MOSS POINT, Miss. (WLOX) — Moss Point came alive with speed and hometown pride as the annual Deborah Washington Memorial Soap Box Derby sent racers of all ages flying downhill on Main Street.
Hand-built machines and determined drivers took over Main Street as 42 racers competed in the event.
Kimberly Hall Smith cheered on her son, Landyn, as he raced for the second straight year.
“It doesn’t require motors, gas, like they can just hop in, roll down the hill, hit the brake and to me, it just makes it, you know, easier for kids and parents,” Smith said.
Smith said what matters most isn’t the finish time but the memories they’re making together.
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“Having your kid grow up and knowing that one day they can tell their kids, my mom and dad did that with me, and maybe they can pass that along with their kids,” she said.
For Aubrey Delancey, it’s more than a race—it’s a family tradition.
“My dad used to do it; he, like, grew up doing it, so I was like, ‘Why don’t I just try it?’” Delancey said.
Delancey rolled down Main Street in her soapbox car for the second year.
“It was like a combo between scared and excited,” she said.
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The racers competed to honor breast cancer warrior Deborah Washington. Her mother, Gladys Vaughn, said it all began with a dream.
“Deborah was watching TV and saw the races going on in Akron, Ohio, and of course, she made a comment, ‘We can do that in Moss Point,’” Vaughn said.
Now in its 34th year, Vaughn said Deborah would be amazed to see how far the race has grown.
“She would say, ‘My God, my God!’” Vaughn said.
Delancey said the event is about more than winning.
“It’s not really the prize, it’s just sort of like you getting to be with your friends and being here, being a part of it,” she said.
The derby started in 1992 with a handful of stock cars racing on Bellview Avenue.
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