RIT Scholarships to be Awarded to Soap Box Derby Winners this Weekend

Five $5,000 scholarships to Rochester Institute of Technology will be awarded to budding racecar drivers this weekend at the seventh annual Greater Rochester Soap Box Derby.

The Rochester race, part of the national All-American Soap Box Derby, is one of the largest in the country. A total of 124 boys and girls, 9- to 16-years-old, will race, 7 a.m.–8 p.m., Saturday, June 2, and 8 a.m.–3 p.m., Sunday, June 3, on Lakeshore Boulevard in Rochester. A celebrity race at noon on Saturday will feature local dignitaries such as Monroe County Executive Jack Doyle, new Monroe County Sheriff Patrick O’Flynn, police chiefs from the towns of Greece and Irondequoit, and Robert French, RIT assistant vice president of enrollment management and career services.

Youngsters will race in five divisions: two stock, two super-stock and masters. Top finishers in stock and super-stock categories and the master’s champion will win RIT scholarships and compete in national competition, July 28, in Akron, Ohio.

"This is my favorite weekend of the year," says Mark Scuderi, president of the 44th Greater Rochester Soap Box Derby.

The first All-American Soap Box Derby was in Dayton, Ohio, in 1934. The local derby restarted in 1995 after a 20-year absence.

In addition to RIT, sponsors of the Greater Rochester Soap Box Derby include Chase-Pitkin, Wegmans and Monroe County. Nationally, the event is sponsored by International Soap Box Derby Inc. and The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.