East Hampton hasn’t had a Cub Scout pack in almost nine years, but this week a new combined group of scouts was back in full force, with one of the most classic scout activities imaginable: a Pinewood Derby.
“There are a couple of things in the scout year that every cub pack does, and probably the biggest thing is the pinewood derby,” said Bill Boscarino, the cubmaster of the newly formed Pack 136. “This is the first year we’ve had the cub pack. We lost the Cub Scouts in all of East Hampton around 2018. So we combined Montauk and East Hampton and now we have one town pack. We have 14 Cub Scouts and everyone remembers the Pinewood Derby from when they were kids. So this is the first big event we did.”
The American Legion in Amagansett sponsored the pack and hosted them for a fun night of pizza and pinewood racing. The kids also got to meet Roger Turbush, a race car driver whose family has been competing at the Riverhead Raceway since the 1950s. The pack is taking a trip to see him race at Riverhead this year.
“They have a scout night and they’re all coming down and hopefully I can win that night for them,” Mr. Turbush said before giving them a little race advice for their own model cars. “Just have fun. No matter what, it’s all about fun. Don’t worry about anything else.”
The kids had access to East Hampton Middle School’s wood shop, where they spent several weeks building their cars from an official pinewood derby kit. “They learned about physics, and painting the cars, and they definitely loved it,” Mr. Boscarino said. “There are a lot of rules, but the biggest rule is the weight. They all have to be around five ounces. Everyone tries to get their car the exact weight and beyond that, as long as you use the pieces in the kit, you can do any style of car you want.”
Amir Thermesy, a first grader at the Ross School, made a navy blue car with a silver sparkly racing stripe. “I put tape around here and then made the line. And I did it blue because it’s dark and I can see it better and it’s one of my favorite colors. It’s fun because we get to race.”
The Montauk School nearly swept the podium with first graders Silas Grimes and Vaughn Jensen taking first and second place. But Matzen Tierney, a second grader at the John M. Marshall Elementary School, wouldn’t let it happen, claiming the third place spot.
With prizes for most creative car and fan favorite, there was something for everyone to celebrate, most of all,
the return of the Cub Scouts to East Hampton.