7/31/2024
Five Flags Speedway
Demolition Derby Highlights Back to School Bash as it's Back to Racing at 5 Flags
Demolition Derby Highlights Back to School Bash as it's Back to Racing at 5 Flags
By Chuck Corder
5flagsspeedway.com reporter
You could hear crickets chirping and nature’s glorious soundtrack at Five Flags Speedway for the last month.
Pensacola’s high banks had to catch its breath and gear up for this scorching season’s stretch run. Thankfully, it resumes this week with more than just a bang. There’ll be a lot of crunching, twisted metal sounds with a splash of tires spinning and bitter notes of burnt rubber.
That’s right. The annual Michles & Booth Demolition Derby returns Friday to Five Flags. The last driver standing walks away with a cool $1,500. Rules and entry forms can be found on the track website (https://tinyurl.com/2ps34a3s).
Admission for the Back to School Bash on Friday is only $10 for adults, $5 for children ages 6 to 11 and free for kids 5 and under. The Demo Derby closes what promises to be an electric show. The Faith Chapel Outlaws (40 laps), The Dock on Pensacola Beach Sportsmen (25), Lloyd’s Glass Pure Stocks (20) and Story & Bleich Roofing Crown Stocks (20).
The grandstands open at 5 p.m. Friday and racing is slated for 8.
Pensacola’s Logan Boyett heads into the final two features of the Outlaws season clinging to an eight-point lead against Carter Taylor. He credited Taylor for his consistency and qualifying efforts because Boyett hasn’t finished lower than second in all five feature races this season.
“Everything he gains on me in qualifying, I gain in the race,” said Boyett, who has a series-leading three victories. “We’ve struggled in qualifying, but I think we figured it out. It’s definitely been a great season. And I think we’re pointed in the right direction for qualifying.”
He’s thankful for the past month off from racing. He, car owner Mark Biles and the father-and-son setup tandem of Billy and Cole Peavy could go to work on the issues.
“It was necessary to do what we needed to do,” Boyett said of the break. “You couldn’t do it from one race to the next. It would’ve been risky. This way, we had enough time to regroup.”
Boyett won Gulf Real Estate Group Pro Truck track championships in 2018 and 2022 but is looking for his first career Outlaws title.
He explained that making big adjustments in the car is tricky because Boyett opens himself up to finishes outside of the first-second standard he has become accustomed to and sacrificing the championship lead to Taylor—who has a win (April 5), a runner-up, a third and two fourths.
“You have to be able to take a big swing at it to make a change to the handling of the car,” Boyett said, “but be conservative enough to not put yourself in a big deficit.”
He is definitely conservative enough to know that we won’t ever see Boyett in a Demolition Derby race.
“I can sleep or move the wrong way and my neck and shoulders are burning, and I’m in a terrible amount of pain,” he said. “I don’t know how those Demolition Derby guys do that.”
Article Credit: Chuck Corder
