Michigan's Most Redneck Sporting Event

Kalamazoo — On Saturday night, I attended my first-ever motorsports event.

To some degree, it was exactly what I expected. There was a quirky announcer cracking jokes and commentating on the action, the stands were packed with the exact kind of crowd you're picturing, and red and green flags were waved by a man in a checkered uniform. It looked like any other NASCAR race I'd seen in a TV show or movie.

Except this wasn't like any other NASCAR race. The competitors weren't professional drivers, and the cars weren't Formula 1. This was regular people racing beat-up Toyotas, old pickup trucks, and full-size school buses.

The event is called the "Night of Destruction," and it's put on by Kalamazoo Speedway every year. They host races and similar demolition-style events all the time, but this one is by far their biggest and most popular.

And as the name sort of gives away, it's not just racing. This year's Night of Destruction consisted of seven different events, each featuring a different set of vehicles and a unique objective, but basically, it's just several hours of crashing anything and everything until there's nothing left to destroy.

They raced school buses and trailers, crashed school buses into trailers, and sent beat-up cars flying off ramps. It was easily the most redneck thing I've ever seen in my life, and that's coming from someone who had a "Drive Your Tractor to School Day" in high school.

One of the events consisted of beat-up cars driving freely around the track while little yellow "Pac-Man" cars chased them down, with the last car to get hit winning.

There was also a "Send It" competition, which was one of my favorites. Cars, trucks, and buses were all launched off a ramp while, of course, the entire crowd chanted, "SEND IT! SEND IT!" The winner of that one was determined entirely by audience volume.

But all of those events pale in comparison to one of the final events of the night: the Spectator Drag, which is exactly what it sounds like, and I have no idea how this is legal.

Pretty much anyone can sign up for this one. A fleet of trucks takes off around the track with trailers attached, and the objective is to knock everyone else's trailer off until you're the last one standing.

Everyone competes with their own trucks and trailers, and each is decked out almost like a parade float. These people get very creative with their trailer setups. I saw washers and dryers, boats, hot tubs, giant teddy bears, and even entire dining room sets tied down to the backs of those trucks.

And while all of that makes for great entertainment, I seriously have no clue how people don't die doing this. Within seconds of the race starting, one truck got T-boned and was completely totaled, and then about 30 seconds after things got moving again, another truck caught on fire.

To their credit, Kalamazoo Speedway does seem to take safety about as seriously as you possibly can at an event centered around intentionally smashing vehicles into each other. There were several ambulances and emergency crews standing by, and officials regularly stopped the action with a red flag after major crashes to make sure everyone was okay.

Still, watching regular people intentionally T-bone each other's trucks while random household appliances fly off trailers behind them is pretty shocking.

The final event of the night was a performance from the Kalamazoo Speedway Stunt Team before everything wrapped up with a massive fireworks show.

This was unlike anything I've ever gone to before, and it's one of those things you kind of need to see in person to understand how ridiculous it actually is. Still, I can totally see why this event is such a fan favorite for motorsports and demolition racing fans. If you like rage rooms, or if the idea of watching a school bus get thrown into an RV sounds like your idea of a good Saturday night, you need to check this place out.

Luckily, Kalamazoo Speedway hosts races and events all the time, and their season continues through the end of November. The Night of Destruction will also be back again next summer, so you'll have another chance to witness all the action—or even partake yourself.