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DEMO
Demo officials felt it was a very smooth event this year. "We had a great weekend, everyone enjoyed themselves, there were no problems with the heats and everyone behaved themselves," one commented. Officials were also impressed with how well the cars, trucks and SUV's were set up this year. Even during the rollovers, there was no gas leakage or battery movement. One entertaining moment occurred when the "Mad Paddy" Tommy Hanlon rolled his car perfectly, going airborne at one point, only to have to hop out of the vehicle after it righted itself. Immediately, there was a large crew kicking the dirt and squatting down on the track as if looking for a lost contact lens. The rollover had been so quick that the key flew out of the ignition and shut the car off, never to be recovered in the dirt. One of the hardest hits of the weekend occurred between Steven Armstrong and Tris Gauvin, when the two met head on in the last survivor heat on Saturday, a shot that sent shock waves through the crowd and that jarred both drivers, sending Armstrong to the hospital as a precaution. Because the two wrecked both of their cars, it was called a tie. Armstrong returned on Sunday a little banged and bruised but none the worse and Gauvin ended up winning a Sunday survivor heat with the same mini-truck. Another driver got tag-teamed on a full-sized car heat on Sunday and was also taken to the hospital as a precautionary measure. She was also released that same day. According to many who have seen demolition derbies off island, Nantucket's is the safest and most stringent in its safety requirements for both drivers and vehicle preparation. Bob Bassette, a novice driver and winner of a heat on Sunday, has attended demolition derbies all over New England and was impressed with the requirements here. Nantucket keeps the track small and well watered in order to slow speeds and minimize blinding dust. Gas tanks are removed and small, six-gallon tanks are placed where back seats used to be and are strapped down and covered. Batteries are removed and placed on the floor of the passenger seat, also strapped down and covered. Doors and steering wheels are padded and all glass is removed except the front windshield. The doors are chained shut along with the hoods and trunks and all drivers are required to attend the drivers' meetings each day to be aware of the rules and regulations. This is part of what makes this a fun event for the participants and the fans alike. Next year will be the 30th anniversary. It is hoped that as many of the original drivers that still have the urge to drive will come back and drive against their own children. That would be worth the price of admission. I DEMO DERBY RESULTS SATURDAY Heat #1 Mini-cars Pete (just Pete) Heat #2 Mid-sized Josh LaPiene Heat #3 Full-sized Scott Valero and Buzz Brown in the Land Shark Heat #4 Mid-sized Katie Manchester, one of three women who drove on the weekend besides Tina Egan and Susan Hardy, all in this heat Heat #5 SUVs (4 wheel drive disconnected) Travis Ray and Kevin Ramos Heat #6 Mid-sized Derrick Maxwell Survivor Heat #1 Mid-sized Darren Legge Survivor Heat #2 Mini-cars Steve Armstrong and Tris Gauvin SUNDAY Heat #1 Trucks (4 x 4 removed) Joe Gormley Heat #2 Mini-cars Richard Manchester Heat #3 Mid-sized Katie Manchester and Jeff Cook Heat #4 Full-sized Tom Paterson and Bob Bassette Heat #5 Mini-cars Norm Frazee Heat #6 SUV (4 x 4 removed) Ryan Paterson and Matt Aguiar Heat #7 Mid-sized Chris McGarvey and Matt Dunham Survivor Heat #1 Full-sized Buzz Brown in the Land Shark Survivor Heat #2 SUV Tris Gauvin Survivor Heat #3 Mid-sized Matt Hardy and Jeff Cook Survivor Heat #4 Trucks Nathaniel Ray and Sean Brackett Survivor Heat #5 Mini/Mid-sized James McIntosh and Josh LaPiene Survivor Heat #6 Mid-sized Tim Trudell Survivor Heat #7 Full-sized Tim Brown in the Land Shark |
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