It takes more than a little rain to stop the Tuscarawas County Fair. The rides were in operation, the shows went on as planned, hot sausage sandwiches and all the fair goodies were still served and, of course, the precipitation only made the Tough Trucks competition that much more interesting. The steady rain, which began in the afternoon and continued well into the evening, made the course a watery mess; chunks of mud flew as the trucks went slip sliding around turns and over jumps.
Since no one wants to go first in a tough trucks competition, the participants draw a number at random when they register to determine who goes first and who goes last.
The track always get faster toward the end except for tonight when its raining and muddy, it might get slower, said Jim Kandel of New Philadelphia, who owns Jims Place Toyota. Kandel has been racing various vehicles since 1982. I raced super buggies, quads, and cars and then I got into trucks, added Kandel who last year earned the title of 2010 National Mud Racing Organization champion. This year Kandel is currently ranked third.
Kandel travels all over the United States to compete in the events; one year traveling more than 30,000 miles.
The Tough Truck competition always draws a crowd as the trucks maneuver around jumps and turns as quickly as possible to get the fastest time.
The type of vehicle used in the competitions can vary. It depends on what you come for, said Curtis Haught, of New Philadelphia, who entered the competition not with a truck, but a tough 1989 Toyota Corolla station wagon. One of my buddies let me borrow this car, so Im just here to beat it up.
And Im old and I need good shocks, so I need a good truck, said Kandel of his flashy yellow 2005 Toyota truck.
Kandel and Haught, whose past race experience is mostly on four wheelers, agreed its the thrill of the event which keeps Tough Truck participants racing for the top prize of only a few hundred dollars and a trophy.
Of course, the major thrills are unplanned. About a month ago, I flipped the truck over the finish line during qualifying and still qualified in sixth place, said Kandel. Though he admitted the final outcome of that race was bad, it still left him with a story hell long remember.
The men had several pieces of advice for Monday nights contestants: Make it to the end, dont hit cones (which deducts two points from your time for each one hit) and put on a good show!
The winners of Mondays event were: first place, Dan Shaw of Coshocton; second place, Jesse Parsons of McConnelsville; and third place, John Moore of Zanesville. The winning long jump went to Parsons with an impressive jump of 35 feet.
