QUINCY, ILL. -- For 65 racers and their parents, the break in the heat and humidity was a welcome relief at the Soapbox Derby race in Quincy.
Ron Gengenbacher and his daughter Aspen have been racing in the Quincy Soapbox Derby going on their third year. And each year they try and decide what's going to help them win their division. Aspen is getting ready for the 7th grade and likes it when her dad helps her with the car and prepping for the race. Last year Aspen ended getting second in the stock division.
"Have faith, say I can, keep your head down, make small corrections and stay in lane one, just stay positive," said Aspen Gengenbacher
The race is divided into two classes seperating the older and the younger drivers. The kids and their parents work on the cars getting them ready and on race day, they wait for the green flag and hope they take the checkered flag at the end of the race.
Chris Huseman has been the race director since it started seven years ago and he said, "It really is a collaborative family event and it's just beautiful when you actually see them up on the ramp here they're getting ready to go down the hill for the first time. The parents are all about the child today and I just can't think of a more beautiful opportunity that families have then to participate in something like our soapbox derby."
The cars are made from a kit and it takes some time to craft and mold them into a smooth racing machine. In fact, some of the cars have been handed down to younger brothers and sisters so they can take a chance at being crowned the champion of the Quincy Soapbox Derby.