Jun 10, 2016

One might have to be completely lost or a true fan to know about the Arcadia Carnival Grounds, six miles north of Reisterstown in Upperco. Nestled among century-old hardwood trees, the northwest Baltimore County community is normally a peaceful place, until drivers fire up their modified junkers to compete in Demo Derby Day, a series of races organized to raise funds for a local fire company.

: Kevin Greenway of Rising Sun attaches a plate with his vehicle’s number to its roof during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: Keith Stamm of Gettysburg (left) backs a pickup from the trailer as Darryl Kump of Gettysburg motions during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: Drivers listen to pre-race safety and rules during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: Matt Michael of Reisterstown listens to pre-race rules and safety during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: Colin Bartley, 16 of Arbutus puts his helmet on, next to driver David Greene of Arbutus, who buckles in preparation of their race during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: Dented from previous collisions, a pickup truck digs through the soil on the track during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: “TCB,” a logo applied to the car belonging to driver Johnny White stands for “Taking Care of Business,” originally the mantra and logo of Elvis Presley, as the Arbutus driver rams into a competitor to help secure victory in his race during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: The “heavies” – larger vehicles like full size pickups and SUVs – sit in line awaiting the start of their race to enter the dirt track in background, during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: One truck, fitted with guardrails to protect from the T-bone crash, kicks up soil while the dented vehicle speeds around the track during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: Spectators observe SUVs and Jeeps race during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: In a view from the passenger seat of a car driven by Johnny White of Arbutus, two other vehicles bump against it, jockeying for position on an inside turn during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: In a view from the passenger seat, helmeted driver Johnny White of Arbutus avoids another vehicle which tumbles over on a curve during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: In a view through a hole in its hood, Michael Horchner (left) and Ryan Reid, both of Hagerstown hover in puzzlement over how to repair their Nissan Altima, which suffered damage in the engine compartment from multiple collisions of their recent race, during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: A vehicle’s sheet metal can be only a hindrance as the car gets hit by others, and a crew work together to remove dented metal which had been shoved into the wheel well in the race they had just competed in, during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: A vehicle rolls on its side while competing during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: Tom Becke of Manchester, MD smiles while watching the races during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: The heavy vehicles sit under a red flag during a spate of mayhem in which one SUV had flipped over and another – at left – backed itself over a tractor tire, waiting to be extracted during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: A flattened and shredding tire doesn’t stop the driver of a pickup from continuing the competition, as the truck’s front end goes airborne during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: Wheels lift off the ground while soil and gravel kick about in a race during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: Karen Brensinger (left) of Severn and Emily Schenk of Oxford, PA sit atop concrete barriers to get a view of the competition during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: Bobbi Smith of Union Bridge (sitting, center) and Darren La Rochelle of Westminster react to a crash that causes the car driven by Howard Smith, Darrell’s father, to flip over during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: Howard Smith punches the sky after climbing safely from his car, which flipped over while competing, during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: Spectators watch the action, safely from behind the fence during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: A bumper rests at the lip to the dirt track while vehicles compete during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: One car kicks up dirt and rocks while being forced to the outside of a turn during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: A van gouges into the concrete barrier while racing during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: One car, which is started again after flipping over, creates a billow of smoke as the driver gets ready to continue competing during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: Passenger cars hit each other while they both make a sharp right turn in their race during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: Heidi Brooks of Glen Burnie (right) captures video of the racing on her smart phone during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: One SUV T-bones another, almost causing it to flip, but it returns to the track to continue during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: People watch the mayhem unfold during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: Relaxing between races on the hood of the race car in which he rides as passenger, Colin Bartley, 16 of Arbutus spends free time, texting on his smart phone during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: The carnival grounds are saturated with spectators who use their vehicles similar to attending a drive-in feature, as they watch live action racing at dusk, during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

: People use their vehicles like they would at a drive-in, enjoying the spectacle of car racing as dusk settles during Demo Derby Day at Arcadia Volunteer Fire Company’s carnival grounds. (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun)

Photos and text by Karl Merton Ferron

Drivers compete in short-track races throughout the afternoon, hitting the gas, dirt piles and each other as they struggle to keep their vehicles running.

“Gooooo!” screams 12-year-old Eldersburg native Maddex Beidel, who becomes a fan of a driver who pushes his damaged vehicle to the limit as it belches smoke.

Vehicles collide with dull thuds and are T-boned into flips. Some simply hit a curve at the wrong speed and rollover, which is one of the few reasons the competition will pause.

When a vehicle flips, a Bobcat scoop repositions it to its wheels in hopes that it might start again. If not, the disabled car will remain as an obstacle until the race concludes.

“Are you having fun, yet?” driver Johnny White, of Arbutus, asks while waiting in his demo compact car for another vehicle to be cleared. “The guy rolled over, twice! Man, that car’s messed up,” he says, looking back at the damaged vehicle.

Moments later, sirens blare and track lights turn from red to green signaling White to floor the gas and hit the curves – in addition to other drivers’ cars – on his way to taking the checkered flag.

Delighting fans and raising funds at Demo Derby Day

Leave a Reply Cancel