Greg Prunty would give anything to get rid of the 1,300 abandoned cars behind his Uniontown towing company. So every September, he donates 20 of them to the Police and Fire Demolition Derby. "It's not unusual for someone not to come back and get their car," he says. "I just want these junkers off my property."
Inside Prunty's castoffs, officers from several Summit County police, fire, and sheriff's departments bend fenders on the racetrack. The last car running is declared the winner. "The police and firemen, they get pretty wound up over it," says Prunty. "They go out there and destroy each other." It starts at 7 p.m. Saturday at Barberton Speedway, 3363 Clarks Mills Road in Barberton. Admission is $12, $5 for kids; call 330-699-6468. -- Cris Glaser
Get Reel
Fishermen declare open season on perch at fest.
9/9-9/11
Amateur anglers will vie for the longest fish in Lake Erie at this weekend's Perchfest. "Perch-fishing has just really taken off in popularity," says Jim Shirley, president of the Lake County Visitors Bureau. "Some people walleye-fish, but everybody goes out for the perch." When the three-day fest ends, every contestant's catch is measured. Whoever hooks the five longest perch pockets $1,000. "This is not a contest for the impatient," says fisherman Randy Sharpton of Painesville. "If you want that money, you'll stay until the best fish bite your bait." Casting happens from 5 to 11 p.m. Friday, noon to 11 p.m. Saturday, and noon to 8 p.m. Sunday at Fairport Harbor Lakefront Park on Huntington Beach Road in Fairport Harbor. It's $5 to participate in the contest ($1 for kids); admission to watch is free. Call 440-823-6129 for info. -- Cris Glaser
Howlin' Good Time
MON 9/12
Our knowledge of coyotes is pretty much limited to Roadrunner nemesis Wile E. That's why we're so animated about Cleveland Metroparks' free Coyote program on Monday. Experts will be there to discuss the creature's history, habits, and habitats. A coyote pelt and skull also will be on hand, giving participants a close-up, albeit lifeless, look at the animal, with no worries that an ACME-brand anvil will fall on them from above. Get howlin' at 7:30 p.m. at the North Chagrin Nature Center (off the Sunset Lane entrance of North Chagrin Reservation, off SOM Center Road/Route 91 in Mayfield Village). Call 440-473-3370 for more info. -- Michael Gallucci
