Over 1,000 fans packed the Westlock Ag Grounds Aug. 21 for the Westlock and District Agricultural Fair’s annual demolition derby.
Over 20 drivers put their pedals to the floor in a no-holds-barred slugfest of twisted metal and burnt rubber, but one driver, Allen Lalonde, emerged victorious with the event’s $2,000 grand prize.
“[Driver Barry Boutin] pushed my door bars in about two feet. I had a friend in back push it back in the pits with his car,” Lalonde said.
Despite taking a pounding, Lalonde was able to finish the event on top after heavy work in the pit during the derby’s 20-minute intermission.
Competing in derby, he added, takes more than money or commitment. Drivers also need to be top-notch mechanics, able to fix their vehicles between heats to stay in the last-man-standing competition.
Another driver who spent an excess of time on his vehicle was second-place winner Dylan Boutin. The three-time Westlock derby driver walked away with $1,000 cash — a small reimbursement for near 50 hours of work spent tuning up and old Chevrolet.
The key, he explained, is finding an engine that can withstand coolant ruptures, not just take a pounding from other cars.
“I build it so that it can take a lot of heat, 10,000 clearance on the pistons, and a sliding drive shaft so that when the car’s in half it can still move. I run ’76 bumpers on the front — that’s a really hard Chevy bumper,” Boutin said. “I always run Chevys.”
Event organizer Byron Boutin explained that the derby, which began sometime in the 1980s, has been a long-standing tradition for drivers in the Westlock area, with the cars getting bigger and more powerful every year.
“For quite a while, it’s been getting competitive. The cars are a lot different now. There’s bigger motors, bigger transmissions,” he said.
“We had some excellent cars. Everybody in that ring, they’re very competitive. You get some big hits and guys driving and knocking wheels off.”
The event, Byron added, has been a big part of the fair’s revival in recent years, especially among the youth.
While many still attend the fair for traditional agricultural attractions, younger generations have traded in their love of thoroughbreds for high-horse engines.
Local derby drivers, Byron explained, have been more than happy to oblige the change.
“New age and millennials, the younger crowd are starting to do it now,” Boutin said.
“They’ve come to the derby and are so surprised at how smooth and how fast the cars are. It’s really good for the young kids and mechanically inclined. You learn a lot about cars and how to build them.
“When you get ‘em in, it’s in their blood.”
