The Great Race
Jake came in 4th out of his group of 17 (or 23...never got the count right). He wasn't thinking about winning or losing. He just enjoyed running down the line of boys, young and old, and slapping hands on the way back to his spot in the crowd. He cheered for everybody and had no idea that he was so close to winning. He was just having fun.
At the end of the race, when the meeting was about to start, the leader stood in front of the rows of parents and children seated before her and said, "Traditionally the pinewood derby is known to be a traumatic event. Glad that's over."
True, for some, it was.
All the kids had a great time until it came down to the wire and elimination races began. One little boy, whose mom was sitting next to me, started to get really uptight as he progressed. He had spent the whole of the race sitting next to one of his friends. They had played and laughed together throughout the race from the beginning. This race though, they raced together and the other little boy won - he would be moving on and his friend would not. At the end of the race, the boy who won, put his arm around the shoulders of the other boy - the sore looser - who shook off the sympathetic arm of his friend, walked straight to his mom, sat down in her lap and cried. The winner stood looking at his friend, looking like he might cry also. Such sadness for a face that young to carry. What a hard lesson to learn that you're very likely to lose a friend (even temporarily) during something that started out being so much fun. The boy who won that race, also won the next elimination round and was again shunned by his friend who shook off the congratulatory arm around the shoulder as he stomped back to place his car in the holding box. This time the winner boy sat down and had a good cry himself.
It didn't take but a minute for his dad (one of the leaders) to notice he was crying. I saw him call the little winner boy over to his side and though I couldn't hear what he said, I could see it plain enough, "What are you crying for? You won."
I looked around at the area that held the scouts. The younger ones all sat together, still cheering for everyone who raced. With each run made, the 6-8 year olds would jump up and down together when it was over, after needing to be reminded to look to see who won. The older boys, up to around 12, I'd guess, had separated from the tight group that had played together up to this point. Now they stood spread apart, faces tight with the strain of competition...friendships stretched thin like a rubberband waiting to snap and sting the one that held onto it the longest. And I had to wonder if this method of promoting sportsmanship was as effective as it was intended to be.
I mean, can it really be considered effective when someone has to stand up and practically yell at the boys, forcing them to shake hands after the race? According to my observations, these kids didn't start off this way so the pressure came from somewhere didn't it?
Jake had no idea he was racing for a trophy when he lost the round for 3rd place. He continued to stand by the line and cheer for every race ran after that even though he was finished. He threw his hand out for every person to slap as they walked back by. He looked confused as the older boys that didn't win walked past with their eyes on the ground and hands in their pockets.
Traumatic indeed.
Jake came in 4th out of his group of 17 (or 23...never got the count right). He wasn't thinking about winning or losing. He just enjoyed running down the line of boys, young and old, and slapping hands on the way back to his spot in the crowd. He cheered for everybody and had no idea that he was so close to winning. He was just having fun.
At the end of the race, when the meeting was about to start, the leader stood in front of the rows of parents and children seated before her and said, "Traditionally the pinewood derby is known to be a traumatic event. Glad that's over."
True, for some, it was.
All the kids had a great time until it came down to the wire and elimination races began. One little boy, whose mom was sitting next to me, started to get really uptight as he progressed. He had spent the whole of the race sitting next to one of his friends. They had played and laughed together throughout the race from the beginning. This race though, they raced together and the other little boy won - he would be moving on and his friend would not. At the end of the race, the boy who won, put his arm around the shoulders of the other boy - the sore looser - who shook off the sympathetic arm of his friend, walked straight to his mom, sat down in her lap and cried. The winner stood looking at his friend, looking like he might cry also. Such sadness for a face that young to carry. What a hard lesson to learn that you're very likely to lose a friend (even temporarily) during something that started out being so much fun. The boy who won that race, also won the next elimination round and was again shunned by his friend who shook off the congratulatory arm around the shoulder as he stomped back to place his car in the holding box. This time the winner boy sat down and had a good cry himself.
It didn't take but a minute for his dad (one of the leaders) to notice he was crying. I saw him call the little winner boy over to his side and though I couldn't hear what he said, I could see it plain enough, "What are you crying for? You won."
I looked around at the area that held the scouts. The younger ones all sat together, still cheering for everyone who raced. With each run made, the 6-8 year olds would jump up and down together when it was over, after needing to be reminded to look to see who won. The older boys, up to around 12, I'd guess, had separated from the tight group that had played together up to this point. Now they stood spread apart, faces tight with the strain of competition...friendships stretched thin like a rubberband waiting to snap and sting the one that held onto it the longest. And I had to wonder if this method of promoting sportsmanship was as effective as it was intended to be.
I mean, can it really be considered effective when someone has to stand up and practically yell at the boys, forcing them to shake hands after the race? According to my observations, these kids didn't start off this way so the pressure came from somewhere didn't it?
Jake had no idea he was racing for a trophy when he lost the round for 3rd place. He continued to stand by the line and cheer for every race ran after that even though he was finished. He threw his hand out for every person to slap as they walked back by. He looked confused as the older boys that didn't win walked past with their eyes on the ground and hands in their pockets.
Traumatic indeed.
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