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Steamboat Springs — In perhaps the biggest competition of his childhood career, Michael Weston knows there is little he can do to prepare for a victory.

Weston, a 10-year-old Steamboat Springs student who turns 11 Friday, will race in front of a crowd of about 20,000 later this week at the National Soap Box Derby in Akron, Ohio.

"The only practice you get is the first run, which is a test drive," Weston said.

Weston has not practiced for the upcoming soap box derby, he said, which features almost 400 drivers from around the country.

Winning a soap box derby involves a lot of luck, he said. Drivers start at the top of a hill in a car that is built by the drivers and their mentors.

Many drivers choose their parents as their mentors who assist the youths in the building process and also at the competition.

When the race begins, at least two drivers drift down the hill in separate lanes while they try to steer their car as straight as possible to keep from losing speed.

Weston earned a crack at the national title by winning the Steamboat Rotary Soap Box Derby Championship in May.

His car, which is painted in black, is sponsored by Weston Oil.

In the inaugural Steamboat Soap Box Derby, held May 19, 20 local drivers competed in a double-elimination contest at Rockies Way. It was about a 600-foot descent from the top of Rockies Way to the bottom.

At Akron, it is also about 600 feet downward to the finish line.

But the Akron derby is a single-elimination contest, said Jeff Andrew, who is Weston's mentor or pit man as Weston likes to call him.

Three drivers will race at a time in Akron, Andrew said.

Andrew, who was an assistant coach for Weston's Steamboat Squirt A hockey team this past season, said the two of them came to know one another several years ago through the local youth hockey league.

Andrew's son, Sam, also is a friend of Weston's. Sam Andrew and Weston were teammates last hockey season.

About a month ago, Weston asked Andrew if he would help him build a car for the Steamboat derby race.

The coach said he immediately agreed.

Every day after school let out, the two of them would get together at Weston's house to work on the car. It took about three weeks for them to build the car, Andrew said.

"We built the car in his garage," Andrew said. "One of the problems we had is that the directions were backwards.

"There were certain phases that were done early that should have been done later," he said.

Weston said he also got frustrated with the directions that came along with the kit.

"Probably the hardest thing he had to deal with was the steering," Andrew said. "We got the cables all on, but when he turned right the car turned left."

With a lot of hard work, though, the duo eventually constructed the winning car that advanced them to Nationals. The winner in Akron will have his or her car put on display in a museum, Weston said.

Weston said he is looking forward to meeting new people during derby week, which includes the drivers attending a college baseball game.

"I'm just expecting to have fun there," Weston said.