Drivers, start your engines: Pathways Derby returns at full throttle

There were lost wheels. Instances were cars veered off course and had to be righted. And some good stories behind it all.

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The Pathways Derby came back at full speed on Thursday, May 19. 

The event is a tradition 17 years running for Pathways Elementary, and with 17 cars in play, this year's derby was an exciting one. Not only was it the first derby since the pandemic that allowed all students and parents to watch (the event was canceled in 2020, and the 2021 race was only held for fifth grade students), but this was also the first year two cars experienced mechanical issues before School Crossing Guard Karen Williams could command the fifth-grade drivers to start their engines. 

There were lost wheels. Instances were cars veered off course and had to be righted. And some good stories behind it all. 

For instance, the Dream Team, composed of Theodore Koulouris and twins Rigsby and Woodson Wile, was the first team in the derby's history to have three drivers. All three boys have wanted to compete in the derby since they were in kindergarten, shared derby organizer and Pathways fifth grade teacher Matt Coleman in a statement. But, Koulouris has a degenerative condition, and he worried that he wouldn't be able to push the car around the course for the derby's push race portion. 

"I love all three and wanted them to participate so I let them compete as a trio," Coleman wrote.

Each of the boys got to go down the ramp for the drift race, and ran two push races in the hot and humid morning: One with just the Wile twins, and one with them pushing Koulouris. It was the best example of teamwork he could imagine, Coleman wrote.

As for the teams whose cars experienced mechanical issues prior to the start of the derby, there was a backup plan in place. Previous derby competitors have donated their cars to the school, and the students were able to grab one of them and keep participating.

"I was very proud of both teams for not getting upset or being angry because of their bad luck," Coleman wrote. "They took it all in stride and had fun."

In addition, the Pathways Demolition Team was driven by two of the school's multi-ESE students: Jovon Fitzgerald and Lars Sweeny. The school's janitor, John Berry, took one of the donated derby cars and spruced it up for this year's derby by adding a rear wing, a new coat of paint and other racing features, "all so these two students could partake in the race and have fun too," Coleman wrote. Media Specialist Kelly McCabe designed and made shirts for the team as well. 

"Our new principal, Josh Jackson, had been hearing about the derby since the day he was hired and loved every minute of it," Coleman wrote. "He is already thinking of ways to make it bigger and better for next year."

 

 

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