All in the Family: Brothers, cousins connect and compete at Whiteside demolition derbies

MORRISON – The stands were packed and the familial connections were tight at the Whiteside County Fair’s demolition derby Saturday.

A battle of the brothers started the evening when Buddy Fortune, 20, of Sterling bested his little brother, Levi, 15, in the compact heat.

“Yeah, he beat me last weekend so I couldn’t let him win this one,” Buddy said, breaking into a big smile.

The brothers were the last two cars running in the opening heat of the Saturday event.

Buddy, in a 1993 Toyota Camry, weaved his way around a dozen or so disabled cars until he spotted Levi in his 2014 Honda Fit across the field. The two then hammered down on their throttles to crash into each other several times – all to the delight of the capacity crowd.

Buddy’s heavier Toyota eventually won out when Levi’s Honda puttered to a standstill. Buddy jumped out his car and immediately ran over to Levi’s car to celebrate the 1-2 finish.

“I beat him last weekend,” Levi said. “We worked together tonight to knock everyone else out and we won some way. And we had a great time.”

“We worked together tonight to knock everyone else out and we won some way. And we had a great time.”

—  Levi Fortune

Levi, who has yet to get his driver’s permit, already used some of his winnings to purchase his own car to have at the ready when he gets a driver’s license.

The rest of his winnings will be put toward another demo car. “We have two or three more demos this year,” he said laughing.

In the next heat, minivan/SUV, it was the cousin combo of Tanner Hall and Austin Hanabarger finishing first.

Hall, 32, of Fulton drove “Make It Nasty,” a 2006 Dodge Caravan, to victory with Hanabarger, 33, of Sterling as his passenger.

“I bought it last Sunday and got it ready in about three days,” Hall said. “I’ve been competing in demolition derbies since I was 18 years old. But I didn’t run at all last year.”

For Hanabarger, his return to the derby competition came after 11 years as a Marine.

“We ran together before I left for the Marines,” Hanabarger said, referring to his cousin. “This was great.”

“When it got down to the last eight people, we knew them all,” Hall said.

And for Hall, the win was extra special because his friend, Cody Scott, finished in second place.

“He just proposed to his now-fiancé tonight before the demo,” Hall said. “He works for me so my night couldn’t get any better.”

It wasn’t only relatives having fun Saturday night. Friends Angela Wright, 33, of Sterling, and her passenger, Shelby Dambman, 23, of Milledgeville, made a good showing in the compact heat before their 2003 Toyota Camry stalled.

It was Wright’s second derby behind the wheel and Dambman’s first as a passenger.

When asked if she’d ride again, Dambman said, “Absolutely. But I want to drive next time.”

Derby organizers said a total of 72 cars signed up to compete during the Saturday night event in four heats.