By George Starks
GREENVILLE- To say it was a weird way to end the 2021 fair might be a slight understatement.
Saturday when I arrived at the fair, it was business as usual for me. I parked the van, checked in at the entrance to the infield then it was time to eat.
After stuffing my pie hole with my traditional Italian sausage with all the onions and peppers, it was time to go inside and find my grandson, Dylan.
That’s when the weird part started.
I found Dylan and his family. I looked out toward the track and there was a man and a woman standing on two demo cars.
I looked at this for a quick second and realized there was a wedding happening on the track.
Sound crazy?
Not so fast.
After Kala Wood and Michael Marshall had tied the knot, the first heat was right around the corner…right?
Nope!
With the first heat in the books, a single car entered the track and stopped.
At that point, the driver exited his car and the track announcer paged a woman to the track.
Then the driver got down on one knee and proposed to his girlfriend. Of course, she accepted and the evening continued.
I can honestly say I’ve never seen this happen at a demolition derby. I could never connect love and the demolition derby.
After that, there was nothing unusual left to happen.
Despite the high heat all week, it was nice to see the fair back to normal.
A year ago, no one could imagine the fair being canceled. As for me, I thought 2019 would be the final Darke County Fair.
I have to admit, the fair board has done a great job getting things ready for the nine day event, despite the uncertain times.
I was happy to see the normal events like the cheer competition, the tractor pulls and the demo cars on the track.
Even though there was a lot of empty space on the Midway, I can only imagine that 2022 will be better.
Kudos to the fair board for a Great Darke County Fair.
Photos: Pastor Rob Nisthwitz delivers the marriage vowels to Kala Wood and Michael Marshall before the start of the annual demolition derby at the Darke County Fair Saturday. The ceremony took place on the track before the start of the demolition derby. CNO Photos by George Starks
