on the youth racing circuit next month by reviving the Soap Box Derby.
Once an annual tradition in Hampton Roads, derby days died in 1985 for lack of participation. The race enjoyed a short-lived revival in 1988, but has lacked a leader - until now.
Morneault, who owns a speedometer calibration business in Virginia Beach, wants to ensure that his 12-year-old son, Christopher, and other boys and girls ages 9 to 16 can experience the thrill of crafting a car and competing.
``It was quite an experience for a young boy,'' Morneault said of his own racing days.
He got his son started last year when he bought Christopher a soap box car for his birthday. Since then, he has competed in Richmond, where he placed fifth out of 31, and in Charleston, W.Va. ``Putting the car together, racing and meeting new people is what I like best,'' Christopher said.
His father insists that racing offers many great lessons. ``It teaches a kid how to lose and win; it teaches them self-esteem,'' Morneault said. Most of all, he said, ``it gets parents and their kids to spend some serious quality time together.''
Last year, Morneault formed the Virginia Beach Soap Box Derby Association and became an official All-American Soap Box Derby local director. The group's first race is planned for July 13 at Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base. It will be an official qualifying race for the granddaddy of all derbies: the All-American Soap Box championship in Akron, Ohio. The local winner and his or her parents will receive an all-expenses-paid trip to the race there in August.
Soap box racing was started by a newspaper in Dayton, Ohio, in 1934. During its heyday before World War II, as many as 25,000 youths participated. The sport's popularity waned in the 1970s, but is now rallying behind a new generation of racers.
Sandy Roser, a spokesman for the All-American Soap Box Derby headquarters in Akron, said participation in the championship has increased from 238 participants last year to 260. Hampton Roads' event is one of 115 qualifying races nationwide, she said. Richmond held a race earlier this month.
Soap box racing was once so popular in Hampton Roads that a derby track built atop Mount Trashmore was one of only 20 permanent race tracks in the nation. Up to 60 cars would race in the annual event at the Virginia Beach park.
Today, the Trashmore track needs $50,000 to $100,000 worth of repairs, said Valerie King, the park's district supervisor. And because it has been used only once in the past 10 years and has fallen into disrepair, plans call for tearing up the track as part of a renovation project.
But that hasn't discouraged Morneault. He has seen how soap box derbies have recently regained popularity.
For starters, building a car isn't as hard as it used to be. Today, first-time participants must order their car kits from the Akron headquarters for about $350. Cars have to be assembled by the racers themselves with parents offering supervision. The cars, crafted with wood and plastic, require no more than eight hours to assemble, and when completed can travel up to 30 mph, Morneault said.
Steve Whitaker of Chesapeake has entered his 10-year-old son, Mike, in this year's race.
``Dad is enjoying this more than the kids,'' Steve Whitaker said. Whitaker, an attorney, recalled that kids in his neighborhood used to race soap box cars when he was growing up, but lack of money prevented him from participating.
He won't let that stop his son from enjoying the fun.
``It's truly a time where dads get to relive childhood memories,'' Whitaker said. ``And it's a hit with the neighborhood.''
Several neighborhood boys came over to watch the building project and were eager to test out Mike's finished product.
Morneault said others have until July 1 - a week from today - to register for the race and order car kits. A drawing also will be held that day for a free car.
Since everyone has the same type of car, strategies for victory are rather simple: sit still, bend down and don't swerve, Morneault said. The Little Creek track, which starts on a bridge, is 953 feet, or a bit longer than three football fields.
``Girls are better racers than boys,'' Christopher said, because they can bend forward better.
In fact, two of the national champions last year in Ohio were girls. But, said the elder Morneault, ``A lot of it is luck, let's be honest.'' ILLUSTRATION: Racing ``gets parents and their kids to spend some
serious quality time together.'' Roger F. Morneault, racing
enthusiast. His son, Christopher, 12, left, started racing last
year.
SOAP BOX DERBY
When: 10 a.m. Saturday, July 13
Where: Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base, inside Gate 3 at Shore
Drive and Diamond Springs Road
Who's eligible: Girls and boys ages 9 to 16
Cost: Car kits available by mail for about $350; race registration
fee is $50
Deadline: Monday - July 1
For more information, call 456-1111 by CNB