# Red Bull Soapbox Race

The Red Bull Soapbox Race is a soapbox race organised at least once a year by Red Bull. During its final phase, amateur pilots challenge one another by presenting hand-made, motor-less vehicles, judged for their aesthetics, their speed and their road-holding.
Originality and extravagance play an even greater role in the competition, as each team is also rated for their showmanship and the soapboxes are often inspired by folklore, pop culture, motorsport or everyday-life themes in their creation. Some notable examples include Pokémon-based karts and playful reproductions of the Popemobile or Mr. Bean's Mini.
First held in 2000, over a hundred races have been held in multiple countries around the world ever since, usually attracting thousands of spectators and putting the primary focus on the most creative and entertaining side of the competition.

## History

The inaugural event was held in Brussels, Belgium on April 30, 2000. Races have since been held all across the globe, covering every single continent at least once, excluding Antarctica. The first race out of Europe took place on March 30, 2003, when the sixth edition ever was organized in Auckland, New Zealand: this was also the first time the competition was held in Oceania. Auckland would later host the soapbox race thrice more, in 2005, 2013 and 2015.
In 2004, the event was organized in four different locations throughout the year, including Durban, South Africa. The same location was chosen one year later, and the country would host the competition twice more, in 2006 (in Johannesburg) and 2010 (in Soweto): South Africa still represents the only African nation to have held the soapbox race.
The competition first arrived in the United States in 2006, when a new edition was held in St. Louis, Missouri: ever since, a total number of seventeen races have taken place throughout the country.
In 2007, the race spread to the Caribbean for the first time, as Jamaica hosted a new edition. Instead, South America first got to know the event better the following year, when two different editions were held in Brazil: the first one took place in Fortaleza on June 8, while the second one was organized in Porto Alegre on September 21.
The circle was completed between 2012 and 2013, with three subsequent editions being organized in the same number of Asian countries: China (although the event was hosted in Hong Kong), India and Oman.
Currently, 2017 has featured the largest amount of races, with eleven different races taking place between Europe, North America and Asia throughout the year.
2020 actually featured just one edition of the race, held in Santiago (the third time overall, as the Chilean capital city had already hosted the event in 2011 and 2016) on March 14. The second one was set to be held in Florence, Italy on June 7, but was later cancelled due to the emergency measures taken in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in the country. Still, the seventy selected projects were rated and awarded by the deputed jury in October of the same year.

## Rules

The vehicles must have steering and braking capability. Teams are judged on both the time taken to complete the course, as well as creativity of their design and the showmanship of a performance at the start of the race, meaning the team with the fastest time is not necessarily the winner.

## Tracks

In the 2013 London race, one team reached a speed of over 50 kilometers per hour as they completed the 430 metre course in 33 seconds. The Cork 2004 course down St. Patrick's Hill was the steepest ever used at the time.

## Notable participants

In 2008, a team from Queen's University Belfast set the world speed record for soapbox racers at Stormont, Northern Ireland, at 72 km/h (45 mph), before entering the vehicle, Equmes 1, into the Red Bull race at Stormont later in the week.
On May 16, 2015, the Dutch racing driver Max Verstappen, a Formula One driver for the Red Bull racing team himself, opened the race in Valkenburg, Netherlands, driving a soapbox that resembled his own STR10 racing car.
On 7 July 2019, YouTubers Zac Alsop and Jamie Rawsthorne of "The Zac and Jay Show" entered the London race. In a Monopoly-themed run, they threw around £1,000 into the crowd.
In September 2024, YouTuber TomSka and a team from Surfshark VPN entered the race in Kaunas, Lithuania as part of an advertising campaign. The cart was themed around a toilet and had TomSka piloting the cart 'naked', though in reality he was wearing skin-coloured underwear, with the tagline "Why are you sharing your data, but not this?". TomSka also revealed that he had planned to film an episode for his series "TryHards" at the race alongside collaborators Elliot Gough and Eddie Bowley but that they had failed to secure places in time.

## Races

| No. | Date | Course length | Location | City | Country/Region | Entrants | Winning Team | Spectators |
| 1 | 30 April 2000 | | | Brussels | Belgium | | | |
| 2 | 2 September 2001 | | Roundhay Park | Leeds | United Kingdom | 50 | The Garage | |
| 3 | 2 September 2001 | 800 metres | Kurpark Oberlaa | Vienna | Austria | | | |
| 4 | 17 March 2002 | | | Melbourne | Australia | | | |
| 5 | 7 July 2002 | 750 metres | | Bern | Switzerland | 62 | Kuhl Runnings | |
| 5 | 8 September 2002 | | | Bochum | Germany | | | |
| 6 | 30 March 2003 | 700 metres | Auckland Domain | Auckland | New Zealand | 80 | Rubber Duck Racing | 44,000 |
| 7 | 2004 | | | | Netherlands | | | |
| 8 | 20 June 2004 | 250 metres | St Patrick's Hill | Cork | Ireland | 63 | Crazy Babies | |
| 9 | 8 August 2004 | 650 metres | Knebworth Park | Stevenage | United Kingdom | 84 | Team Volvet Underground | |
| 10 | 17 October 2004 | 445 metres | Trematon Drive | Durban | South Africa | 67 | Team Flower Power | |
| | 28 November 2004 | 500+ metres | Lansdowne Street | Melbourne | Australia | 94 | BBQ boys from Monbulk | |
| | 2005 | | La Rue d'Ouchy | Lausanne | Switzerland | | | |
| | 2005 | 445 metres | Trematon Drive | Durban | South Africa | 70+ | | |
| | 13 February 2005 | 700 metres | Auckland Domain | Auckland | New Zealand | 80 | Wanganui Motors Transformers | |
| | 18 September 2005 | | Schloss Solitude | Stuttgart | Germany | | | |
| | 27 August 2006 | | Jan Smuts Avenue | Johannesburg | South Africa | 54 | | |
| | 24 September 2006 | 800 metres | Kurpark Oberlaa | Vienna | Austria | | | |
| | 29 October 2006 | | Forest Park | St. Louis, Missouri | United States | 42 | Fast Food | |
| | 11 August 2007 | | | | Jamaica | 43 | The Pier One Team | |
| | 30 September 2007 | 0.5 miles (800 m) | Fremont Avenue to North 36th Street | Seattle, Washington | United States | | The A-Team | |
| | 14 October 2007 | 0.25 miles (400 m) | College Hill | Providence, Rhode Island | United States | 61 | The Good, The Bad and The Nerdy (The Numerator 2.0) | |
| | 11 May 2008 | | | Brussels | Belgium | | | |
| | 25 May 2008 | | Stormont | Belfast | United Kingdom | 47 | Ruddell Metals | |
| | 8 June 2008 | | Praia do Futuro | Fortaleza, Ceará | Brazil | 39 | Elvis não morreu, bebeu! (Elvis did not die, drank!) | |
| | 6 September 2008 | 550 metres | | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | United States | | Deuces Wild | |
| | 7 September 2008 | | West 4th Avenue | Vancouver, British Columbia | Canada | | | |
| | 21 September 2008 | 400 metres | Corrida em Porto Alegre | Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul | Brazil | 29 | Gangster's Team Gravity Race | |
| | 4 October 2008 | | Eden Park | Cincinnati, Ohio | United States | | | |
| | 25 October 2008 | | | Denver, Colorado | United States | | Team Save Ferris | |
| 29 | 24 May 2009 | | Maçka | Istanbul | Turkey | 60 | FIRE(Ateş) | |
| | 29 August 2009 | | 10th Street, Piedmont Park | Atlanta, Georgia | United States | | Yongsa Dragon Breath | |
| | 6 September 2009 | | | Medellín | Colombia | | | |
| | 26 September 2009 | | Grand Ave. and 5th Street | Los Angeles, California | United States | | Ironheade | 105000 |
| | 18 October 2009 | | Sacher Park | Jerusalem | Israel | | | |
| | 24 September 2010 | | Diepkloof Xtreme Park | Soweto | South Africa | 50+ | Team Zooma | |
| | 6 November 2010 | | Fundidora Park | Monterrey | Mexico | | | |
| | 23 April 2011 | | Estrada da Rainha | Balneário Camboriú, Santa Catarina | Brazil | | | |
| | 23 May 2011 | | | Los Angeles, California | United States | 38 | The Lakers Fanwagon | 115000 |
| | 12 June 2011 | | | Zagreb | Croatia | | | |
| | 3 July 2011 | | | Stockholm | Sweden | | | |
| | 18 July 2011 | 450 meters | Heroiv Krut Alley | Kyiv | Ukraine | 43 | | |
| | 25 September 2011 | | Parque Nacional de Bogotá | Bogotá | Colombia | 60 | | |
| | 2 October 2011 | | Praça do Papa | Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais | Brazil | | Red Bule Uai Sô | |
| | 21 November 2011 | | | Santiago | Chile | 68 | | |
| | 5 May 2012 | 380 metres | | Brussels | Belgium | 85 | Toga Max 2 | |
| | 10 June 2012 | | 10th Street, Piedmont Park | Atlanta, Georgia | United States | 36 | SweetWater | |
| | 1 July 2012 | 500 meters | Krylatskoye Cycling Circuit | Moscow | Russia | 56 | | |
| | 16 September 2012 | | Austin Ranch | Dallas, Texas | United States | 40 | Oregon Trail | |
| | 23 September 2012 | | | Warsaw | Poland | 80 | | |
| | 15 October 2012 | | To Shek Street, Ma On Shan | Hong Kong | China | 42 | | |
| | 2 December 2012 | | | Mumbai | India | 50 | | |
| | 19 April 2013 | | | Muscat | Oman | | No Flying Yoke | |
| | 14 July 2013 | 500 metres | Halde Hoheward | Herten | Germany | 68 | Zeitrider | 55,000 |
| | 14 July 2013 | 420 meters | Alexandra Palace | London | United Kingdom | 70 | SpitPhya | |
| | 25 August 2013 | | Nygårdsparken | Bergen | Norway | | | |
| | 29 September 2013 | | Taipei National University of the Arts | Taipei | Taiwan | | | |
| | 11 November 2013 | | | Buenos Aires | Argentina | | | |
| | 13 November 2013 | 700 metres | Auckland Domain | Auckland | New Zealand | | Team Zoom Car Wash | |
| | 6 April 2014 | 400 metres | La Heradura | Lima | Peru | 52 | Rapidos Y Sabrosos | 25,000 |
| | 15 June 2014 | | Parc de Saint-Cloud | Paris | France | 50 | Rugbyman en Folie | 38,000 |
| | 24 August 2014 | | Yesler Way | Seattle, Washington | United States | 36 | Nickerson Street Saloon Rainier Rocket | |
| | 14 September 2014 | | Amfiteatrul Mihai Eminescu | Bucharest | Romania | 51 | Vegetarian Cannibals | |
| | 28 September 2014 | | National Palace of Culture | Sofia | Bulgaria | | | |
| | 28 September 2014 | 500 metres | IFSC Headquarters | Turin | Italy | 61 | Let There Be Rock | 40,000 |
| | 16 May 2015 | 350 metres | Cauberg Hill | Valkenburg | Netherlands | 60 | Der Mergelvreters | |
| | 12 July 2015 | 420 metres | Alexandra Palace | London | United Kingdom | 65 | Absolute Radio Breakfast Club | |
| 99 | 29 August 2015 | 1,500 feet (460 m) | Eden Park | Cincinnati, Ohio | United States | 41 | Peep My Ride | |
| 100 | 4 September 2015 | | | Amman | Jordan | | | |
| 101 | 6 September 2015 | 300 metres | Beaver Hall Hill | Montreal, Quebec | Canada | 45 | The Docs (Back to the Future) | 25,000 |
| 102 | 20 September 2015 | 400 metres | | Goiânia, Goiás | Brazil | | | |
| 103 | 24 October 2015 | 1,200 feet (370 m) | North Ave, Old Fourth Ward | Atlanta, Georgia | United States | | The Grease Monkeys | |
| | 31 October 2015 | | Montjuïc | Barcelona | Spain | 70 | TMC Men in Blue | |
| | 15 November 2015 | | Centennial Parklands | Sydney | Australia | | | |
| | 22 November 2015 | 700 metres | Auckland Domain | Auckland | New Zealand | | Red Stag Hunters | |
| | 5 June 2016 | | St Patrick's Hill | Cork | Ireland | 60+ | Jumbo Breakfast Roll | |
| | 3 September 2016 | | Colina Park | Cluj-Napoca | Romania | 41 | | |
| | 11 September 2016 | | Atizapán | Mexico City | Mexico | | Chile en Papas de Calabaza | |
| | 9 October 2016 | | | Baku | Azerbaijan | | | |
| | 13 November 2016 | | Buddh International Circuit | New Delhi | India | | | |
| | 13 November 2016 | | Hiranandani Gardens in Powai | Mumbai | India | 50 | The Other Guys | |
| | 27 November 2016 | | Calle Talinay, La Reina | Santiago | Chile | | Calcetin Con Rombosman | |
| | 9 July 2017 | 420 metres | Alexandra Palace | London | United Kingdom | | Brooklands Special | |
| | 19 August 2017 | | Tähtitorninvuori | Helsinki | Finland | | Saippua Loota Kustoms | |
| | 19 August 2017 | 350 metres | Cauberg Hill | Valkenburg | Netherlands | 70 | Return of the Legend | |
| | 20 August 2017 | | The Botanical Garden | Aarhus | Denmark | | | |
| | 20 August 2017 | | Elysian Park | Los Angeles, California | United States | 61 | OJ & the White Bronco | |
| | 10 September 2017 | 410 metres | Mont-de-l’Enclus | Kluisbergen | Belgium | 70 | Pattyn Packing Lines | |
| | 10 September 2017 | | La Rue d'Ouchy | Lausanne | Switzerland | 70 | The Fly | |
| | 24 September 2017 | | Palace of the Republic | Almaty | Kazakhstan | | | |
| | 1 October 2017 | | National Taiwan Sport University, Taoyuan | Taipei | Taiwan | | | |
| | 1 October 2017 | | Parc de Saint-Cloud | Paris | France | 51 | Drum Team | |
| | 23 October 2017 | | Yomiuriland Amusement Park | Tokyo | Japan | | | |
| | 24 June 2018 | 500 metres | Villa Borghese | Rome | Italy | | | |
| | 8 September 2018 | 1,500 feet (460 m) | Eden Park | Cincinnati, Ohio | United States | | The Sea Cowboys (aka the Swamp Monkeys) | |
| | 9 September 2018 | | Parque Eduardo Sétimo | Lisbon | Portugal | | The Mean Machine | |
| | 7 July 2019 | 420 metres | Alexandra Palace | London | United Kingdom | 59 | Gas Gas Gas | 20,000 |
| | 15 September 2019 | | | Kaunas | Lithuania | 60 | Klumpė | |
| | 28 September 2019 | | The Colony Ranch | The Colony, Texas | United States | | Skeeter Done, (aka the Swamp Monkeys) | |
| | 6 October 2019 | | Yomiuriland | Kawasaki, Kanagawa | Japan | | Banana Cabaret | |
| | 14 March 2020 | | Zona de Pits, Parque Metropolitano | Santiago | Chile | 30 | Los Pícaros del Bío Bío | |
| | 7 June 2020 | 500 metres | Piazzale Michelangelo | Florence | Italy | 70 | | |
| | 18 June 2022 | | Iowa State Capitol | Des Moines | United States | | | 25,000 |
| | 26 June 2022 | | Porta del Paese | Città di San Marino | San Marino | 40 | Car-ota Gag Garage | |
| | 3 July 2022 | | Alexandra Palace | London | United Kingdom | 67 | Go Go Gadget Soapbox | |
| | 3 December 2022 | 500+ metres | Lansdowne Street | Melbourne | Australia | | | 30,000 |
| | 27 August 2023 | | Aargauerstalden | Bern | Switzerland | 44 | Hinteer Dem Lenkrad | 28,000 |
| | 8 September 2023 | 350 metres | Abdoun Corridor | Amman | Jordan | 39 | Team Shalati | 10,000+ |
| | 22 October 2023 | | | Tbilisi | Georgia | | Tech Crush | |
| | 3 March 2024 | 250 metres | Ramanaidu Studios | Hyderabad | India | 28 | Kranken Wagen | |
| | 22 June 2024 | | Queen Elizabeth Park Road | Edmonton | Canada | 58 | Cock-A-Doodle Crew | 30,000 |
| | 22 June 2024 | 420 metres | Alexandra Palace | London | United Kingdom | 59 | The Hurry Houdinis | |

## Prizes

The winners of events receive a trophy and various special prizes, such as a trip to the Macau Formula 3 Grand Prix to meet Carlos Sainz (Hong Kong 2012), a tour of the Red Bull Racing Factory, including a high performance track day (London 2013). In the 2007 Providence race, the three highest scoring teams received trips. A People's Choice Award is given to the audience's favorite team. Prize money is also awarded for the best charity entrant - 5,000 Euros for the 2004 Cork race.

## Reception

In 2007, the New York Times contrasted the creative nature of the Red Bull series adult based teams, with the traditional American view of youth based Soap Box Derby, where design options were limited. Reviewing the 2008 Belfast race, the News Letter related that it was "difficult to describe the quality of the lunacy on display" Reviewing the 2011 Los Angeles event, the Huffington Post described it as a piece of wholesome fun so rare in modern-day big cities, and through the various designs and teams it showed creativity and the human spirit, with flashes of great ingenuity and engineering, and capturing the zeitgeist. Previewing the 2015 London event, the Evening Standard described the series as a global phenomenon. Reviewing the 2015 Montreal event, the Montreal Gazette said the races were not for the faint hearted, even for spectators.