Bud "Elmow" Elmore will tell you that he is one "mowtivated" dude. The Anza resident has spent the last year and a half organizing and advocating for his brainchild, the Pacific Coast Lawn Mower Racing Association.

"I’ve been traveling up and down the coast promoting this sport," said Elmore in a recent interview. "My goal is to ultimately get a nationally sanctioned lawn mower race here in Anza, and in other places on the West Coast."

Sanctioning comes by way of the United States Lawn Mower Racing Association, a governing body founded in 1992 under the sponsorship of Stabil, a fuel stabilizer manufacturing company. The organization currently boasts more than 40 chapters and clubs and sponsors a national, competitive Points Championship Series.

Elmore and his fellow Anza mower enthusiasts are in the formative years of getting to the eventual goal of a Points Series race.

"We didn’t know much about the sport when we first started a year ago," Elmore said. "But we did our research – we did some trial and error – and learned from each other."

In April of 2009, Elmore started hosting bi-monthly races during the good weather seasons in Anza. He and his cohort Don "Mowcedes" Brenz built a one-eighth mile oval dirt track on the High Country Recreation complex near Mitchell and Kirby roads, complete with a sprinkler system and safety barriers like tires, hay bales and wire fences.

"When we have enough entrants we’ll go from about 2 p.m. to 5 or 6 p.m.," Elmore explained. "That includes the solo time trials and the various, multi-mower races."

To ensure that the races are competitive and fun for everyone involved, Elmore has participating drivers run timed, qualifying laps so that he or she can be placed with others of comparable skill and speed. That way everyone from novices to those with some races under their belt can have a good time.

Elmore has three priorities in mind when he puts the races on.

"Our number one priority is safety," he said. "The number two priority is to have fun. And, the number three priority is winning."

To meet the safety objective, Elmore has established some stringent requirements.

"All riders must have helmets and SFI-approved neck braces before I’ll let them on the track," Elmore explained. "In addition, we require that they wear long sleeve shirts, long pants and over the ankle safety boots."

"If you take care of the safety factor, and you put people in races with others who have similar equipment and skill, then the fun, and the winning will take care of itself," Elmore said.

All three priorities were in evidence at the April 11 races. Despite a small turnout due to a rain forecast, the drivers who competed had a good deal of fun. Among them was Pam Watson, the day’s only female driver.

"It’s fun, but it’s challenging," Watson said. "And, accidents do happen."

"If you’re headed for the fence," she continued, with a smile. "You jump Advertisement

[ Chatton and Associates ] off or hit the kill switch. I am black and blue all over from racing."

Watson had an unfortunate opportunity to put her theory into practice in the first race of the day. She was hanging in the middle of the pack midway through the race when her green No. 3 mower experienced a left front wheel malfunction, a major problem for even the most experienced drivers.

This caused the mower to make a speedy beeline for the hay bale constraints and, before Watson could jump to safety, she and her rig hit the bales and flipped over. It was a scary couple of seconds before fellow racers and spectators came to her aid.

Among them was nurse Annie Ashby, herself an aspiring racer, who did a thorough check of Watson for several minutes before the shaken driver stood and walked off the course to a round of applause from the crowd.

"This was a good example of how those safety precautions make a big difference," said Elmore. "Without the helmet and without the neck brace, she would have fared much worse."

Thankfully, that was the only mishap of the day’s two races. All participants were respectful and careful drivers. There was none of that nudging or swapping paint that you see in other types of vehicle races.

"That’s what happens when you stress fun over winning," Elmore said. "People compete but they also watch out for each other."

Spectators had a good time, too. Especially happy were the fans of Don "Donomite" Wimpee, whose blue No. 2 mower was clearly the class of the field that Sunday, winning both races.

"We’re big fans of Donomite racing – we’re Don’s cheering squad," said Anza resident Chuck Bailey. "And, we are making history as the first tailgaters at the Anza Lawn Mower races."

Bailey, his wife Lee Ann, and their friend Henry Viscarret cooked sausages on a propane stove perched on the back of their pickup, sipped cold beverages, and watched the races enthusiastically.

"This is a pretty good community event," Bailey added. "You can bring the family and for the $1 admission price you can have an afternoon of good, clean fun."

One of the attractions of lawn mower racing is its reasonable start-up cost, especially when compared to other motor sports.

"I got my two mowers basically for free," Elmore explained. "You find people who aren’t using their old mowers anymore and you take those and fix them up. You’re biggest expenses might be for things like pulleys, belts and perhaps a new set of tires, but you can start racing with a bone-stock engine and I guarantee you’ll have a lot of fun."

For more information about lawn mower racing, contact Elmore at (951) 581-4409 or at 2budzracing@gmail.com for more information about upcoming races which take place at the High Country Recreation complex, on Mitchell and Kirby roads.