Get on your soap box! (Short Stuff).

Ever want to make a guy eat your dust? Well, at the annual All-American Soap Box Derby, now in its 65th year, girls are doing just that. Girls now account for 40 percent of competitors and, last year, took almost half the winning trophies! These downhill racers, ages 8 to 17, build their own cars from kits to compete in one of 150 races around the country, and then winners advance to the championships at Derby Downs in Akron, Ohio. Derby season already started in March, but it runs right through July when the big race takes place on a 990-foot track designed just for this event. The top three winners in each division--Stock, Super-Stock and Masters--are awarded college scholarships. This year's Derby Week kicks off July 19 and leads up to the All-American Soap Box Derby Championship on July 26. It's only televised locally, so you'll have to check the Web site (www.aasbd.org) to keep up with the winners. You can buy car kits from the site, too, but they aren't cheap. The most inexpensive one runs $462. Better start saving your allowance!