Makayla Huff, in Performance Unlimited car No. 22 was one of 28 competitors last Saturday in the McHenry Kiwanis Soap Box Derby.

John Street in McHenry was transformed last Saturday from a residential roadway, on the southern edge of the downtown shopping district, to a speedway where racers finished the final tweaking of their racecars in preparation for the 13th consecutive McHenry Kiwanis Soap Box Derby.

Just east of 4th Street is a high point on Johns Street. Here were placed two ramps to give the racers a boost as they started racing downhill past Green Street. One car is placed on each ramp and the starting blocks are interconnected so that, when the lever is thrown, both cars start off simultaneously.

The derby was a double-elimination race that included 28 racers and required 63 heats in identically prepared stock Soap Box Derby cars. The winner was Allison Hunt, age 10, but only by seven-hundredths of a second. Narrowly falling to second place was eight-year-old Eugene Feely.  The complete list of the top qualifiers includes:

• 1st – Allison Hunt (10)
• 2nd – Eugene Feely (8)
• 3rd – Delia Irwin
• 4th Andrew Hoffman
• 5th Michael Metz
• 6th Connor Magnuson
• 7th Devon Fuller
• 8th Madilyn Hoffman

With her victory, Hunt automatically qualified to compete in Soap Box Derby World Championship Sunday through Saturday, July 19-25. Hunt also received $1,000 to help defray the costs of attending the race.

The major sponsors of the McHenry Soap Box Derby are Huemann Water Conditioning and Performance Unlimited.

“I love racing myself,” said Denny Norton, the owner of Performance Unlimited. “Watching these children compete is almost as big of a thrill for me as it is for them. You never know, one of these young racers may take the checkered flag in NASCAR or Formula 1 someday. And they’ll look back and say, ‘It all started here at the McHenry Kiwanis Soap Box Derby.’”