LYNDEN - Two orange cones were all that remained of the race track Monday afternoon, Aug. 15, in the opening heat of the Northwest Washington Fair demolition derby.
But compared to some of the cars in the next round of destruction, that track, originally a figure-eight, fared pretty well.
After the free-for-all round, beneath a suffocating cloud of dust and exhaust, the carnage left a graveyard: a couple stray wheels, a mangled fender and eight crumpled frames - some of them beat up so bad it'd be hard to call them "cars."
The ones that couldn't leave on their own power were hauled off by giant orange antique tractors that sparkled in the 73-degree August weather.
The demolition derby was the first grandstand event of the fair, which opened Monday and runs through Saturday at the Northwest Washington Fair and Event Center.
Before competing in that free-for-all heat, Nick Delange had won the award for best-looking car at the derby. With each snap and crackle of his revving engine, the crowd gave a loud cheer.
He'd spent about $500 on his black and green paint job, and that helped him win a $100 prize and "a really nice plaque."
"Getting ready takes a lot of time," said Delange, who is in his 13th year of competing in demolition derbies. "I swapped the motor and the transmission out. Stripped it. Put the fuel tank in the back."
But he had no regrets about smashing it all up Monday. Judging by the oohs and ahs from the packed grandstand, the crowd thanked him for that.
This year's derby, however, fell short for spectator Peder Fedde, a Colorado native who plans an annual trip to Washington around the event.
"There were some good hits, some good driving, some bad driving," he said. "I mean, it was fun, but it didn't have the same flair as it did last year."
He still planned on sticking around for the 7 p.m. free-for-all that night, when the surviving cars from the afternoon's competition would face off.
The rest of the fair was very much alive Monday: families wandered through the barns stocked with ponies and Clydesdales, through two carnivals and the dozens of vending booths.
And there was food.
Signs advertised cheesecake on a stick, Dutch poffertjes, "potato tornadoes" and Rolaids. Everything you can think of deep-frying was deep-fried.
Long lines stretched out from both Whatcom County Dairy Women booths for the unofficial edible symbol of the fair: the Moo-Wich, an ice cream sandwich made with two chocolate chip cookies. More than 8,000 were prepared for the fair.
Last year, a refrigeration problem caused a meltdown of thousands of the beloved treats, so many attendees had to go without.
Beneath the grandstand was a calm juxtaposition to the carnage of the derby outside. On display were prize-winning floral arrangements, sweet cherry wines, canned spiced pears, ginger marmalade, crabapple butter and raspberry/blueberry jam.
Out behind Gate 8, the drivers and mechanics of the demo cars patched up their rides for the night show. Clay Dickinson, who had advanced, was itching for the next heat.
His sponsor? The local bureau of New York Life, a life insurance company.
He laughs about that.
