Eager racers aged 7 to 17 lined the top of the hill on Costilla Street in downtown Colorado Springs early Sunday with soap box cars of every color.At the 9th annual Pike Peak Soap Box Derby, 46 racers coasted down the course in pairs, some besting their opponent by  miniscule fractions of a second.Among them was cancer patient Eduardo Gonzalez, 8.“Yes, yes, yes” he chanted as he high-fived his mom over and over again.After three loses, Gonzalez had won, giving him the chance to race again.“He’s so happy doing this,” his mom Patricia said.Gonzalez had to give up playing soccer and other athletic activities because of his 2010 diagnoses.Since then, the cancer spread from his kidney to his lungs and the chemotherapy left him unable to go to school for weeks at a time.Next week, he will have more chemotherapy and radiation will follow.But on race day he felt great, bounding around while carrying a carton of ice cream.“He’s doing pretty good right now. Running and playing with his brother,” his father Ramon Gonzalez said.Gonzalez is the second driver to race the Heal the World car sponsored by Judy Faass. Faass raised money to buy the car from fans of pop-star Michael Jackson world wide to commemorate the late artist’s commitment to seriously ill children.“Between Facebook and paypal the money just started coming in,” she said.Each year Faass asks doctors from the Children’s Hospital Colorado to recommend a kid for the race. She hopes to offer the opportunity for eight years, the expected life of the car.Sponsoring cars and racers has a long tradition at the derby because, fiber glass cars cost $600 to $800.The Monument Hill Kiwanis Club has been sponsoring kids from the Griffiths Center, a center for troubled children and their families, for about 7 years and brought three boys out to race this year.“We take just the best of the best,” mentor Ron Heard said.One of their racers, Jesse, 11, showed up in his slippers to save weight and give himself better mobility for braking.Jesse also helped rebuild his car as part of the Kiwanis program.The Kiwanis Club helped revive the tradition of soap box racing in Colorado Springs , which began here in the early 1950s.Kiwanis member and current race director Glenn Scott refounded the derby 2004 after a 15-year hiatus.Scott  said he has stayed committed to the derby because building the cars helps kids learn to use tools and brings together families.“It creates a real bond,” Scott said.

Eager racers aged 7 to 17 lined the top of the hill on Costilla Street in downtown Colorado Springs early Sunday with soap box cars of every color.At the 9th annual Pike Peak Soap Box Derby, 46 racers coasted down the course in pairs, some besting their opponent by  miniscule fractions of a second.Among them was cancer patient Eduardo Gonzalez, 8.“Yes, yes, yes” he chanted as he high-fived his mom over and over again.After three losses, Gonzalez had won, giving him the chance to race again.“He’s so happy doing this,” his mom Patricia said.Gonzalez had to give up playing soccer and other athletic activities because of his 2010 diagnoses.Since then, the cancer spread from his kidney to his lungs and the chemotherapy left him unable to go to school for weeks at a time.Next week, he will have more chemotherapy and radiation will follow.But on race day he felt great, bounding around while carrying a carton of ice cream.“He’s doing pretty good right now. Running and playing with his brother,” his father Ramon Gonzalez said.Gonzalez is the second driver to race the Heal the World car sponsored by Judy Faass. Faass raised money to buy the car from fans of pop-star Michael Jackson world wide to commemorate the late artist’s commitment to seriously ill children.“Between Facebook and paypal the money just started coming in,” she said.Each year Faass asks doctors from the Children’s Hospital Colorado to recommend a kid for the race. She hopes to offer the opportunity for eight years, the expected life of the car.Sponsoring cars and racers has a long tradition at the derby because, fiber glass cars cost $600 to $800.Members of the Monument Hill Kiwanis Club have been sponsoring kids from the Griffiths Center, a center for troubled children and their families, for about 7 years and brought three boys out to race this year.“We take just the best of the best,” mentor Ron Heard said.One of their racers, Jesse, 11, showed up in his slippers to save weight and give himself better mobility for braking.Jesse also helped rebuild his car as part of the Kiwanis program.The tradition of soap box racing began in the 1950s in Colorado Springs.

Current race director Glenn Scott revived it 2004 after a 15-year hiatus.

Scott was a member of the Sertoma Club when he restarted the derby and the Sertoma Clubs of the Pikes Peak District still sponsor the event.

Scott, who is now a member of Kiwanis, said he has stayed committed to the derby because building the cars helps kids learn to use tools and brings families together.“It creates a real bond,” Scott said.