The All-American Soap Box Derby began internationally in 1933 and has enjoyed a long history in Hazard, KY.  When it was first started area boys used scrap materials to design and build unique cars to race downhill.  This first installment of the Hazard Soap Box Derby died out in Hazard in the  1950s.  In 1999 the Kiwanis Club of  Hazard  revived it as an annual service project.  In 2009 the Hazard race was renamed the Bud Combs Memorial Soap Box Derby, sponsored by the Hazard Kiwanis Club, to honor one of our most beloved and hard working volunteers.

There are three types of cars in modern Derby racing:  stock, super stock and masters division.  Today cars are built from kits, so all cars will have the same structurally build.  The driver and car combined must not exceed a specified maximum weight, as determined by the international Soap Box
Derby organization.  Racers can personalize their cars to show their personality.  Stock cars can be decorated with decals and shells come in different colors.  Super stock cars can be painted in custom designs or decals on purchased colored shells.  The masters division is not run in Hazard, at this time, but these cars also sport custom designs.

In the Hazard race, Stock cars are driven by racers who are 8-13 and Super Stock racers are 10-18 .  Super stock racers may be younger than 10 if they have won the stock division. Winners of each class advance to the International Soap Box Derby held in Akron, OH each July.