It was a day at the races on Sunday for Cub Scout Pack 20 at Our Lady of Sorrows. The Predator flashed. A shark attacked, and the track proved fast enough for more than 50 cars competing in the Pinewood Derby.

The cars were all about speed and style—like Max Goldstein's Titanic. "When it's riding down the ramp I want it to look like it's sinking," he said.

The Pinewood Derby has spun off its own miniature racing industry. There are design plans and speed supplies, tips for brushing dry graphite on the wheels to reduce friction and special weights to increase mass. It's a lesson in science on how gravity works to make cars go faster and how friction slows them down.

The Cub Scouts build their cars with their parents to help to foster relationships and craftsmanship. That's been the idea since the event was first introduced by the Boy Scouts of America nearly 60 years ago.

It's a favorite event of the scouts. The imaginative designs belong to the boys, like Josh Abdill's Ghostbuster racer, Ethan Holowczak's shark and Christain Mison's Wolverine. Prizes will be awarded for the boys' creative car designs.

With the artistic flash came cars that exploded on the speedway. When Oscar Metcalf made it into the Sweet 16, the 6-year-old was delighted and surprised that his car moved down the track so fast. My son's car was also among the top qualifiers. "The suspense is killing me," he said.

The electronic black and white check finishing line told the final results: Christopher Arevalo, placing fifth, Justin Bleasdale in fourth place and Jordan Lipetz, racing to third place.

My son's car, No. 30, an orange roadster with airplane decals, nearly flew. His friend, Ryan Saurborn, raced a sleek green model he called The Predator. It was wrapped in crocodile skin. Stephen and Ryan swept the top spots, sharing the podium with times identical on the Pinewood Derby speedway.