Figure 2.--This image is from a Soap Box Derby in the Netherlands during 1950.
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Figure 2.--This image is from a Soap Box Derby in the Netherlands during 1950. |
The Netherlands was one of the European countries in which the Soap box Derby was most popular. The event attracted lots of spectators as in America. One problem in the Netherlands is that the country is very flat and there are not a lot of hills. As a reslt, in the Dutch races, the cars were often pushed by other boys. This is evident in many of the available images. Of ourse this often put more of a premium on the strength of the pusher than the design of the car, which in many ways defeats the purpose of the competition.. When there was a real hill available, the original American races were used. The cars as in America were made by the boys themselves, sometimes with help from their fathers. The winners were
honoured like real sportsman. Images of the events show the boys wearing a wide range of outfits. We notice the boys wearing both short and long pants, but rarely knickers.
The Netherlands was one of the European countries in which the Soap box Derby was most popular. The event attracted lots of spectators as in America.
One problem in the Netherlands is that the country is very flat and there are not a lot of hills. As a reslt, in the Dutch races, the cars were often pushed by other boys. This is evident in many of the available images. Of ourse this often put more of a premium on the strength of the pusher than the design of the car, which in many ways defeats the purpose of the competition. When there was a real hill available, the original American race sytem was used. Even so the boys appear to be wearing normal everyday dress rather than what might wear in an athletic competition.
The cars as in America were made by the boys themselves, sometimes with help from their fathers. The winners were
honoured like real sportsman. Images of the events show the boys wearing a wide range of outfits.
The boys involved in the races wear a wide range of clothes. Some boys wear suit jackets. Quite a numbrr of boys wear sweatetrs. We believe this is in part a reflection that until the increasing prosperity of the mid-1950s that boy still did not have extensive wardribes. We notice the boys wearing both short and long pants, but rarely knickers. Most boys appear to be wearing short pants, including most younger teenagers. Most boys in 1950 appear to be wearing kneesocs. This may be in part a seasonal matter. The boys wear both plain and patterned kneesocks.
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