"Taking advantage of the gift of hills in Mount Dora." That line comes from the 2026 flyer for the Down the Hill Soapbox Derby, and it describes the whole event in a few words. On Saturday, November 14, gravity-powered carts take over downtown from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The City of Mount Dora calendar lists the event at Elizabeth Evans Park, 100 North Donnelly Street.
The hill is the point this year. Two other holiday-season traditions have recently gone away, and one of them depended on the same slope.
The hill lost its snow day
The November edition of Mount Dora Buzz reported that Snow in the Park has been canceled. The children's event had run for decades. In its original form it turned Donnelly Park into a winter scene with man-made snow for sledding down the hill, plus holiday activities and Santa in the park.
According to the Buzz, the event later moved to flat Evans Park and swapped sledding for small snow slides in the street and inflatables in the park. The same report said the change cost it some of the small-town holiday magic that had made the original special.
The same November edition reported the end of the light display at Mount Dora Marina, another waterfront holiday tradition.
When Snow in the Park moved to Evans Park, it gave up the sledding hill that had defined it. The soapbox derby is built around a hill from its mission statement onward, and on Saturday the city lists it at the same Evans Park. On this season's calendar, it is the event that runs on the downtown hill.
A young race whose date keeps moving
The derby is young enough that its history fits in a few lines. The City of Mount Dora billed the July 30, 2022 race as the first annual Down the Hill Soapbox Derby and the October 14, 2023 race as the second annual. The 2026 race falls in mid-November. Across those years, the date has moved from a July Saturday to an October one and now to a November one, closer to the cooler months.
For the route, the most specific account comes from Mount Dora Buzz's September 2023 edition, which said kids and adults would race homemade carts "down the hill at the southern end of Donnelly Street." The 2026 city listing names Evans Park at 100 North Donnelly Street as the event location. For the exact start line, spectator areas, and any street changes on race morning, check downthehill.us and the city's event page before you head downtown.
The derby has ties to a local medical practice. The city listed Adult Medicine of Lake County as sponsor in 2022, and in 2023 the listing named it alongside Aetna. The 2026 registration form says the derby was created inside Adult Medicine of Lake County.
The rules are written for spectators
Most race rules aim to settle who is fastest. The Down the Hill flyer opens with a mission statement that puts the crowd first:
"Not getting TOO serious or competitive, but rather in the spirit of providing an entertaining show for the spectators."
The judging rules back that up. Competitive entries are scored on three things, and speed is only one of them:
- Speed. The fastest time across the finish line counts.
- Creativity. Judges score each soapbox's design and look, and the flyer says they want "the different, unique and most outrageous."
- Pre-race performance. The show a team puts on before the run, along with its overall entertainment value, is scored too. Pit crews are encouraged to perform at the starting ramp.
Under those rules, a slower cart with a strong costume and a well-rehearsed bit at the ramp can still do well. The flyer bars sexually explicit or political themes and warns that breaking that rule can mean disqualification.
The build rules are short and concrete. Carts must run on gravity alone and have working brakes and steering. Each one can be at most 3 feet, 6 inches wide, 6 feet long, and 5 feet tall, must sit at least 6 inches off the ground, and can weigh no more than 100 pounds without the driver. Pushing and adding weight to the front are not allowed. Drivers wear a helmet, gloves, and elbow and knee pads, a mouth guard is "highly recommended," and every driver must be able to climb out of the cockpit easily.
Entrants who want the hill without the scoring can sign up for a "Just for Fun" class, which follows the same gravity, brake, and steering rules and is not judged. The registration form offers Youth, Adult, Club, and Business entries along with the Just for Fun option, and club and business teams list their organization's name. The Club category gives any community group, including the resident clubs in Lakes of Mount Dora, a way to field a team.
Friday night starts a block away, in the alley
The weekend begins the evening before with a smaller event that shares the derby's homegrown feel. Art in the Alley is a free outdoor market for local and emerging artists, held the second Friday of every month on N. Royellou Lane downtown. Studio ArtFarm, at 120 E. 4th Ave., lists the November 13 market from 6 to 8 p.m. To find the alley, the city suggests heading to 125 E. 4th Ave.
Panache by Vintage Rose hosts the market in partnership with Studio ArtFarm. According to the city's event listing, the event focuses on affordable, original work, and both admission and artist setup are free. The aim is to make original art affordable for people who may not otherwise buy it. Both events keep the cost of taking part low. The alley charges artists nothing to set up, and the derby lets anyone with a gravity cart and safety gear take a run in the unscored class.
Planning the two days
Art in the Alley and the derby fall on back-to-back days in downtown Mount Dora, so the weekend comes together easily:
- Friday, November 13, 6 to 8 p.m. Art in the Alley on N. Royellou Lane, near 125 E. 4th Ave. For dinner downtown afterward, 1921 has just been named a Michelin Recommended restaurant in the Michelin Guide, according to the November Mount Dora Buzz, which credits Chef Brenton Hillman.
- Saturday, November 14, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The Down the Hill Soapbox Derby, listed at Elizabeth Evans Park, 100 North Donnelly Street. The pre-race performances are part of the scoring, so arriving at the start lets you see the full show.
- Saturday afternoon. Rome's Flavours, a new Italian restaurant downtown, was expected to open "shortly after November 10, if all goes as planned," the November Buzz reported. Its Winter Park location serves pizza, pasta, and an Italian wine list.
- Saturday or Sunday. Long & Scott Farm's corn maze, themed Island Adventure this year, is open on weekends through November 15, which makes this its final weekend of the season. The seven-acre maze shares the farm with hayrides, pond fishing, and a super slide.
A week later, on November 20, Art & Market in the Arbor returns for its third-Friday evening in the courtyard between Maggie's Attic, Back Porch Pizza, and Pisces Rising, from 6 to 8 p.m. With that on the calendar, the second and third Fridays of the month each bring an evening art market to downtown.
Before you head down the hill
The organizer's site is the best place for current details. Downthehill.us links to the registration form and the 2026 rules, and the city calendar entry has the listed time and location. Teams still building a cart should check the full rules sheet before they finish, because the width, height, ground clearance, and weight limits all apply on race day.
Scott McFadden is based in Mount Dora and follows the events that make up the town's calendar, from the Friday markets downtown to the derby on Donnelly Street. If you're thinking about a move to or within Mount Dora and want to know which homes put you within walking distance of weekends like this one, Scott Mcfadden is happy to talk it through. Let's Connect.
