On Monday, Jayden Gursky wore the crown as the 2023 Carbon County Fair Queen, but come Thursday the 18-year-old from Palmerton was ready to trade paint in the derby.

While she had raced junk cars for several years, it was Gursky’s first run in a derby.

“I started off a little slow but once I figured things out, it was a lot of fun,” Gursky, who ran a Toyota Corolla in the event, said. “I took some hard hits, but in the end I think I may actually like it a little bit more than junk races.”

Gursky said she relied on her dad T.J.’s advice going into the event, mainly to let other cars go first and not get caught up in the initial logjam.

“From there, I just tried to use the back end of the vehicle as much as possible and protect my tires, which I didn’t do as well as I wanted to,” she said.

Jayden competed in last year’s junk car race at the fair along with her sister Kiersten, the 2022 fair queen. With her car already prepared for junk car races, Jayden spent only an hour or two Thursday getting it ready for a different style of event.

“We had a couple modifications to fit into the rules for a demolition event, but nothing major,” she said. “It was a blast. I was a little skeptical about a demo event because of how small I am, but I have no regrets. It was a great way to finish off my car rather than just send it to a junkyard.”

Gursky is headed to East Stroudsburg University this fall to major in biology. Thursday, however, likely won’t be the last time you see her in a race car.

“As long as I have time for them,” she said, “I’ll definitely stick to the fairs with the junk car races and demos.”

Today at the fair: Buster the Clown will be on hand to entertain. A shawl spinning demonstration is at 4:30 p.m. Dean Hahn and the Hawks will be on stage at 4 p.m., with the Cramer Brothers at 7 and 9 p.m. Micro Wrestling will be in the arena at 6 p.m.