Get ready for the roar of the engines!
- Details
- Published on Friday, July 20, 2018
Drag races return to Neepawa
By Eoin Devereux
Neepawa Banner & Press
The runway at the Neepawa Municipal Airport will rumble to life on Saturday, July 28, for the Yellowhead Roadrunners’ 18th annual Drag Races. Yellowhead Roadrunners Auto Club president Bert de Koning told the Banner & Press says the club members have been very busy as of late finalizing some important details for the day.
“We recently had a big meeting to go over the last minute details and ensure we had everything organized. The canteens, for example, as well as washrooms and bleachers. As well, we’re confirming the availability of Emergency Services. The sound system and the announcer. There is a lot of things that have to be looked after,” noted de Koning. “This is a huge undertaking for us and it’s also one of the biggest events that’s staged in Neepawa on an annual basis. We have drivers from across Manitoba, as well as there parts of the prairies, who come out to participate each year.”
About 25 volunteers will be working hard during the event, ensuring everything surrounding the races goes off without a hitch. As for the rubber hitting the pavement portion of the festivities, de Kooning said that they are aimed at the amateur drag racers who want to try out the sport.
“We’ll be able to accommodate about 80 cars. Just how many racers we’ll have involved will be dependant on the weather. If the forecast looks good, we should be able to attract up to 80 cars,” said de Koning.
It’s about more than speed
The track is set up for 1/8th mile drags as opposed to the more well known quarter-mile stretch. It’s done this way to keep the insurance costs down and also ensuring the vehicles don’t incur any damage from an extended run. As for the races themselves, de Koning said they aren’t about who has the fastest car, but rather who has the most consistent time. How that will work is that the cars will race earlier that day and get a time for the distance that the drivers are comfortable with. Then, that time gets put in the window of their car and when they race in the afternoon, the drivers have to get as close to that time as possible. There will be no knockouts. De Koning stressed that the most consistent driver, regardless of speed, will win.
“It’s kind of different, how [the races] are set up. How it’ll work is the cars will race earlier that day and get a time for the distance that the drivers are comfortable with. Just as an example, you could have a Volkswagen racing against a Ferrari, but the Ferrari would start off the line later than the Volkswagen during that run, because it has a faster-measured trial time. So at the end of the run, [both cars] should be crossing the finish line at about the same time, so it makes it interesting for the fans to watch.”
Other activities
To go along with the excitement of the races, there will also be a car show the night before at the Neepawa Gladstone Co-op Grocery Store parking lot. In previous years, as many as 65 different types of vintage vehicles and racers filled the lot. A top fuel dragster was also be showcased.
Another fun activities that’ll be geared towards kids between the ages of 4-7 will be the MPI mini car town. Participants will receive a safety lesson on the rules of the road for vehicles and pedestrians. They also learn to recognize traffic signs and then drive battery-powered, kid-sized cars through a mini streetscape.
Races will be held at the Neepawa Municipal Airport (2 miles west, 1/2 mile north of Highway 16 and 5 junction). Gates will open at 10:00 a.m. with the time trials, while the competitive racing starts at 12 noon.
