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Free Community Event

The 2022 Soapbox Derby at McLaren Park

April 10, 2022, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
Jerry Garcia Amphitheater, McLaren Park, San Francisco

EVENT LINEUP + SCHEDULE | EVENT F.A.Q.

Miss the event? Cars from the Soapbox Derby are on view in the free-to-see area of the museum through May 6, 2022. Learn more.

Witness Bay Area creativity in overdrive when SFMOMA’s Soapbox Derby returns to McLaren Park for the first time in more than 40 years! The original artists’ derbies from the 1970s are legendary events in our history. Between the two races in 1975 and 1978, the museum commissioned cars and trophies from more than 200 artists — including Ruth Asawa, Robert Arneson, Ant Farm, Viola Frey, Mike Henderson, Mary Lovelace O’Neal, Richard Shaw, and Carlos Villa — and thousands gathered to watch the races unfold.

Experience the excitement for yourself on April 10 when a new crew coasts down the curving hill of McLaren Park’s Shelley Drive. Each racer gets their star turn on the track as they descend one-by-one and compete for artist-designed trophies and delightfully unusual accolades, such as “Most Colorful” and “Most Amorphous.” Emceed by KQED’s Pendarvis Harshaw and ABC7’s Kumasi Aaron, the 2022 race includes dozens of local artists, organizations, and community members who have all been asked to dream big and design their own custom soapbox cars. If their art-on-wheels can roll, steer, and stop, anything is possible!

SFMOMA’s Soapbox Derby at McLaren Park is free and open to the public. Expect fun for all ages including music, food, family activities, and more.

Race begins at 11 a.m. Trophy ceremony commences 15 minutes after the last timed trial.

Official Trailer | Narrated by Pendarvis Harshaw




From Library + Archives



Watch: The Incredible San Francisco Artists’ Soapbox Derby

Stream the documentary chronicling the cars, trophies, and spirit of the 1975 event and hear from artists and attendees.

With thanks and courtesy to filmmaker Amanda Pope

 



The Lead Sponsor for SFMOMA’s Soapbox Derby at McLaren Park 2022 is The North Face.

The North Face Logo.

 

Additional Sponsors include Bank of America and Cruise.

Bank of America logo. Cruise logo.

 

Film Production generously provided by Stink Studios.

Media Sponsors include Cumulus Media, KGO, KNBR, KSAN, NBC Bay Area, and Telemundo 48.

 

SFMOMA’s partners in hosting the derby are San Francisco Recreation & Parks and SF Parks Alliance

Header photograph: Dorcas Moulton, Moulton’s Edible Special, 1975 (The First Artists’ Soapbox Derby, May 18, 1975); SFMOMA archives