A mass of dirt clods rocketed a couple dozen feet into the air as one driver charged into a three-car pileup in the center of the arena, a cloud of steam engulfing the unfortunate vehicle that endured the brunt of the collision.

Smoke pours from under the hood and mud flies from the back tires of Jimmy Thompson's 1991 Crown Victoria as he swaps metal with Clint Doherty during the full-size class round of the demolition derby at the 2014 Douglas County Fair.

The scene was par for the course Friday evening at the Douglas County Fairgrounds as drivers in all manner of mangled cars crashed into one another at the annual demolition derby.

Arguably one of the fair’s most popular events, the derby drew a packed house of about 5,000 spectators to the outdoor arena at 2110 Harper St. Despite the strong turnout, officials and drivers alike said this derby had a different feel from previous years.

Bob Newton has served as announcer at the competition for more than 20 years. Back when he started, it wasn’t unusual to see 100 cars competing in the derby, spread over several heats sometimes lasting until after midnight.

Friday night, 21 cars amid three different classes battled it out, each class’ winner determined after just one round.

Eight-year-old Mason Fewel tries on his dad's helmet while his dad, Tom, hangs out of the driver side window chatting with friends while waiting to have his car inspected for the demolition derby, held Friday evening at the Douglas County Fairgrounds.

“This has been an evolving thing,” Newton said from the crow’s nest before the first class, made up of compact cars, entered the arena. “It’s the combination of fewer cars being available that can stand up to the demolition derby and the increased difficulty to build one.”

The Crown Victoria, the “standard, time-honored” vehicle of the derby world, has become increasingly harder to come by since Ford stopped manufacturing it a few years back, Newton said.

Andy Booth, vice president of the Douglas County Fair Board, agreed. Still, he said, those in the derby community remain as passionate as ever.

With smoke pouring from his 1976 Ford Pinto, Nicholas Rockhold gets sandwiched between multiple cars during the compact class round of the demolition derby, held Friday evening at the Douglas County Fairgrounds.

“The cars that do show up are veteran drivers,” Booth said.

Tim Gonce was one of those veterans Friday night. The Lawrence resident drove his 1985 Buick Limit in the “hobo” class.

Gonce, 51, first discovered derbies as a teenager through a friend’s father. Since then, he’s competed in about 200 of them, and has even passed the hobby along to his own son.

Throughout the years, he’s avoided any major injuries, though his car caught on fire at the last fair’s demolition derby.

“There was fire coming out of the holes in the floor,” Gonce recalled. “I was a little sore the next day, but that was about it.”

Nowadays, he mainly does it “for the kids.”

Children in his neighborhood frequently stop by to watch him work on the derby cars, and Gonce’s two grandchildren cheered him on Friday night.

“I’m just going to go out and have fun like I always do,” Gonce said before heading out into the arena. “It’s always been about the fun for me.”

Brent Parmer won first place and $1,000 in the compact class, Douglas Gipson won first place and $2,000 in the full-size class, and Jason Dials won first place and $2,000 in the hobo class.

“Mad Dog” winners collected prizes for making the hardest hits, Booth said. Pete Stephen won $500 in the hobo class, and Nicholas Rockhold won $125 in the compact class.