Hall of Fame

Know someone who deserves to be honored as a Soap Box Derby Hall of Fame inductee? Nominations will open mid April 2024.

Criteria For
Hall of Fame Candidates

Candidates may be considered for induction into the Soap Box Derby Hall of Fame on the basis of significant contributions to the program by dedicating years of service to the organization, or as an ambassador, promoting the betterment of the sport and its participating young persons, or by supporting the youth racing program through financial or sponsorship contribution, enabling the continued growth of the youth racing program.

Hall of Fame nominations are accepted each spring. To be considered for the Hall of Fame, candidates must have a minimum of 20 years’ volunteer service at the local or national level or have made a significant financial or sponsorship contribution to the program. Former racers of at least 10 years ago or Derby staff members with a minimum of 10 years’ service also can be nominated.

Hall of Fame

President’s Youth Volunteer Service Award

Hall of Fame Members

Filter by Year

Myron E. Scott

1997

Bain E. “Shorty” Fulton

1997

Jim Schlemmer

1997

Jimmy Stewart

1997

Wilbur Shaw

1997

John S. Knight

1998

Mason Bell

1998

George W. Brittain

1998

Jim Ott

1998

Howard Flood

1998

Marie Wright

1999

Ralph Barnes

1999

Ralph Iula

1999

Loris C. Troyer

1999

Frank A. “Whitey” Whal

1999

Bruce Buchholzer

2000

Bob Gravett

2000

Ron Baker

2000

Don Lenox

2001

Don Meech

2001

Tom Kilroy

2001

Ray Schieb

2001

Bill Ford

2002

Jack Morran

2002

Bob Turner

2002

Bob Troyer

2003

Bill Kuntz

2003

Jim Underwood

2003

Don Adams

2004

David J. Holly

2004

Ira C. Sapozink

2004

Ronald Reagan

2004

Shirley Foster

2005

Paul Arnsmeyer

2005

Tony Deluca

2005

Roy Hartz

2005

Tex Finsterwald

2006

Bruce Hunsicker

2006

Jeff Iula

2006

Bob Campbell

2006

Jack Gormley

2007

Bob McLaughlin

2007

Jimmy Collier

2007

Brooks Townsend

2008

Don Huminsky

2008

Ron Reed

2008

Russ Kinsey

2008

George Rodenbaugh

2009

Mayor Don Plusquellic

2009

Norm Perry

2010

Jerry Van Waart

2011

Pat Taylor

2011

Dale Russell

2012

Mille Esque

2012

Jack Engelke

2012

Bill Harris

2013

Ken Morrow

2013

Marty Sullivan

2013

Rick Acker

2014

Alan Howe

2014

Mark Scuderi

2014

Bob Cooper

2015

Fran Seabeck

2015

Bud Seabeck

2015

Chuck Jones

2016

John Esque

2016

Bill Speeg

2016

Mark Packard

2017

Ken Cline

2017

Craig Flury

2018

Carole Berry

2018

Ed Harmon

2019

Will Looman

2019

Brian Graham

2019

John Evans

2020

William J. Ginter

2020

Bobby Nickoli

2020

Jim Hagan

2021

Mark Richards

2021

Keith Scheurman

2021

Vickie Beck

2022

Bill Behan

2022

Michael Rushing

2022

John Peter (JP) Fedele

2023

Danny Hughes

2023

Sue Nelman

2023

Soap Box Derby Hall of Fame Museum

Located on George Washington Boulevard in Akron, Ohio, the Soap Box Derby Hall of Fame Museum is one of Akron’s most popular parts of its history. Shortly before the 75th annual running, The FirstEnergy Soap Box Derby created this museum to honor past Champions dating all the way back to the very first Champion in 1934. The museum displays historical cars, plaques of Champs, Hall of Fame honorees, and memorabilia.

The featured vehicles include a replica of one of the first cars to race in an event that led to the first Soap Box Derby race driven by Bob Gravett and is now the derby’s official emblem. The collection also includes a replica of the infamous winning car from 1973, driven by James Gronen who lost his title for attaching a magnet to the nose of his car. This cheating scandal led officials to examine cars more closely both before and after races.

The Hall of Fame building is open May – September (closed October – April).