With the Greenfield Soapbox Derby having been canceled earlier this month due to a lack of registered racers, organizers are setting their sights on the Montague Soapbox Derby to be held Sept. 18.
“We’re sad about it,” race organizer Mik Muller said of canceling the Greenfield event. “But you move on, and you keep keeping on.”
Racers who paid when they registered for the May 7 Greenfield race received a full refund and were referred to the Montague Soapbox Derby.
Last year’s pair of races marked the return of soapbox racing to Franklin County after an eight-year hiatus, Muller said previously. Two races — the first in Greenfield and the second in Turners Falls — were held a weekend apart in September.
This year’s Greenfield Soapbox Derby, Muller explained, was originally organized as a fundraiser for the Independence Day fireworks show hosted by the Greenfield Recreation Department. Muller said he hoped the fundraiser could be a “grassroots American-ingenuity fundraiser, where kids and adults can race down the hill and feel good about raising money for the fireworks.”
“Hopefully next year,” he said.
Muller said that after last year’s race, during which 14 racers took part, the Greenfield Soapbox Race Committee decided that for future races, a minimum of 25 racers would be required to hold the event. This year, 10 participants were registered for the May 7 race.
“We didn’t want to wait until race day to see if anyone just showed up, because it’s expensive. … There’s a lot of stuff you have to do to pull it all together,” Muller said. “I think next year we’re going to be clearer, and we’re going to set a two-week-out final date for registration.”
By comparison, the Montague race usually brings out as many as 40 racers, he said.
“We’re neighboring towns,” Muller said. “I don’t know what the discrepancy is.”
Muller added that the race committee was also being stretched thin, with only three members.
“If we still have poor results (next year), we’ll just not have one in Greenfield,” Muller said. “It’s a fun event, and I’m hoping it comes off well next year.”
Registration information for the Sept. 18 Montague Soapbox Derby can be found online at montaguesoapboxraces.com.
Reporter Mary Byrne can be reached at mbyrne@recorder.com or 413-930-4429. Twitter: @MaryEByrne