Youth gravity racing • San Antonio, Texas

Building Tomorrow's Leaders — One Hill at a Time.

NDHRA gives young racers ages 7–15 a place to build confidence, learn practical life skills, and experience the thrill of gravity racing—supported by families, mentors, and community partners.

Join the movement See how racing works

7–15Racer ages

12 weeksOne annual race season

6 + 6Spring & fall portions

Skill. Courage. Community.

Our mission

A starting line for lifelong growth.

Our mission is to use gravity-powered racing as a way to teach young people life skills such as teamwork, integrity, leadership, problem-solving, sportsmanship, and responsibility in a safe, family-oriented environment.

Families participate alongside racers, creating memories and traditions that strengthen the whole community.

Our story

One heartbreak. One calling. A better way forward.

There Had to Be a Better Way

Years before the National DownHill Racing Association, Inc. was formed, founder Dwight S. Cook volunteered with a youth soapbox-derby program in La Quinta, California.

One young racer—whom we will call Daniel—was especially excited about the upcoming race. Before race day, he took his soapbox car out, wrecked it, and damaged it. When the day of the race arrived, Daniel was unable to compete. He was not permitted to exchange damaged parts with another racer, borrow another car, or use an available alternative.

Dwight was devastated for him. A child who had waited eagerly for his opportunity was left watching from the sidelines because everything depended upon one race on one day.

That experience stayed with Dwight and gave rise to a lasting conviction: there had to be a better way.

Young racers deserved more than a single opportunity each year. If a car were damaged, there should be time to repair it. If a racer missed one event, another race should follow. Children should have repeated opportunities to learn, recover, improve, and return to the starting line.

That conviction became part of the foundation for NDHRA’s continuing-season model—one built not merely around competition, but around resilience, belonging, and the promise that one difficult day does not have to end a child’s journey.

The Moment the Vision Became a Calling

In 2024, Dwight and his wife, Mayra, visited Rabbi Gil Moreno at Medina Valley Health & Rehabilitation Center in Castroville, Texas, where Rabbi Gil was recovering after suffering a stroke. Their son Alejandro and their friend Brooke joined them.

The visit was personal. They spent time talking, listening, and simply being present with someone who had meant so much to their family and community.

During a quiet lull in the conversation, Rabbi Gil looked across the room, pointed toward Alejandro, and said to Dwight:

“Brother, you should make a soap box derby for this boy.”

The words were simple, but they carried unusual weight.

Rabbi Gil Moreno knew firsthand what gravity racing could mean to a young person. As a young boy in Southern California during the late 1960s, he had competed in soapbox-derby racing himself. He remembered the excitement, the discipline, the competition, and the lasting effect of being given an opportunity to build and race something of his own. With some help from his uncle, Rabbi Gil had placed 7th in his second year of competition.

For Dwight, Rabbi Gil’s statement awakened a vision that had never completely disappeared. The heartbreak he had witnessed years earlier, his belief that children deserved repeated opportunities, and his desire to build something meaningful for Alejandro and other young people suddenly came together.

What began as one compassionate statement during a quiet visit became the spark for the National DownHill Racing Association, Inc.

NDHRA was created so young people would have more than one race, more than one chance, and more than one moment in which to discover what they are capable of becoming.

The race is the attraction. The child is the mission.

The NDHRA experience

From first idea to finish line.

One 12-week racing season is divided into two portions: six race weeks in spring and six race weeks in fall. Each portion begins with two additional practice weeks.

Learn & Prepare

Two practice weeks before the spring portion and two more before the fall portion help racers prepare safely and confidently.

Build & Practice

Young people work with mentors, understand their cars, and build confidence through hands-on practice.

Race & Grow

The single 12-week season includes six race weeks in spring and six more in fall, celebrating improvement, character, family spirit, and achievement.

Leadership & Governance

Purpose-driven leadership for the road ahead.

Meet the people helping guide NDHRA's mission, strengthen its community partnerships, and build lasting opportunities for young people and families.

President and Founder

Dwight S. Cook

Dwight S. Cook grew up in Imperial County in Southern California, where he enjoyed a typical childhood spent riding bicycles, exploring the outdoors, and tinkering with things to understand how they worked—an early curiosity that eventually led him to become a mechanic by trade, a lifelong builder, and an engineer at heart.

Now living in San Antonio with his wife, Mayra, and their son Alejandro, Dwight enjoys fishing, hiking, camping, hunting, and the outdoors, while carrying a deep passion for helping young people develop the practical, real-world skills often missing from traditional education.

Through NDHRA, he looks forward to working alongside its leadership team, volunteers, vendors, committees, sponsors, families, and the City of San Antonio to create a beautiful microcosm of cultures and communities united by one common purpose: building stronger leaders for tomorrow.

Vice-President

Gail Lynn Chappell

Gail Lynn Chappell serves as Vice-President of The National DownHill Racing Association, Inc., bringing more than 50 years of experience working with children and young adults through teaching, pastoral ministry, and missionary service.

An ordained minister for 50 years, she is also a registered nurse with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and 40 years of professional experience, as well as a musician and singer.

Gail joined NDHRA to help young people learn fair play and sportsmanship, strengthen family bonds, and enjoy wholesome recreation, guided by her belief that today’s youth are tomorrow’s leaders and deserve communities that care without judgment.

Founding Secretary

Brittney N. Barnhart

Brittney N. Barnhart serves as Founding Secretary of the National DownHill Racing Association, Inc., bringing more than 20 years of leadership experience, a 12-year professional career and education in human resources management, and six years of service as an officer in the United States Army.

She has also devoted more than 14 years to professional and nonprofit associations, including over eight years serving on governing boards, and brings strengths in teamwork, communication, project management, and policy development to NDHRA’s mission.

Born in San Antonio and raised in Venus, Texas, Brittney remains deeply connected to her San Antonio roots and is committed to helping others receive the opportunities and devoted mentorship that shaped her own life—guided by her belief that communities grow stronger when they invest in one another.

Treasurer · Youth Leadership & Program Development

Jesus Alejandro Rubio Montejano

Jesus Alejandro Rubio Montejano brings a young, practical perspective to the NDHRA, Inc. leadership team. At 18 years old and currently completing his senior year through homeschooling, Alejandro is close enough in age to the young people NDHRA serves to understand many of the challenges, interests, and decisions they face.

Dependable, independent, strong-willed, and hardworking, Alejandro is a hands-on problem solver with a curious mind and a natural ability to figure things out. He has long shown leadership qualities, and younger children often gravitate toward him for advice, direction, and help solving problems. At the same time, Alejandro is comfortable communicating with adults of all ages and enjoys learning from the experiences of others, particularly his older brothers.

Alejandro has a strong interest in personal development, business, real estate investing, responsible money management, technology, and planning for the future. He is technically inclined, enjoys exploring new business ideas, and even considers himself something of a “pseudo-chef,” having learned many of his cooking skills from one of his older brothers.

Within NDHRA, Alejandro attends meetings, contributes ideas, helps solve problems, and participates in planning and community outreach. He and his mother, Mayra, regularly identify hills and downgrades across San Antonio that may have potential for future racing, and he has worked with Brittney to brainstorm ways NDHRA can introduce itself to schools and young people.

As NDHRA grows, Alejandro hopes to help young racers understand both winning and losing, step onto the podium with grace and dignity, and continue giving their best regardless of the outcome. He also looks forward to sharing practical lessons about money, responsible credit use, business concepts, and other life skills.

Although he has not yet experienced soapbox-derby racing in person, Alejandro believes in what NDHRA can become. He brings youthful insight, practical ability, leadership potential, and a genuine desire to help the next generation succeed.

Accountability & public information

Built in the open. Governed with purpose.

NDHRA is committed to responsible stewardship and clear public access to information about our federal tax-exempt status and required filings.

Federal status501(c)(3)

Public charity509(a)(2)

Effective dateDecember 3, 2025

Employer ID number41-3433082

Accounting periodDecember 31

ContributionsTax-deductible

IRS Letter 947

Determination Letter

Issued May 1, 2026. This public copy protects the residential mailing address while preserving the organization's IRS determination information.

View public copy

Exemption application

Form 1023-EZ

Filed electronically through Pay.gov on April 26, 2026. A downloadable submission copy is being retrieved for this public record.

Public copy pending retrieval

2025 annual filing

Form 990-N e-Postcard

Filed electronically. Form 990-N has no paper form; accepted filings are made publicly searchable by the IRS.

Verify with the IRS

Questions or requests for available public records may be sent to president@ndhrainc.org.

Help us build the first hill

There is a place for you on this team.

Families & Racers

Be among the first to hear about registration, orientations, and upcoming racing seasons.

Express interest →

Partners & Sponsors

Invest in a distinctive youth program and help bring equipment, mentorship, and scholarships to life.

Partner with us →

Mentors & Volunteers

Share your time, talents, technical knowledge, or event experience with the next generation.

Raise your hand →

Volunteer opportunities

Every successful race day is powered by a community.

You do not need racing experience to make a meaningful contribution. NDHRA will need dependable volunteers with many different abilities—from hands-on technical skills and course operations to hospitality, communications, and family support.

Setup & Teardown

Prepare barriers, tents, tables, signs, equipment, and activity areas before racing, then help restore the site afterward.

Safety & Course Marshals

Monitor controlled areas, help keep spectators clear, communicate hazards, and support the race director’s safety plan.

Registration & Check-In

Welcome families, confirm racer information, distribute materials, answer basic questions, and guide participants through arrival.

Car Inspection & Weighing

Assist trained officials with safety checks, measurements, scales, documentation, and orderly movement through inspection.

Timing & Scoring

Support electronic timing, record race results, update brackets, and help keep accurate competition records.

Starting & Finish-Line Crews

Stage racers, coordinate releases, receive cars at the finish, and maintain clear communication between both ends of the hill.

Build Mentors & Instructors

Share mechanical, fabrication, design, STEM, or problem-solving knowledge while encouraging safe, hands-on learning.

Hospitality & Family Support

Help with information, refreshments, volunteer care, family needs, and the welcoming atmosphere surrounding each event.

Photography, Video & Media

Document race days, celebrate young people responsibly, and help communicate NDHRA’s mission to the community.

Medical & First Aid

Qualified volunteers can support first-aid readiness and help coordinate an appropriate response when assistance is needed.

Cleanup & Equipment Care

Keep shared spaces orderly and help inspect, organize, transport, and store program equipment after each event.

Truck & Trailer Teams

Support the safe loading, securement, uphill return, unloading, and inspection of gravity cars between race runs.

Whether you can serve for one event, part of a season, or in an ongoing leadership role, there is a place for your time and talent.

Tell us how you would like to help

Car recovery & return operations

One run downhill. One safe return uphill. Ready to race again.

NDHRA uses a double-elimination racing format, so young racers may make several downhill runs before their race day is complete. After each run, the recovery team will safely load the active gravity cars onto flatbed trailers, secure them, and transport them back to the starting area so the racers can prepare for their next opportunity.

We will need qualified volunteers and community partners with heavy-duty pickup trucks—such as three-quarter-ton and one-ton models—and suitable gooseneck or fifth-wheel flatbed trailers. Return operations will also rely on trained loading crews, drivers, spotters, and volunteers who can lift, position, strap down, unload, and inspect the cars safely. As racers are eliminated and the active field becomes smaller, the number of trucks and trailers needed in continuous rotation can gradually be reduced.

01Trucks & Trailers

Heavy-duty tow vehicles and flatbed trailers capable of safely carrying multiple gravity cars.

02Loading & Securement

Volunteers familiar with ramps, tie-down straps, wheel chocks, safe lifting, and load inspection.

03Return Drivers & Spotters

Safety-minded teams who can coordinate the controlled uphill return and unloading process.

Volunteer for return operations

Let's start a conversation

Ready to help move the mission downhill?

president@ndhrainc.org