FROSTBURG — For the first time in nine years, adults watching the soapbox derby races Saturday on Frostburg’s steep Main Street as a part of Derby Day will be allowed to sip a cold beer.

The race takes place, and sidewalk brew consumption will be legal, on Main Street between the Palace Theater and Bowery Street where young racers will use gravity to show off their wheels.

At its May public meeting, the Frostburg mayor and council approved the waiver, giving the nod to legal suds from noon until the end of the race.

Joe Williams, speaking for those who requested the waiver, said the festivities are usually wrapped up about 5 p.m.

“We put out petitions at 10 local businesses and in May we took 762 signatures to the mayor and council from people who favor open containers during the race,” Williams said. The request was approved unanimously, according to minutes from the meeting. There was no public comment.

“As always, there will be a police presence at Derby Day,” Williams said.

During and after the event, members of Boy Scout Troop 42 and Frostburg Eagles Club 1273 will patrol the sidewalks, collecting trash and keeping an eye on things.

“We can’t tell people not to bring (ice chests) and drinks, but we hope that in the spirit of the day they would patronize the businesses along the race path that sell a cold beer,” Williams said. Williams is concerned that ice chests placed along the sidewalk would also impede foot traffic.

Public Safety Commissioner Bob Flanigan asked that attendees bring drinks only in plastic or aluminum containers, not glass.

Flanigan said Monday he is all for allowing open containers during the race.

“I was a police officer in Frostburg for 19 years and never made an arrest on Derby Day,” Flanigan said. “Also, we certainly saw the crowds get smaller once open containers were prohibited.”

Flanigan said 762 signatures on a petition made an impression on him as an elected councilman.

“If those 762 people come to Derby Day and buy something to eat and drink we’ll have a successful celebration in Frostburg,” he said.

Similar requests to return beer consumption to the race had been shot down earlier this decade.

In 2003 and again in 2005, business representatives approached the council, asking for legal imbibing on Derby Day afternoon, hoping to restore the crowds that had been evident before the 2001 ban on alcoholic drinks.

Contact Michael A. Sawyers at msawyers@times-news.com.