Mount Tabor Park in southeast Portland hosts a lot of weird events. A piano appears on top of Mount Tabor every summer. A dance party seems to spontaneously generate on Tuesday nights. I once crested the hill to find a crowd of people sitting on the grass, all wearing headphones and staring into the distance. In the silence it seemed I had stumbled upon some kind of ritual, but I soon realized they were listening to a concert.
“Have you been to the Mount Tabor soap box derby?” My uncle asked one day. I scanned my memory for this particular weird event, but it came up blank.
It turns out that every year in August, thousands of Portlanders head to Mount Tabor Park for the annual PDX Adult Soapbox Derby. Contestants race down the extinct volcano on their homemade soap box cars, many of them spraying water to the delight of the crowd.
In today’s post, I’ll share the highlights of the Mount Tabor Soap Box Derby, and everything you need to know to experience this weird Portland tradition yourself.
The Mount Tabor Soap Box Derby in a Nutshell
The third Saturday in August, we slung our camp chairs over our shoulders and headed out toward Mount Tabor. As we drew closer, the sidewalks became increasingly populated by people carrying picnic blankets, coolers, and small children. We let the growing crowd steer us up the mountain, until suddenly, we hit a dead-end.
A guy holding an orange flag was blocking our usual walking route and shouting, “Clear the TRA-ACK!”
This was the first time we heard that line, but it would soon become a common refrain. Just then, the first soap box car whizzed by, narrowly making the tight corner as it whipped out of sight.
I noticed hay bales stacked along the outside edge of the track. The idea of a hay bale stopping a soap box car at speed seemed somewhat optimistic, but certainly better than the alternative.
Once three soap box cars had whizzed down the hill, the volunteer with the orange flag motioned to the crowd. We could now cross onto the track, which was one of the roads that wound down the side of the small mountain.
The crowd oozed as one through the break in the hay bales and uphill, where both sides of the track were lined with grass. Hundreds of spectators were already scattered throughout the grass with their chairs and tents, blankets and strollers. It was like going to the Quidditch World Cup.
We sighted a bare patch under a giant Douglas fir tree and hurried toward it as calls of “Clear the TRA-ACK!” broke out again, scattering the crowd.
Once settled into our camp chairs under our fir tree, we soon fell into the routine of the day. At the Mount Tabor Soap Box Derby, soap box cars race down the track in groups of three. After the third car, the crowd is allowed to enter the track to travel elsewhere along the raceway or to use the restrooms or visit the food trucks.
We soon noticed some of the cars were clearly built for speed. They were streamlined, low-to-the-ground projectiles that rocketed down the hill. Speed was clearly not a priority for others. We saw the driver in one of them nervously rocking back and forth, trying to keep the car in motion. But the slow cars were even more fun than the fast ones. Many sported over-the-top decorations, including everything from a huge sheep to a Ramen noodle cup with giant eyeballs.
The fun flows through to the awards—the fastest cars earn awards, but there are also categories for “Best Art Car,” “Crowd Favorite,” “Best Helmet,” “Best Team Costume,” and several others that encourage contestants to keep fun in mind.
Each car races more than once throughout the day. They’re towed back up the mountain in between races by a pickup truck. Spectators can walk up to the top of the track to see the cars up close.
The derby ended when instead of the next set of soap box cars, a band of marching drummers emerged around the corner. A crowd fell in behind the drummers, walking back down the mountain to the beat of the drums. A fitting way to close this weird and wonderful day.
What is a Soap Box Derby?
A soap box derby is an event in which homemade gravity-powered “cars” with at least three wheels race down a hill. The Mount Tabor Soap Box Derby has a few more rules for participating soap box cars, which you can find in the rulebook here.
What to Take to the Mount Tabor Soap Box Derby
The Mount Tabor Soap Box Derby is free for attendees. I’d recommend taking camp chairs or a picnic blanket for seating, a sun hat and sunglasses, and water. You can either bring a picnic lunch or buy food from the food trucks at the event. We bought food at the derby, but the available food was mostly sweets and various forms of hot dogs. Next time we’ll probably bring food from home to make it a bit healthier.
The Best Places at Mount Tabor to Watch the Soap Box Derby
We spent most of our time around the middle of the track, which is a great spectator zone with a lot of seating. We also wandered up to the top of the track to check out the soap box cars in their staging area. I’d recommend heading up there for part of your day so you can see the soap box cars up close. Another fun spot is the end of the track, which is across the reservoir from the food trucks.
Or, if Mount Tabor is too far away, you can watch the Mount Tabor Soap Box Derby virtually via our video tour below!
Our video of the Mount Tabor Soap Box Derby
How Fast Do Soap Box Derby Cars Go?
According to the event website, the cars can travel up to 50 miles per hour!
Other Adventures in the Pacific Northwest
Thanks for joining us at the Mount Tabor Soap Box Derby. For more travel ideas in the Pacific Northwest, check out our PNW Trip Planner. You can find adventures near you and filter by season and difficulty level. There are weird and wonderful things to explore any time of year. The trip planner links to blog posts to help you plan your next adventure.
Happy exploring!
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