CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Racers of all ages took turns speeding down Dam Road Extension on Saturday morning as part of Clearlake's newest – and speediest – event.

The inaugural Soap Box Derby offered a fun, creative and competitive outlet for racers and the community members who came to watch them.

The races got under way shortly after 9 a.m., with District 2 Supervisor Bruno Sabatier acting as the event announcer.

There were several divisions: the Little Turtles, ages 7 to 12; Turbo Teens, 13 to 17 years of age; Awesome Adults,18 years and older. In addition, there was a nonracing arts division for most creative car.

There were trophies for first, second and third places, and medals for all participants, who brought to the race, creative contraptions also built for speed.

In this inaugural event, adults outnumbered children, and by the end of the morning's races city officials said they already were hearing of others who planned to take part next year, either building cars for their children or themselves.

Hay bales provided by Rainbow Ag lined the race course and served as barriers beyond the finish line for those whose brakes didn’t stop them immediately. The racers controlled their cars well enough that no one crashed into the bales while coming through the course.

“I'm so happy,” City Manager Alan Flora said about the event afterward.

He said the work to create the derby started more than six months ago. However, the idea for the races came before that; When the Dam Road Extension grand opening took place in October someone noted that it would be a great soap box race track.

Flora said he and his predecessor, then-City Manager Greg Folsom, looked at each other and said, “Let's do it.”

Folsom has since gone on to take the Suisun City city manager's job, but keeps a home in Clearlake. Folsom and his wife, Georgianna, were on hand for the day's races and said it turned out great.

“I hope people stick with it,” said Flora of the event.

Flora himself got into the competitive spirit, working for the last few months to build his bright yellow car, a replica of the Marmon Wasp – the winning car in the inaugural Indianapolis 500 in 1911, driven by Ray Harroun – which he documented on his personal Facebook page.

He went full geek on the details: The mini Marmon Wasp Flora ran also featured a rearview mirror, hearkening to the original car which was the first race car to have one mounted on it.

As it turned out, Flora would take top honors in the “Awesome Adults” division, putting in the winning time of 28.44 seconds in his finals heat.

When Flora got his trophy and wreath, city staffer Tina Viramontes handed him a carton of milk.

“This is the way we win in Indiana!” Flora yelled before pouring milk over his own head as well-known race flagger Johnny Miskill looked on with amusement, waving a checkered flag over Flora’s head.

Josh Harris was the winner – and sole racer – in the Turbo Teens division, running a car that was built to resemble a grave, with astroturf, a headstone and plastic flowers.

The big winner in the children's division was 7-year-old Elizabeth Cook, who flew to victory in her sparkly unicorn car.

“They're my favorite,” she said of unicorns, her inspiration.

She was aided by her parents, including dad, Elvis, a police sergeant who was proudly donning unicorn gear during the event, and family friends such as Jacqueline Snyder who helped her adorn the car with its unicorn hair. The car, she added, took a few weeks to build.

Elizabeth came away with two large trophies – which were nearly as tall as she is – and a winner's wreath for winning not just the Little Turtles division for but also taking top honors for the art division.

Until Saturday, she hadn't driven the course – none of the competitors had – but afterward the first grader said she already had ideas for how to improve her car for next year.

Mayor Russ Cremer served as one of the judges along with Clear Lake Chamber President Denise Loustalot and Clearlake Police Chief Andrew White

Cremer said, “I think it went very well,” with fellow council member, Dirk Slooten adding, “For the first time.”

“I hope to see more things like this” said Cremer.

He and other city leaders are looking forward to what’s ahead for the city, including seeing the Austin Park plan becoming a reality next year.

He said the redeveloped park – with a band shell venue, trails and other offerings – will be the “jewel of Clearlake” and part of what he hopes will be a return to the spirit of the community in decades gone by when it was a popular resort area, filled with activities and known as “the place to be.”

After winning the 1911 Indianapolis 500, Ray Harroun never raced again. Flora said he's contemplating also retiring from the competition after his winning debut, but Cremer told him he couldn't.

The results are published below.

2019 Soap Box Derby final results

Little Turtles

1. Elizabeth Cook: 13.03 seconds

2. Brayden Weeks: 13.94 seconds

3. Ryder White Eagle: 26.90 seconds

4. Logan Sutch: 32.65 seconds

Turbo Teens

1. Josh Harris: 36.81 seconds

Awesome Adults

1. Alan Flora: 28.44 seconds

2. Daniel Constancio: 29.31 seconds

3. Marca Carmichael: 29.68 seconds

4. John Moretz: 31.28 seconds

Arts Division

1. Elizabeth Cook

2. Alan Flora

3. Elliott Naess

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.