Drivers at the Durham Fair will check their engines one last time before the announcer calls out those electrifying words: “Start your lawnmowers!” when some 40 rider lawn mowers will race.
On a recent Sunday, the Durham Fair Foundation sponsored a free program on the fairgrounds, “How to Race a Lawn Mower” for those interested in learning about the esoteric competitive sport of lawnmower racing. These weren’t a bunch of guys walking in circles cutting the grass, either.
And, make no mistake, these aren’t the typical rider mowers that your father-in-law leisurely cruises around on his ¼-acre lawn on a Saturday morning.
Think: “Get your mower runnin’.” These are souped-up four-wheeler racing lawnmowers that roar like Harleys with straight pipes. Re-built for speed - up to 60 mph.
Mower madness began in 1992 as an April Fools Day joke and has become a national trend with many fans and participants here. The Connecticut Lawn Mower Racing Association is a local chapter of the U.S. Lawn Mower Racing Association, which boasts over 500 members.
Mike Farmer, of Griswold, a veteran racer and winner of several championships, believes this is a sport for anyone with a more domestic craving for speed. Much tamer than monster truck racing or NASCAR - both famous for its made-for-TV thrills and spills. Sure, you won’t burn up the asphalt in Lowe’s Motor Speedway in North Carolina - but maybe a bit of dirt track.
This is a sport made for do-it-yourselfers. Farmer, who grew up on a farm in Ohio where he spent time fixing the family tractors and cars, got into this lawn mower racing by accident.