At Cedar Lake Speedway, the annual Battle of the Buses combines speed and demolition derby, drawing enthusiastic crowds to see old school buses transformed into racing machines.
“You never know what’s about to happen,” says Dominic Harker, a St. Croix driver. “It’s kind of just hold your foot to the floor and pray that everything goes right.”
Teams of high school students and teachers, like those from St. Croix Central and Unity High School, spend weeks retrofitting donated school buses.
“We get a fully intact school bus that’s worthy of retirement, but we strip it all out,” explains St. Croix Central tech education teacher Brook Reyzer.
Students remove seats, windows, side paneling and more to prepare the buses for the big event. The project offers students a unique hands-on learning experience.
“I had never used an angle grinder before,” shares Ella Janski, a student at St. Croix Central. “I just had to do it and did it.”
Principal Peter Nusbaum notes, “They’ve got to do some wiring. They’re working on the engine. They’re doing some tuning.”
Unity High School students share a similar dedication.
“As soon as they see the buses in, they run to my room and say, ‘When are we working on the bus?'” says tech education teacher Jake Lee.
Race day features three events: two speed races and one demolition race.
“It’s not fun if we’re just racing around the track,” says Lee. “They want to see us smash into people, tip over, all that kind of stuff.” For students and teachers alike, the event is more than just a race.
“Being able to teach them the skills that they can utilize outside of class and in the workforce just means the world to me,” says Reyzer.
As the buses crash and smash, the community comes together, making memories that last a lifetime.