Soap Box Derby: It's a family affair

Brothers Dalton and Robby Smith of Austintown faced off in a heat.
By WILLIAM K. ALCORN
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- The Greater Youngstown Area Soap Box Derby is not just about a race, it's about family.
It's brothers and sisters helping their siblings get their cars ready, spinning wheels and flicking imaginary dust off the gleaming racers.
It's last-second words of encouragement from moms and dads.
"Godspeed" is the last thing Terry Terrigno of Austintown says before each race to his daughter, Alexandria, 12. She raced deep into the Super Stock Division on Saturday in a car named Godspeed. Terry was a Soap Box Derby racer in 1975. "That's what got me into it," Alexandria said.
Alexandria also draws inspiration from the memory of her "Grandpa Mike" Terrigno, who died two days after the Derby in 2001. She carries Grandpa Mike's picture with her when she races.
"I feel like he's in the car with me," Alexandria said.
Zackary Terrigno, 10, also raced in the Super Stock Division, but unlike Smith brothers, Dalton, 9, and Robby, 12, Alexandria and Zackary did not end up racing against each other.
"What are the odds?" Rick and Bobbi Jo Smith of Austintown asked when their sons faced off in a heat to determine who would continue to race.
Competitive, but congratulatory
Rick and Bobbi Jo worried that their "very competitive" sons might be upset when one or the other won, and told them however it went, they had to congratulate each other.
As it turned out, their concern was mostly unwarranted. After Dalton beat Robby in their heat, Robby was heard telling his younger brother, "Since you beat me, you better win." Dalton came in fourth, and Robby placed sixth in the Metro Division.
In addition to being Derby director, Jim Postlethwait of Mineral Ridge was also a Pit Pal for his daughter, Brooke Shaffer, and son, Robbie Postlethwait, at the fourth annual Youngstown Area Derby on Saturday on Fifth Avenue, downtown.
Pit Pals help the racers at the starting line.
Bill and Linda Kuebler of Berlin Center were kept busy lugging heavy racers around, filming and encouraging three of their children who were drivers.
Lindsay, 16, raced in the Masters Division; Johanna, 10, was champion of the Suburban Stock Division; and 12-year-old Stephen raced in Super Stock.
Lindsay, who in 2001 competed in the All-American Soap Box Derby in Akron as a Rally Champion, this year raised money for Make-A-Wish Foundation by donating sponsor gifts to the organization.
And Stephen raced, not just to win, but to draw attention to Lifebanc, the organ donation agency for Northeast Ohio.
One of their siblings, Matthew, 18, himself a past Derby participant, received a liver transplant in 1999.
Inspiring participation
Mustafa Abdul-Aziz, who was named James Sanford when he won the Warren Soap Box Derby on Youngstown Road in the late 1960s, then competed in the national Derby in Akron, has inspired several members of his family to participate.
This year, twins Fatiha and Khadija Abdul-Aziz, Rayvion Sanford, accompanied by her father and Pit Pal Tim Sanford, and one of the girl's friends, Jamayla Royster, all of Warren, took part in Saturday's race.
The Derby is a real family affair, too, for Frank and Valerie D'Apolito and their sons Chris and Mark. The boy's grandparents came in from Michigan to see them race.
"I make sure we have a lot of fun on race day. We order some food, set up a canopy and have a tailgate party all day," Valerie said. Both Chris, 10, in his second year of racing, and Mark, 15, in his third year of competition, raced Super Stock.
Another Boardman family, Alki and Margie Santamas, had two sons racing for the first time, both in Super Stock: Alec, 9, and Jake, 11.
All about the fun
Margie said Alex and Jake had a lot of fun helping each other build the cars, along with their father. She said her brother was coming in from Cleveland for the race, and she planned to bring a cooler with food and beverages and make a day of it.
Postlethwait echoed their comments: "Families doing things together is what the Derby is all about. And we have met a lot of good people.
"We've always told our kids when the fun is over, we're done," he said.
"Winning is just a bonus," his son Robbie added.
Seventy-three cars raced in four divisions Saturday: Suburban Stock, 200 pounds combined weight of driver and car; Metro Stock, 200 pounds; Super Stock, 230 pounds; and Masters Division (cars in which the driver lay down), 255 pounds.
Winners from the Youngstown Derby will compete in the 66th All-American Soap Box Derby on July 26 in Akron.