Evening star., 1950-07-08
7O4 Begin Soap DerbyHeots
As Hundreds Line Race Course
Continued From First Page)

. 70 E0EBS6S ~Ss , @b
a Continued From First Page.)
/; Duvall. 13. of 3458 Pennsylvania
avenue Sc. equalled his time.
Then. in the nineteenth heat
Donald Meyer. Is. of 5710 North
Twenty-flfth street, Arlington
one of three brothers participat-
ing in the race-made it a thres-
way tie. Two heats earlier, Ben
jamin Swami, 13. of 2300 Good
Hope road Sc, registered the
next fastest time, with 32.1 Sec
onds.
To give the other boys some
thing to shoot for, Bernard Ma
guire, l3, of 3714 S street Sc, won
the first heat with a speed of 1921
seconds.
The first heat also brought the
/, first mishap of the day. AS he
crossed the finish line, Bernard's s
racer skidded and collided with one
driven by Bobby Lee Donald, 13, OF
5430 Spring road, Sunnybrooke
Md. Bobby's car overturned and
| the youth was treated at a first-
aid station for minor leg cuts.
In a more serious accident,
William Mccullough, 10, of 9l4
Seventh street S.W., was taken to
Casualty Hospital for rays and
treatment of cut to his left knee
and arm brush burns, suffered
when his car overturned. Doctors
said the boy had a severe cut to
his knee and that the X-rays were
taken as precautionary measure
for other possible injuries.
Plotting his racer across the fin
iSh line a winner in the fourth
heat, Williams car overturned be-
yond the judges stand when it
collided with another car.
| Because the Mccullough boy
will be unable to race during the
rest Of the day, the second-place
winner In the heat-John Morris,
jr., IA, of 4319 Spring street Sc
] will race IN further eliminations
as the heat winner.
First "Photo Finish"
The first photo finish" of the
day came in Heat 81, as the rae
ing program 4neared its noon hour
recess. In the race, Donald Carl
son, Is, of 3417 Carpenter street
Sc, crossed the finish line nose
to nose with a car driven by
Joseph Meyer. IA, of 5710 North
TWenty-f1fth street. Arlington.
However. the electric eye set up
and manned by officials of the
District AAU showed that the
winner was the Carlson boy.
The elimination of Joe Meyer
did not remove the Meyer entry,
however. Two brothers of joe
Donald, is. and Dick, 12-are still
in the race.
Despite overcast skies, it was
perfect racing weather as the first
of 104 boys between the ages of
II and Is, sent their home made
racers in elimination heats down
the 1,000-foot three-lane speed
way, between Alabama avenue and
Carpenter street Sc.
The heats, which began at $50
o'clock, will continue until one
boy-the new Washington cham
pion-is chosen to represent the
District at the national finals in
Akron, Ohio, August 13.
The official Derby program be-
gan 80 minutes earlier, when the
104 contestants, wearing racing
helmets and white T-shirts with
the Derby emblem, participated
in a colorful parade down the
flag -bedecked course. The boys
were led by the Metropolitan
Police Boys Club Band, the
James Reese Europe Post No. S
Drum and Bugle Corps, American
Legion, and the Legion's National
Guard of Honor.
Col. Clagett Speaks.
At the finish line, the youths
heard brief address by Col. Hal
c. B. Claggett, jr., commander of
the District Air National Guards
213th Air Service Group.
Col. Claggett told the boys that
some of the principles learned in
derby racer construction may lead
some day to improved aircraft
design. In aircraft designing, as
in derby racer construction. he
explained. the emphasis is on
speed.
4 I'm the District Air National
Guard" he said, I'VE are flying
the F-84 jet. Already, in this and
other jet-powered aircraft, science
has carried SO far that the only
limitation on speed is the strength
and design of the structure carry
ing the jet.
Some boy here today has hit
on an aerodynamic design which
y will make him the winner. Anc
some day that boy may be instru.
mental in designing an :airplane
of the future"
After the pre-race ceremonies
], contestants on their way back tt
! their cars broke into a run half.
way up the hill, so anxious were
they to get back to the starting
point.
: Back at the starting post, near