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2017 LOGAN COUNTY FAIR
LINCOLN DAILY NEWS
July 30 - August 6, 2017 Page 265
Bone Stock Compact
The first heat of the night was
the Bone Stock Compact Class.
Notable characters in this event
included local attorney Jim
Grimaldi and the female duo of
Michelle Hanson and Amy Robison,
with Michelle driving.
The trio fared well throughout the
heat, managing to stay moving
almost to the very end.
A small fire in the Hanson vehicle
sent Amy scurrying out the side
window, but Michelle stayed
inside the car, holding her nose
and the wheel, with the hopes that
she would be able to revive the
engine once the Lincoln Rural Fire
Department extinguished the fire.
With the fire out Amy climbed back
in, but Michelle was never able to
get the car moving. At the end of
the heat a quick interview with the
pair revealed that they had a great
time, and would hopefully be back
next year.
Modified Compacts
This heat also featured some
strong drivers, men and women
alike, resulting in several minutes
of crashing and banging before a
winner rose out of the smoke and
debris.
This class also tested the barriers
of the field, with more than an
occasion or two of cars plowing into
the concrete barriers on the north
end of the field and ‘re-arranging’ if
you will.
Super Street
The Super Street was a new class
for this year. The emcee defined
it as not quite stock and not quite
modified, somewhere in between.
The heat featured only three
vehicles, and for a while contestant
number three was doubtful, until
he came roaring into the field….
in reverse! It turned out that the
orange Drake-Scruggs car had no
steering control. He endured the
entire heat and made more than a
few hearty strikes on his opponents.
Full Size Bone Stock
The Full Size Bone Stock was the
largest class of the night with a field
jamming 21 cars entered.
Among the 21 cars was Lincoln
Mayor Seth Goodman. Goodman
was appearing for the first time in
a demo derby, and at the end of the
night told the emcee said that it may
not be his last time. Goodman was
tough competition throughout the
evening, with seemingly no fear of
making and taking the hard hits.
With the large number of cars
on the field, the gridlock was to
be expected, and as cars gave up
the ghost on the field, navigating
through the carnage was almost a
bigger challenge than avoiding hits
from competitors.
In this heat, the services of the
Lincoln Rural Fire Department
were also required as a small fire
was quickly extinguished and the
heat moved on with little time out.
While the drama of the previous
heat was a driver with no ability
to steer his vehicle, in this heat
halfway through, a driver lost his
steering wheel all together! In spite
of the obvious deterrent, the driver
made his way through the track
using only the hub of the steering
column in his car.
Semi Stock
The Semi Stock was the last class of
the night. Again it was an exciting
heat that ended, in a way, anti-
climactic. At the same time, the
heat offered an excellent example
of good sportsmanship, though
to a certain degree, it may have
backfired on the driver in the end.
When the heat was down to only
two cars, the black and red 14, and
the 87J of George Johnson, Johnson
was in a position to win the heat,
but opted to help out his competitor
instead.
The number 14 was running and
able to move, but was hung up
and cornered. The driver tried
desperately to free himself, with
no luck. As the crowd booed the
inevitable end to the heat, the driver
of the 97 shut off his car, climbed
out, and went to try to help the 14
car out. After a few minutes and
some help from the derby crew
and driver of the 97, the 14 car
was freed and ready to roll. The
97 driver went back to his car and
attempted to re-start his engine…
and that was all she wrote. The car
wouldn’t fire up. The 14 car was
running and moving and became the
winner of the heat.
While that did not end well for the
97, the driver’s unselfish attitude
in the heat did not go unnoticed,
and will probably be talked about
among derby fans for a long time to
come.
With the end of the Semi Stock,
the evening was over. This year
the derby lasted about 4 hours,
much longer than last year’s event,
and much better in the eyes of the
crowds. Many left satisfied they
had gotten more than their money’s
worth at the last official event of the
81st Annual Logan County Fair.