24 Thursday, August 8, 2024 BATTLE CREEK SHOPPER NEWS http://www.thebattlecreekshopper.com
See DEMO on 25
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Calhoun County Fair
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Aug.
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Year Around10
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OFF
BY WILL KOWALSKI
Sports Editor/Asst. Editor at Battle Creek
Shopper News
Mike Grove of Battle Creek knows
that the sounds “moo” and “cackle”
and “bahhh” are familiar ones at the
Calhoun County Fair, which will
take place for the 175th year this
coming Aug. 11-17 at the Calhoun
County Fairgrounds in Marshall.
Yet Grove also knows that the
sounds of “oohs” and “aahs” along
with lots of cheering, screams of joy
and clapping will fill the air in the
Fair’s grandstands again on the final
day of the 2024 CCF, Aug. 17, when
he and lots of others – somewhere
between 30 and 100 others – are
making
“boom” and “crash” and “bang”
sounds on the infield of the grand-
stands during the Fair’s annual
Demolition Derby event.
One of the Fair’s most popular and
well-attended events, the Demolition
Derby on that Saturday evening
will begin at approximately 7 p.m.,
according to Fair director Cathy
Combs, and will involve three divi-
sions of vehicles: Cars, trucks and
vans.
And immediately following the
Demolition Derby that night in the
grandstand area, Combs said, there
will be a Drone Show that will start
at approximately 10 p.m., involving
an estimated 175 drones that will
County Fair's Demo Derby a family affair for Battle Creek's Grove
light up the evening sky to complete
another Fair edition.
The Calhoun County Fairgrounds
are located at 720 Fair St. in
Marshall.
For complete information about
this year’s overall Fair schedule and
grandstand schedule, as well as ticket
information, visit calhouncountyfair-
grounds.com/calhoun-county-fair/
schedule.Competing in the car division of
the Demolition Derby event will be
Grove, along with several of Grove’s
relatives, including daughter Elly and
a few nephews and nieces (most of
whom live in locales nearby to Battle
Creek).
The 56-year-old Grove said he’s
been participating in the Fair’s
Demolition Derby for about 35
years.
And during a recent interview
on property owned by his brother
located south and
east of Marshall- where his and
his relative’s
vehicles are built
and reconditioned
for Demo Derby
use from parts of
the many decom-
missioned cars at
the site – Grove
talked about sev-
eral demo derby-
Fifty-six-year-old Mike Grove of Battle Creek is shown with the car he’ll be
driving in the Demolition Derby event at the 175th Calhoun County Fair at the
fairgrounds in Marshall on Saturday, Aug. 17. Grove has competed in demo
derby events for 35 years. (Photo by Will Kowalski)related topics to help people better
understand the reasons why it’s so
popular.
“First of all, the main thing with
my family is crashing and bashing,”
Grove said with a smile.
“What got me started was that my
older brother got into it years and
years ago, I helped him with his cars,
then I got my own cars, and I’ve
been doing it ever since – and so
have a lot of my family members.
“And the reason I do it is because
it’s just a lot of fun. Sure, it can be
tough out there. And dangerous,
wearing only a helmet. But I got into
it, and over time another brother and
my daughter and nephews and nieces
got into it. We even had a situation
last year when me and my daughter
were in the same heat in the ring.
“And having a family affair going
when it comes to demo derby, it just
makes it all the more special.”
Grove said that while the demo
derby is a fun activity for him and
family members, “it’s also a lot of
work. Getting cars ready to compete
out there takes a lot of time and
money.”
“Still,” he said, “I enjoy it. And so
does everyone involved in my fam-
ily. True, I’m older now, and my
body doesn’t heal up the way it used
to, but it’s still fun.
“And another reason I’m still doing
demo derby is because competing in