Waterville Demolition Derby

    I don't know what it is about the Demolition Derby that makes me feel so excited. Maybe it's the hilariously beat-up cars, or the absolutely whipped sound of their engines. I suppose it could be the fact that the Town of Waterville practically empties out as folks funnel into the fairgrounds or the announcer with the endless supply of corny jokes. Whatever the draw, I look forward to the derby every year.

    The festivities begin with a visual showcase. Five or six 'lovely' cars line up in front of the grand stands along with their sponsors and pit crew members, and the crowd has the opportunity to vote for their favorite. The judges determine the showcase winner based on the loudness of the crowd's applause. Cars are eliminated, one by one, until only two cars remain. This year it was a close competition between a ridiculously beat-up Ford pick-up, which was obviously a derby veteran, and a Chevy truck, which was nicely painted Orange with the Unocal 76 logo. The 76 truck won, of course. (The orange 76-mobiles seem to dominate every year.)

    The showcase is followed by a series of races. I crack up every time the officials wave the green flag and the drivers floor it, causing an eruption of totally unnecessary engine noise. They whip around corners flinging dirt in every direction, deliberately ramming disabled cars and diverting any leaders within bumping distance. You can't really see the drivers so, for me, each car takes on its own personality. I find myself feeling bad for the poor cars that get stuck or that break down in the middle of a race. This year it seemed like every race had a tire casualty! Many tires simply went flat, while others shredded to pieces. One tire exploded so loudly it startled the crowd and another cleanly detached itself from the wheel plopping itself right in the middle of the track. Nevertheless, each driver continued on, spinning their naked wheels as fast as their smoking engines would carry them. In the final race, one car lost its rear passenger wheel and as the driver continued around the track, the entire driver side rear wheel and axle assembly flew out of the side of the car prompting a hearty laughing fit from my friends and me.

    The final, most anticipated event is the demolition derby. It is an uproarious free-for-all, in which each participating driver makes their best attempt to disable the other vehicles in the arena. The last car running wins. Unfortunately, this year's demolition derby ended far too quickly. One car never even got rolling and a single high-speed ram from car number 27 took three others out in the first fifteen seconds. Another high speed crash caused an engine fire, which stopped the action briefly, and sadly within a few short minutes the demolition derby was over. Car 27 celebrated its victory with a final crunching blow to its only lasting competitor, a nicely painted car resembling the American flag.

 
    The evening ended with an awesome fireworks display accompanied by patriotic country music. I absolutely love 4th of July (or in this case, 3rd of July) fireworks. There's just something about the patriotism that is invoked and the feeling of unity that stirs in me a sense of pride and thankfulness. I am thankful for those who served and for those who died and I am proud of our current service men and women who risk their lives to protect our freedom. Thank you so much, Waterville, for a wonderful evening. I'm already looking forward to next year!