Mower Racing Catches On As "Family Sport"
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"Lawn mower racing has grown tremendously the past few years. However, it's still a relatively inexpensive family sport and we're trying to keep it that way," says Fran Ivancic, Fultonville, N.Y., who recently sent FARM SHOW photos of a recent mower race he competed in.
Ivancic founded a lawn mower racing club four years ago. He sets up races in lo-cal communities and uses the ticket revenues from spectators to benefit local fire and ambulance departments, park commit-tees, the Ronald McDonald House, and other charities.
"Ten years ago most people who raced lawn mowers cleaned and painted the ma-chines but kept the original look. Today a lot of the mowers are painted to look like stock cars on the Nascar circuit. Speed has increased a lot. It used to be that 20 or 25 mph was fast. Now many mowers race at speeds of 35 to 40 mph. The extra speed is gained by changing belts and pulleys, using modified front ends, etc."
Ivancic has been racing mowers for the past 10 years. He drives a modified 1965 Ford 70 riding mower powered by an 8 hp engine. "I bought the mower in 1992 for $150. The following two years I used it to win more than $1,500, which I donated to various causes. I lost only one race each year. "The first year our club had only 8 or 10 racing mowers. Last year another club was formed in a nearby community. Now we sometimes have more than 50 mowers on hand for racing events."
Races are held once a month from May through September.
Most racers use "junked out" riding mowers which they modifiy and paint. "It's the closest most people ever come to racing stock cars. A stock car engine can cost $120,000 and one season's racing requires thousands of dollars in upkeep. Or, you can modify and paint a riding mower for $500 or less."
Handling is the key to doing well in this sport, says Ivancic. "For years I beat every-one with my 8 hp engine. Other mowers with bigger engines could go faster on the straight-away, but they couldn't go nearly as fast as I could on the corners. Stiffening up the front end and locking the rear end really helps a machine handle corners well."
There are 4 different classes of races. In all divisions, only mowers with 12 hp or smaller engines are eligible. The "Strictly Stock" division allows no modifications at all to the mower except for a tether kill switch (which is mandatory). Engines can be governed to as high as 3,800 rpms. No modifications can be made to the sheet metal, mufflers, wheels, or tires.
The "Super Stock" class allows engines to be governed as high as 4,400 rpms. Wheels and tires may be substituted with others of any origin as long as wheel rim diameter and width don't exceed the original. The sheet metal may be altered.
The "Modified" class is more of an open class where governors may be modified or removed, a straight pipe exhaust is allowed, wheels and tires may be substituted and sheet metal altered. Posi-traction rear ends are al-lowed and the overall mower profile can be changed. Tires can be "staggered" (you can run a bigger tire on the mower's right side in order to turn more easily), tire air pressure can be adjusted, gearing can be altered, and the front end can be adjusted to the left or right or tipped forward or backward.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Fran Ivancic, Box 262, Fultonville, N.Y. 12072 (ph 518 829-7557).
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Mower Racing Catches On As "Family Sport" FARM HOME Lawn Mowers (31h,38) 22-4-31 "Lawn mower racing has grown tremendously the past few years. However, it's still a relatively inexpensive family sport and we're trying to keep it that way," says Fran Ivancic, Fultonville, N.Y., who recently sent FARM SHOW photos of a recent mower race he competed in.
Ivancic founded a lawn mower racing club four years ago. He sets up races in lo-cal communities and uses the ticket revenues from spectators to benefit local fire and ambulance departments, park commit-tees, the Ronald McDonald House, and other charities.
"Ten years ago most people who raced lawn mowers cleaned and painted the ma-chines but kept the original look. Today a lot of the mowers are painted to look like stock cars on the Nascar circuit. Speed has increased a lot. It used to be that 20 or 25 mph was fast. Now many mowers race at speeds of 35 to 40 mph. The extra speed is gained by changing belts and pulleys, using modified front ends, etc."
Ivancic has been racing mowers for the past 10 years. He drives a modified 1965 Ford 70 riding mower powered by an 8 hp engine. "I bought the mower in 1992 for $150. The following two years I used it to win more than $1,500, which I donated to various causes. I lost only one race each year. "The first year our club had only 8 or 10 racing mowers. Last year another club was formed in a nearby community. Now we sometimes have more than 50 mowers on hand for racing events."
Races are held once a month from May through September.
Most racers use "junked out" riding mowers which they modifiy and paint. "It's the closest most people ever come to racing stock cars. A stock car engine can cost $120,000 and one season's racing requires thousands of dollars in upkeep. Or, you can modify and paint a riding mower for $500 or less."
Handling is the key to doing well in this sport, says Ivancic. "For years I beat every-one with my 8 hp engine. Other mowers with bigger engines could go faster on the straight-away, but they couldn't go nearly as fast as I could on the corners. Stiffening up the front end and locking the rear end really helps a machine handle corners well."
There are 4 different classes of races. In all divisions, only mowers with 12 hp or smaller engines are eligible. The "Strictly Stock" division allows no modifications at all to the mower except for a tether kill switch (which is mandatory). Engines can be governed to as high as 3,800 rpms. No modifications can be made to the sheet metal, mufflers, wheels, or tires.
The "Super Stock" class allows engines to be governed as high as 4,400 rpms. Wheels and tires may be substituted with others of any origin as long as wheel rim diameter and width don't exceed the original. The sheet metal may be altered.
The "Modified" class is more of an open class where governors may be modified or removed, a straight pipe exhaust is allowed, wheels and tires may be substituted and sheet metal altered. Posi-traction rear ends are al-lowed and the overall mower profile can be changed. Tires can be "staggered" (you can run a bigger tire on the mower's right side in order to turn more easily), tire air pressure can be adjusted, gearing can be altered, and the front end can be adjusted to the left or right or tipped forward or backward.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Fran Ivancic, Box 262, Fultonville, N.Y. 12072 (ph 518 829-7557).
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