Joey Payeur
Marie-Mai Langevin is ready to take on the world.
The Fort Frances resident was unstoppable at the FirstEnergy All-American Soap Box Derby national qualifier in Valley City, N.D. this past weekend, going undefeated in 14 races Friday to outdo a field of 26 other cars to win the Stocks division featuring racers aged seven-12.
That means the soft-spoken eight-year-old with a thirst for burning up the track has earned a spot at the 77th FirstEnergy All-American Soap Box Derby World Championship in Akron, Ohio from July 20-26.
“It’s tough to understand what the worlds will be like right now,” noted Langevin, who finished fourth in Stocks last year but tore through the double-elimination format this year like a Formula 1 car through a straightway.
“I think it will be good but I think it will be hard,” she admitted.
Her father, Patrick, who used to build soapbox racers as a child in Montreal that he and his friends would push around the streets in their neighbourhood, is thrilled about the upcoming challenge.
“Basically, it’s a dream,” enthused the elder Langevin, who has logos of his Emo Dental Clinic workplace adorning both the car of his daughter as well as her younger brother, Yannick, six.
“When you leave to go down [to the qualifier], you know the odds of you winning are really slim,” he conceded.
“Everyone there wants to win,” he noted. “You’re happy if you just bring home any trophy.
“Now there’s going to be more than 400 kids in Akron, with 90 of them in the Stocks division and coming from places as far away as Germany and Japan.”
Marie-Mai, who swept all seven two-race matches against her opponents Friday, said having last year’s inaugural trip to Valley City under her belt paid dividends.
“I learned from the first time to go in a straight line and duck lower this time around,” she noted.
“I didn’t expect to win it all,” she added.
“I was surprised I was doing so well and I got nervous the closer I got to the championship.”
The Langevin racing saga is a family affair, with Marie-Mai and Yannick racing while Patrick builds and maintains the cars and wife, Celine, helps where she can despite being plagued by a long-standing knee problem.
But the Langevins also know it’s always a little easier to get by with a little help from your friends.
“We’re very grateful for our friend, Cal Melville, who came down to help lift the cars around where we needed them since Celine’s knee wouldn’t allow her to that,” said Patrick Langevin.
Yannick may be the younger of the two but that didn’t stop him from getting the better of his sister on the second day of racing Saturday during the rally portion of the event, which was not a worlds qualifier.
Because Patrick and Celine felt it best to keep Marie-Mai’s victorious vehicle from the day before in flawless running order and have it shipped directly to Akron, their daughter had to use a back-up car on Day 2.
That opened the door for Yannick to edge his big sister by one-10th of a second overall in their two-race clash on his way to a sixth-place finish to go along with his top 10 result from the day before.
“I like when I go super fast, but not any faster because it makes me sick,” admitted Yannick.
“The part I really like is when I drive down a hill, it feels like running down a hill.”
Marie-Mai took the loss in stride—somewhat.
“I was happy for my brother but I was a little mad I lost,” she confessed.
The stakes will be higher and more immediate in Akron, however, as three cars will race in each heat—with the losing pair automatically eliminated from further action.
“We could be going all the way down there for one 30-second race and that’s it,” admitted Patrick, whose turbo-charged offspring isn’t shying away from the challenge after showing how it’s done in Valley City.
“It was special to know that girls can beat the boys in some things, too,” said Marie-Mai.
