Each year at the North Carolina State Fair, drivers from the surrounding area compete for the title of State Champion in the demolition derby. This event is held in the Grandstand area over the course of 3 days with the main event going down on Sunday afternoon. In order to qualify for the main event, you must be one of the last two cars running in the heat races on either Friday or Saturday or by winning a local county fair and receiving a "bye" into the main event. After the championship round on Sunday, winners will be crowned in the 4 cylinder, 6 cylinder and 8 cylinder divisions. There will also be a Women's State Champion crowned after the all-ladies, powder puff derby.
Keep your eye on Cisco and his crew this year. His collective posse is made up of several white-knuckle drivers and a few loyal crew members. They'll be bringing some of their best old iron to compete in all of the shows. Naturally, the main focus is on winning the 8 cylinder division, but they'll be having some fun in the 6 cylinder events as well. This crew has two drivers already qualified for the main event because they have won derbies at the county fairs in Rowan and Robeson Counties. What this means is there is ample opportunity for some gang mentality in the big event… Let the big dog eat!
Competitions will be held Friday, Oct. 23, at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 24, at 2:30 and 7:30 p.m., with the championship match on Sunday, Oct. 25, at 2:30 p.m. There is a separate admission fee of $7. Tickets are available online in advance and at the Grandstand ticket booths on the day of the event.
For anyone that has ever wanted give demo derby a spin, a
friend passed this advice on to me:
The best way to get your feet wet - I mean muddy - is to buy a good running 4 cylinder car. In order to make the car safe and pass inspection, you'll need to relocate the battery to the passenger floor, install a fuel pump kill switch, kick out the windows, #9 wire the doors shut and get yourself a helmet. That is all you really need to do in order to have a smashing good time!
photos by Vern McLendon
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