by Norman A. Rubin

Created on: September 20, 2007

There I was sitting at one of the computers at the public library at my town in the Galilee, quite oblivious to the noise of crashing vehicles and cheering crowds coming from the videos on a Demolition Derby when the head librarian tapped me on the shoulders and told me in no uncertain terms to stop the recording, as it is disturbing to the other readers and borrowers. Despite my promise to tune down the volume the librarian was quite adamant and I had to comply.

Now you might ask why I wanted to see and listen to videos of a Demolition Derby at the public library. The answer is quite simple my home computer is a simple affair with no DVD drive and has no loud speakers. Thus I had to search out an up-to-date computer that will accept videos rendered in AVI (Automatic Identification) and the other accouterments.

But luck was on my side, as my computer service man knew of this motor sport and without a word he invited my wife and myself to his home one evening for a showing of the videos. He was quite knowledgeable and through his skill the film showing ran smoothly. Off course the women folk were not responsive to this sport and they retired to another room.

I had received these videos through the snail mail from a pen pal in Utah who wanted me to learn about a bit about the culture in his area, namely the Demolition Derby. This event was sponsored by the Lions Club a charitable organization, which was held at the fair grounds of his town. In his letter he told me that the Demolition Derby is a way to rid the community of old and rusty automobiles and have some fun in the process.
The videos, taken by my friend, were excellent with stops of snapshots that froze momentarily the running of the film. We felt the action as those wreck of autos banged into each other, we tensed as we saw two vehicles locked in battle, and we gave a sound of shock as fire appeared on one of the vehicle fortunately none of the drivers were hurt. My Utah friend pictured the tableau of the stadium, the action and all the details that entailed in running the sport to perfection. And I looked closely I recognized my pen pal and his son amidst the spectators cheering their favorite driver. Well, no words can express his excellent video recordings and the pleasure it gave me (and, off course, the computer guy).
(My son Yarn expressed a wish to see the recordings, and when we will be at his apartment another showing will be in order.)

Demolition Derby in simple terms is a motor sport that consists

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