Photo by Bill Green Dust, smoke and steam rises from the track as the cars bash each other during the demolition derby Tuesday night at the Great Frederick Fair.

The event drew participants from Gaithersburg, Silver Spring, Rockville and West Virginia, but after the third heap, featuring bigger, more powerful vehicles, Middletown resident Andrew Montgomery in Car No. 3 was the last man standing.

"It was awesome, man! That's the way you do it," Montgomery said, emerging from his busted car. "My motto is 'You lift your foot off the throttle, you lose.'"

His prize? "$100 bucks, maybe," Montgomery said.

But it's never about the money. It's about the excitement, the drivers will tell you.

Phillip Parks of Brunswick has been a demolition derby participant for eight years.

"It's a lot of fun. I love to smash 'em up," Parks said, kissing his daughter and wife before starting the competition.

Pauline Mills of Hagerstown teaches drivers education at Widmyer Driving School in Frederick . Car No. 49 was driven by one of her students, Brett Bledsoe.

"I never taught him to drive like that!" Mills said.

One car caught fire about a minute into the first heap; another about 30 minutes later but firefighters extinguished the flames in seconds, to applause.

Derby announcer, Rudy Rudolph of R&R Productions, displayed a voice trained to keep the crowd involved in the derby.

"I tell you, we're working and smashing them here tonight," Rudolph said.

Matt Henry traveled from Baltimore for the derby.

"It's really cool to see all these cars. My favorite part is when the huge tow trucks come in and pull two and three cars out at once," Henry said.

The event was a family affair for many.

Middletown dentist Dr. Ken Film brought his family and entire dental staff to the derby.

"I kinda like to do that myself," Film said.

"You don't get to see this everyday. It's fun," said Casey Film, 17.

Brother and sister Matthew and Rita Dorsey brought their children.

"I have two boys. They like it and I like to be here to support the community," Rita Dorsey said.

Shawn Wilson of Chestertown, W.Va., has been to a number of demolition derbies but this was his first at The Great Frederick Fair, he said.

"I like to see the cars roll when they T-bone each other," Wilson said.

Meredith Miller of Braddock Heights brought his son, Jeremy Miller, to the derby.

"It's pretty wild," Jeremy Miller said. "You might get a shovel to get the dirt off you when it's over," he said, referring to the black dirt that spinning tires sprayed on those in the front row.