Drag Racing – Kid Style

The sign said Drag Racing Tonight. Sure! Let’s go watch some muscle cars and drag racers. Or so we thought.

It was the best we could find for a Saturday night date –  drag races at the county fairground. Turns out it was motorcycle and ATV racing. For kids.

I wondered why the place seemed so family-friendly. It’s because this event was all about the kids. No hairy biker dudes or funny-fuel cars here. Just families enjoying a clean-cut sport.

Lemme tell ya, these kid riders were dead serious about competing. They were heavily geared, had great machines, and a pit crew full of parents.

The track was 200 feet of dirt, complete with a Christmas Tree starter and electronic timers.

We watched about two hours of heats. All the smaller bikes and younger riders went first. They raced two at a time down the dirt track.

But what charmed us most were the little kids. I’m talking really tiny tots on motorized wheels. They must have truly ambitious parents. I can only imagine how that conversation went:

Dad:  “I bought Junior an ATV.”
Mom:  “She’s three.”
Dad:  “I entered her in the drag races.”
Mom:  “She’s THREE!”

Really though, the little girls were pretty impressive. They seemed all-in for the sport, but disappeared after about age eight or nine. I’m going to guess the competition against boys gets pretty fierce as they get older.

Teen boys were on larger bikes and modified ATVs. Their races were later in the evening.

We hung around for a couple of hours, but exited before the older teens raced. It got pretty chilly in the bleachers as the sun went down.

Just another Saturday night drag in the country…