THE TENNESSEAN (Nashville, Tennessee) 27 August 06 Turtles brave the heat for chance to be crowned Derby champion (Ian Kriegish)
Ashland City: A scene reminiscent of Mark Twain's "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" commenced at high noon Saturday on the front lawn of the Cheatham County Courthouse.
It was the Ashland City Lions Club's 58th annual Turtle Derby, a festive tradition that helps pay for eye exams and glasses for needy Cheatham County residents.
A throng of small children cheered on turtles as they scrambled out of a 4-foot circle to victory. Turtle Derby Chairman Joe York labored over a grill, churning out hot dogs that kids gobbled down.
Defying the heat, scores of local residents gathered beneath broad branches that shaded the public square near the courthouse steps, laughing and fanning themselves.
The mood was set to animated sporting commentary by local funnymen Patrick Smith, Darwin Luck Newton and Steve Straton.
Twenty-five members of the Lions Club and the local Boy Scout troop were present, decked in bright yellow vests and gloves to handle the shelled reptiles.
After the event, organizers planned to return the turtles to a North Carolina company that breeds them because of a 1977 law in Tennessee that forbids private ownership of turtles or releasing them into the wild.
Ownership of turtles is banned because the animals' skins and shells are commonly smothered in salmonella, a dangerous bacteria commonly associated with food poisoning, said Walter Cook of the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency.
The way the event works is this: Samaritans pay $10 to name a reptilian racer, and the turtles square off in heats of 10 until a grand champion is named. The Lions Club recycled about 30 turtles to represent more than 750 sponsors this year, raising about $75,000.
The turtles are placed "in the gate," as the commentators took to calling it, which was really a moveable metal contraption resembling a giant cookie cutter that kept the turtles from taking off until the appropriate time.
Once released, it was only a matter of time until one of the critters decided to make its escape.
All too often a turtle would make a break for it, only to stop tantalizingly close to victory, cock its head and peer quizzically at its squad of young supporters.
"Let's get it on," cajoled Straton, who happens to have been born in 1948, the same year the first derby hit Cheatham. "We have movement! Whoa, this is wild and crazy, all I can handle folks."
Some turtles received exotic names, such as Cindy's Sensation, Dixie Dart, Soul-search No. 9, G-Force, 100 Proof and Opus.
Jadie Binkley's Sell Your Home made it out of the circle in 1.2 seconds, capturing an official record, while Jim and Jo Anne Bellar's John Carter was named grand champion. After Sell Your Home's stunning victory, Smith took the opportunity to assure the crowd that the derby was completely legit. "You'll find no Floyd Landis turtles in this lot, I assure you," joked Smith over the PA. "Unlike the Tour de France, there is no doping allowed in this derby in keeping with the rules set forth by the Ancient and Royal Association of Amalgamated Turtle Racing Clubs."
Twice Judge Bill Stinnett, serving as derby referee, had to declare a photo finish, consulting with The Tennessean photographer to declare a winner.
The Lions Club coordinates with the local school system and area optometrists to find those who could use their help. They set up a special committee to ensure the funds go to those in the greatest need of assistance, but they said children are automatically accepted.
Turtles brave the heat for chance to be crowned Derby champion