Crash Up at Fair
by Shawnarae on 8/2/23so fun to get to see the wild crash up derby. lots of fun. The event was very organized we had great seats too. fun to hang out at fair before and after event. perfect for us 4 friends !!
Motorsports/Racing
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About the Orange Crush Demolition Derby
Each August, Costa Mesa, California, hosts a demolition derby contest to coincide with the Orange County Fair. The Orange Crush Demolition Derby is held at the Action Sports Arena on the Orange County Fairgrounds as part of the Orange Crush Week of Destruction, in conjunction with the Motorhome Madness and Damsels of Destruction demolition derbies. The facility, which has a capacity of 6,500, first opened in 1969, and is also known as Costa Mesa Speedway, a mecca for motorcycle speedway racing.
History of the Orange Crush Demolition Derby
While its official origins have been disputed, demolition derby has been wowing race fans since at least the late 1950s, rising in popularity in the ensuing decades through exposure on ABC's Wide World of Sports and in film and television. Demolition derby gives fans the excitement of drivers bumping and crashing into each other in a safe and controlled setting until one reigns above all others. Older, mostly American-built vehicles that would normally be sent to the wrecking yard are given one more shot at glory, with windows removed, doors welded, and holes cut into the hoods to allow for easier fire extinguishing.
Sunnyside Promotions, which runs Orange Crush Week at the Orange County Fair, has over 80 years of auto racing experience dating back to founders Don and Bob Basile. Since the mid 1980s, the company has focused on demolition derby racing, after finding success in NASCAR and as part of driver Parnelli Jones' 1963 Indianapolis 500 winning team. In addition to the main demolition derby, Orange Crush features a night of demolition derby competitions between police personnel and firefighters, as well as figure-eight races, which precede each main competition. The 2019 Orange Crush demolition derby had a wild finish, in which #13 Tim Greenleaf and #86 Tom Strong went head-to-head in one final crash, with Strong narrowly defeating Greenleaf to take the top prize.
so fun to get to see the wild crash up derby. lots of fun. The event was very organized we had great seats too. fun to hang out at fair before and after event. perfect for us 4 friends !!
This seat should not be even sold!!! There was a pole directly in front of me holding up then roof of the seating area. These should not be sold. Terrible!!!
We purchased the good seats, should’ve purchased seats higher up. Our seats did not have backs, it was a bench only. Cheaper seats had a back on the bench.
The firgue eight was cool but the smasHing cars was betteR. And girl drivers awesome blossom.
Very nice, but too short an event for the effort to get to the show and the cost. Would have been nicer if there were at least 2 or 3 heats of about 6 cars each and the 2 finalists from each heat then meeting for the championship in the final heat. It was enjoyable, but needed to last at least over an hour and a 1/4 or more to be worth the time and cost.
Everything about the demo derby is amazing, super fun, entertaining, energetic, and the access to the fair where we spent tons more money. The only issue, but bug issue was that there were only 2 heats, so it was started and over in 45 minutes. I think you would feel more bang for your buck if there were at least one more heat to give more entertainment.
I go to demo derbies at other tracks, but since this is a "once a year" event at Costa Mesa at the Fair, they pull out all the stops. Very entertaining. Highly recommend to any "demo newbies" and veteran fans, too!
cannot wait to go back! I am booking the august events.
The event lasted less than an hour. Rip off! Barely got to our seat and then there was only one heat left.
The DD was spectacular. Always a good time. The people that run it and that are in it are just great. The concessions were a disaster but that’s a fair issue.