Riding mower racing hits high gear

Lawn mower racing is no NASCAR, but the record-holder hit 80 mph.
Lawn mower racing is no NASCAR, but the record-holder hit 80 mph.
Lawn mower aficionados, racing fans and speed demons will gather this coming weekend in Zion, Illinois for the Nostalgia Days Classic, a two-day riding mower racing event put on by the United States Lawn Mower Racing Association (USLMRA).

USLMRA sponsors a nation-wide series of mower races throughout the year featuring riding lawn mowers with cutting blades removed that race at speeds from 5-60 mph.

The Zion event will also feature an appearance by the holder of the record for fastest lawn mower, Bobby Cleveland, who set the world speed record of 80.792 mph at the Bonneville Salt Flats in 2006.

Folks who can't make it to Zion can see lawn mower racing at any of 130 sanctioned USLMRA races, including a nationally televised event over Labor Day weekend.

This year's annual STA-BIL Keeps Gas Fresh Finals and Challenge of Champions, Labor Day Weekend, takes place in Delaware, Ohio, which the group affectionately calls "Mowhio."

Formed in 1992, the USLMRA is the oldest and largest lawn mower racing sanctioning body, with more than 600 members and 32 chapters and affiliates.
ADNFCR-2034-ID-19222155-ADNFCR