Some collectors choose to collect badges with a particular theme
The catalogue in the Club website now provides a way for thematic collectors to search for particular badges of interest. For example, Pinewood Derby badges.
The Cub page on the Scouts Aotearoa website (https://scouts.nz/cubs/) includes this:
Cub Packs offer learning programmes where children are encouraged to experience, experiment, and explore…
As a Cub you will:
Make new friends and have lots of fun!
Go on exciting new adventures like camping, bushwalking, kayaking, and rock climbing.
Spend time in your community, work in teams with others, and learn about different cultures.
Learn new skills and test your creativity.
Participate in Events such as Pinewood Derby, Mudslide Day, and JOTI (Jamboree On The Internet).
That last line suggests Pinewood Derby has an equal footing with Mudslide Day and JOTI, so that raised the question: “Should we start listing the Pinewood badges in the NCAI Section of our catalogue?”
I think it's more like Jamboree On The Trail (JOTT) in that it started with local events and has become more widespread. There are local issue Pinewood Derby badges going back many years. It’s only in recent years that there has been a "national" badge available from Scouts Direct. (2018 was the first).
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What is the Pinewood Derby? Pinewood Derby is a fun event which originated in the USA, back in 1953. Cubs, Scouts (and parents, leaders, etc.) race small model wooden cars down a sloped track. The cars are powered only by gravity. In the weeks leading up to the derby, Cubs partner with an adult helper to build their pinewood derby car using a kit that includes a wooden block, plastic wheels, metal axles, rules and instructions. The kit includes a link to a 16 page guide that walks through everything you need to know to design, build, paint and tune up a car. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinewood_derby. It is also very popular in Canada. Here is a picture of a kit from Canada for an 18-wheeler! Pinewood Derby has become a big event in Christchurch. The 2021 Christchurch Pinewood Derby is on the 11th and 12th of September (term 3 week 7). My search of the Club website found the following, although we don’t yet have images for all the badges. I’ve shown a selection of them here, so if you are a Club member you can have a look at the website to see others. (And if you happen to have badge for a NZ Pinewood Derby that isn’t illustrated on the website, please let me know). |
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Wellington
Paparangi - [undated] Otago
Otago Pinewood Derby [undated 1998] Christchurch
Pinewood Derby 2015 National
Pinewood Derby 2018 |
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Have there been any Pinewood Derby events elsewhere in NZ, for example in Auckland, which have had their own badge? There are many Pinewood Derby badges from USA, Canada and no doubt other countries, so it should be quite easy to build up a good collection of badges with this theme. Rex Moir |
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