The Ucluelet Soap Box Derby was almost back.
It was cancelled last year because of COVID. So things were looking good for this year, until the weekend forecast came out.
After the summer we’ve had, a little rain is great! It’s just that the timing is a real bummer.
The Derby is a bit retro. Kids would build their race cars out of whatever they could find. Everyone looked forward to the annual event in the 1970s, but then it disappeared for decades.
Ucluelet Mayor Mayco Noel and Councillor Lara Kemps brought the event back in 2019. It was a smash hit.
“A lot of us that grew up here remember the good times we had doing soap box derby races, and I think it’s something that’s important for the kids in the community to experience as well,” Noel told the Tofino-Ucluelet Westerly News.
The Derby is a great way to bring the community together.
“Community spirit and the rest of it. It’s why we live here, there’s a bunch of like-minded people that live here willing to take on goofy things like soapbox races.”
It’s also a good way for new families to meet people when they move to the area.
Unfortunately, the Derby will have to wait this year.
So far, there’s no rain check date planned.
