Faster than your neighbor’s Craftsman, some souped-up lawnmowers are on track to race during the Sequim Irrigation Festival as part of the 25th annual Logging Show on Saturday, May 12.

The Sequim Lawnmower Racing Association hosts at least two dozen racers from as far away as Oregon and Canada. They’ve chopped, lowered, added exhaust piping and tweaked transmissions to get up to speeds of 54 mph on their grass cutters.

Using NASCAR rules, racers go in 15-lap heats on an oval dirt track vying for prizes like beer, a mower battery and a car polisher.

“People seem to like this stuff more than trophies anyways,” said event organizer Don Trussell.

He improved the track this year, making it comparable to highly competitive courses in Oregon. Trussell began the sport in 2009 after his wife, Debby, became active in it. She won the Hadlock Days’ Lawnmower Race and took second in nationals in Idaho in 2009.

“She was having all the fun, so I joined, too,” he said.

After a few years off from racing, he’s begun organizing Sequim’s races.

“It’s been an ongoing event for many years,” Trussell said.

“The community participation has been great and a lot of people work together to put it on. I think a lot of people come to the logging shows to see the races.”

This year he’s added a children’s fun race with push lawnmowers for unique trophies.

Sign-ups are available at the event. Races and events are free to watch.