Texas Toys and Games Page: 13
viii, 253 p. : ill., ports. ; 26 cm.View a full description of this book.
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WHEELS
Chana Rees's Soap
Box Derby racer.
fantasized regularly on building a proper entrant for the Soapbox
Derby in Akron and whizzing across the finish line in record
time, faster than any other twelve-year-old in these whole
United States! To be a kid-sized, heroic Barney Oldfield was a
widespread dream in the Twenties and Thirties.
The best that Jack Deerman and I did in Palestine was to
push each other-alternately-to John hill (a one-block, low-
traffic hill on John Street) and then go rattling down that incline
until a wheel came off or the seat collapsed or the front steering
axle whipped a wheel around and under the body. Soapbox rac-
ing was really a lot more trouble than it was worth, come to
think of it. We spent more than half of our time pulling the
ungreased dead weight of it back up the hill and half of the other
half putting it back together. And if the older kids came and
wanted to play skate hockey, we had to quit. But to cross that
finish line in Akron just once.. . ! (-He had built it himself and
it was sleek like an arrow, with rubber-tired wheels that spun so
smoothly that you could barely hear them roll. He looked to his left:
five soapbox racers almost as streamlined as his own, poised at the
starting line. To his right four more race drivers tensely prepared
themselves for the long roll down the hill to the Soapbox Derby
finish line -and fame! He snapped the flaps of his aviator cap
that he had gotten for Christmas and then pulled down his goggles.
He could see the starting flagman walking up to the line, and he
looked in the grandstand down the hill and could see Betty Walker
and his parents and his girl cousin from Tyler, who was prissy and
one year older than he. Betty's eyes looked into his own and then
she threw him a kiss. . . and winked. The starter raised his flag,
dipped it, and they were off! -And he was about halfway down
John hill when the back wheel went skeeting off to bang into a
half putting it ack ogthr.An i te ldr id cmean
wanedtopla sat hcke, e adto ui. utto ros ha
fiis lneinAkonjut nc.. !(-e adbultithisef n
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Texas Toys and Games (Book)
Collected information about popular toys and games relevant to the state of Texas, including folk toys, folk games, sports, dances, songs and other recreations. The index of contributors begins on page 245 and the index of toys and games begins on page 249.
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Abernethy, Francis Edward. Texas Toys and Games, book, 1989; Denton, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc67661/m1/23/: accessed April 19, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Press.