Use this sheet to record your car's times as you run a series of races.

Make a stack of books. Place one end of your heavy cardboard or wood board on the stack to create a ramp that you can roll your car down. Don't move the ramp in between trial runs because this will influence your results.

Mark the Start and Finish lines with masking tape. Set up your ramp as the starting line. Choose a point past the end of the ramp for your finish line.

Put your car on the Start Line and then release it. If there are any problems with the car or the ramp, fix them now.

Grab your stopwatch and get going! Race your car three times and record your observations below.

Add the three times and then divide by three to find your average time. Record the answer in the average column.

Add weights to your car and race it again three times. Find the average time of these races. Then think about how you might modify your car even more to make it go faster. Would you add more weights or change the placement of the weights?

If you modify your car further, test each modification three times and note the speeds below. Scientists do many trials to get the best results and adjust for any errors!

In your Off to the Races Journal, write down some of the things you learned from your trial runs.