(metal clanging) (welding sizzle) - [Narrator] Jeff Duyck and his brother, Dave, are modifying this combine tractor, but they don't intend to harvest any wheat.

- We're taking these derelict combines and we're reinforcing them so that we can go out and crash and bang them together and have some fun.

- And I'll saw a bit more of that sheet metal off of there, so it sits down.

- [Narrator] They're preparing for the 25th Annual Combine Derby.

It happens every summer in Banks, Oregon.

(metal clanging) - Kind of like a destruction derby, car destruction derby, but we just do it with bigger toys.

- [Narrator] Dave started the competition back in 2000.

Back then, there were only five contestants, but each year it grew more popular.

- [Reporter] The Annual Combine Demolition Derby highlighted the weekend.

- [Narrator] A generation later, it's a bonafide tradition.

(saw whirring) It'll be Jeff's second year in the Derby.

He's making sure his combine's ready to take a beating by reinforcing it with metal plates.

His wife, Candace, is also participating in the competition.

- Good morning, - It'll be her first time.

- I've watched a whole bunch of years, so it's one of those things where I'm going to do it.

- [Narrator] She's also making history, at least in Banks.

She'll be the first woman to compete since the Derby started 25 years ago.

- Pretty.

- That's pretty cool.

- I used to watch "Wonder Woman" when I was a kid growing up and everything, and the kids love the superheroes.

Turn it a little bit.

- This is your forward and back.

- Okay.

- Hydrostatic.

Go out there and practice with your turning brakes, doing some spins.

- So, I haven't been in a tractor or a combine in a long time, so I need to run out here and spin some cookies in the field before I head down the road and make sure it's good to go.

(engine rumbling) - They're just outdated.

We can't afford to run them anymore.

And so, we make toys out of them.

(gentle upbeat music) (engine purring) (nostalgic music) - [Narrator] In the 1940s, the country was growing, and so was the demand for grain.

- [Reporter] It's a friendly sound when the motor whirs.

- [Narrator] Farmers needed a way to harvest a lot of it, fast.

Enter the self-propelled combine.

A machine that, well, combined multiple jobs in one pass, reaping, threshing, and winnowing.

(engine rumbling) But like all machines, they eventually become outdated.

So, instead of collecting dust in a shed, they get a second life, smashing into each other.

(horn honking) - We're in Banks, Oregon, of course.

Tractor pull, truck pull.

Just a big happening, big family weekend.

What do we got for seconds?

- They really go just full bore, and it's just a great day.

(engine roaring) (people chattering) Drivers all have helmets.

- 410.

- Okay.

- And you know it's a two-minute heat.

Do some good head-ons.

Don't run over a flagger.

- I just can't wait to get out there today and just have some fun.

We're all geared up to smash and crash and get her done.

- [Narrator] The derby has three rounds, or heats.

The first two each pit four combines against one another.

The final round is a free-for-all with whatever machines are still running.

The last combine moving is usually the winner.

- How you doing there, man?

- Good.

So you driving?

- Just that little green one there.

And she's driving the big orange one.

- [Participant] Oh, Lord have mercy.

- I'm going to be in the first heat of four.

She's going to be in the second heat of four.

Hopefully, our two are the only ones running after all those.

And then it'll be marriage counseling on the track.

- Yeah, whatever.

(both laughing) (upbeat music) (announcer speaking indistinctly) - Fire up your engines!

Get her done.

(horns honking) (playful music) (engines rumbling) (playful music continues) (Jeff chuckling) - Got him.

(crowd cheering) (metal clanging) - Oh, Jeff, don't take out the front tire.

- Yeah!

I love it.

Too much fun.

(horns honking) (crowd cheering) Did I sustain any damage?

- [Dave] I don't think you did.

- Yeah, we're in good shape.

- [Announcer] It's gonna be something, we got Wonder Woman.

Who wants Wonder Woman?

(crowd cheering) Followed by Candace.

And then the Silver Bullet, a three-time winner here at the Banks Combine Demolition Derby.

(beep) - [Candace] There we go.

(playful music) (engine rumbling) (playful music continues) (engines rumbling) (horns honking) - [Narrator] The second heat just finished.

Unfortunately for Candace, her front tire's valve stem snapped.

- Does that mean I'm out?

I can't run it anymore then.

- Can't run anymore.

You have a flat tire.

- [Narrator] Without a working front tire, her combine is basically done.

- You know, if I had a spare here, that would've solved my problem today.

- Yep.

- But no, I don't have one.

So it's all good.

I'll be back next year to show these boys how it's done.

- [Narrator] Jeff had better luck.

His combine's damage is mostly cosmetic.

And luckily for him, no one's judging on presentation.

(charging music) (horns honking) (charging music continues) (engines rumbling) (charging music continues) (engines rumbling) At this point, the field is littered with scrap metal, shredded tires, and unidentifiable parts.

And the combines look like they've been through a war zone, but the competition presses on.

(charging music) (horns honking) When the dust settles, there are only two combines still running.

Jeff's being one of them.

The announcers turn the decision over to the crowd.

(crowd cheering) (announcer speaking indistinctly) - [Narrator] In only his second combine derby, Jeff takes home the win.

- Jeff you won.

- I did.

- How does it feel?

- Well, better than last year, I got second.

- That's right.

What's going to happen next year?

- We're going to come back and do it again.

Oh, that way.

There we go.

There we go.

- [Narrator] Now that the competition's over, the contestants focus on getting the combines off the field and back home so they can fix them up for next year.

(gentle upbeat music) - That's a strategy is to take out the back end so they can't steer or they can't move.

Didn't take names.

I just stopped them all.

- I mean, I had no idea what kind of an adrenaline rush it would be until you're in that seat.

- [Narrator] You can call the combine derby chaotic, reckless, or downright absurd, but Jeff and Candace just call it fun.

- Yeah, it's as fun as it looks.

Absolutely.

- It's more fun.

(people chittering)