Meet Darren

Darren with his car that he will compete in the
2014 Henry County Fair

The demolition derby is a family tradition in the Hutchinson household. Darren's father, Darrell, participated in the demo derby for 18 years. This fueled Darren's interest to one day participate in the derby and when his father stopped competing, Darren then took the wheel and has been participating for 19 years in the demo derby. Darren has won a few demo derby's at multiple fair in the year's he has participated.  

"When I was young my dad did it back in the day and I've always enjoyed it" says Darren. 

Safety has changed in the last 25 years of the demolition derby but also the availability of the cars. "The cars aren't as available as they used to be, there hard to find" says Darren.

Another big component of the demo derby that has changed is the number of competitors. Darren mentioned that when Darrell competed there used to be 100+ cars in a class that would come to the  Henry County Fair. Now if the demolition derby gets 20 in a class it's a pretty decent turn out. 

What makes the Henry County Fair special for Darren is that "hometown feeling." 

Darren will compete in the Open Wire Class at this
year's Henry County Fair

"It's a fun time of the year. My parents took me when I was really little and it's always something I look forward too" says Darren, "I always like doing the demo derby to support the hometown fair."

Darren will compete in the Open Wire Class this Saturday, his father will be in the stands cheering him on.

"He enjoys it, every year he comes to watch the derby" says Darren.

Meet Ben

Ben Martens with one of his
cars for the Demo Derby

Ben Martens of Orion started helping his neighbor build cars when he was 14, this triggered his interest to take up the Demolition Derby. For the last four years he has been participating in the demo derby at the Henry County Fair, but unfortunately he hasn't won yet.

His favorite part is the adrenaline rush on competition day, "It's a blast going out on the track and hitting people just for fun and not having to worry about what you break."

He also mentioned that it is fun building the cars because it gives him and his friends an opportunity to hang out.
Building the car it takes a lot of time. After obtaining a car, all of the interior must be taken out and the car can be built after that. There are also certain rules and regulations that dictate how strong the car can be.

Ben Martens competes
in the Demo Derby

On competition day Ben is normally seen finishing up his car and in the early afternoon he will try to get it to the fair so it can be inspected. "That way I have a chance to relax and calm my nerves before the derby starts" he says.
His favorite memory is from the 2011 Henry County Demo Derby when him and his friends bought a car the night before and built it in less than 24 hours, his friend ended up winning the derby with that car. He hopes to one day share that same fate of winning the Henry County Fair Demo Derby.

Ben believes that the Henry County Fair is special because it's his "hometown" county and where great memories can be shared with good friends. Be sure to catch Ben competing in the Demo Derby on June 28th at 6:30 at the grandstand!