In the winter of 2001, a small group of demolition racers met with the
purpose of forming an organization dedicated to the recognition of the
owners, drivers, pit crews, sponsors, and supporters of demolition derbies.
In our initial meeting, we elected officers for the 2002 term.
Much of 2002 was dedicated to developing an identity for the group.
While organizing and recruiting new members, we also registered the
Demolition Derby Racing Association with the secretary of state and the
IRS and, in doing so, became a legal organization. We then adopted a
logo, purchased T-Shirts, handed out informative fliers, and launched
a recruiting drive to test out the support base in the surrounding area
with extremely positive feedback. Because of our inexperience, we also
consulted with demo derby experts with the hope of addressing a few
chief concerns constant rule changes, pit conditions, starting
times, etc
The membership drive turned out to be a huge success. By the end
of 2002, it was clear we would have to explore the possibilities of
contracting or staging derbies of our own.
In the following year, No-Weld Demo rules were drafted and contracts
with Rocky Mountain Speedway and the Adams County Fair were hammered out.
We arranged to hold five races in 2003 at the Rocky Mountain Speedway and
one with the Adams County Fair. We then purchased the needed apparatus to
hold these races (set of flags, stopwatches, uniforms for the demo derby¹s
employees, etc.) A Crew of judges was also appointed. The whole venture
became a great learning experience. It turns out, a No-Weld Derby happens
to be the cutting edge, and we even managed to turn a small profit.
With 2004 came the introduction of a three-class derby. We drafted new
rules for Welded, Limited-Weld for full-sized cars, and limited-Weld for
compact cars classes. After redrafting the rules, we submitted proposals
to three counties that hold demo derbies and were awarded contracts for
the El Paso and Adams County Derbies. We are also investigating the
possibilities of holding a derby at the Rocky Mountain Speedway, as well
as, derbies in Kansas, Wyoming and locally in Colorado.
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