Drag racing draws a crowd and a variety of vehicles

Aug. 25—WEST MEAD TOWNSHIP — The high cost of gasoline has many people thinking twice when they fill their tanks, but hundreds of drivers at the Crawford County Fair were happy to burn plenty of fuel Wednesday evening.

They burned it in a variety of vehicles — big pickup trucks, bigger pickup trucks, and some really super-huge pickup trucks; all-terrain vehicles and side-by-sides; sport utility vehicles and motorcycles; and an eclectic mix of cars that included both a Volkswagen Golf and a BMW station wagon.

The high-octane occasion was the KOI Drag Racing event being held in front of the grandstand for the second consecutive year. For just $10 (or $20 for drivers of diesel vehicles), any driver — even some as young as 6 on ATVs — could nose up to the starting line, wait for the green light and then floor it for 200 feet.

"It's something anybody can do," said Lewis Cleaver, owner of the Owenton, Kentucky-based organization, as he nodded toward three vehicles among the dozens lined up for practice drags just before the races began. "As you see here, there's a Jeep Grand Cherokee, there's a Suburban there, there's a RZR. I mean, a golf cart — whatever you got, we got a class for it. It doesn't matter what it is. What you drove in here tonight, you can come out here and race.

"You can run your minivan," he added. "We got a class for it."

Eighteen-year-old Dylan Bucklew of Cochranton was among the car lovers eager to speed down the track — or if not speed, at least race to the best of their vehicle's ability.

"This thing is slow, but whatever," Bucklew said from behind the wheel of his 2002 BMW 325 station wagon. "It's a pretty good car."

Farther up the line of racers, a diesel-burning pickup waiting its turn seemed to express a bit of impatience as its engine roared to life and a thick black fog engulfed the nearby registration stand.

Though a good car, the station wagon couldn't compete with regard to decibels.

"It's too quiet," Bucklew said, "but I can do burnouts."

Despite its willingness to burn rubber, the car's weight — more than 4,000 pounds — seemed likely to be more of a drag than is desirable in drag racing. Asked how he expected to do, Bucklew smiled and said, "Not very well."

Even if finishing first wasn't the top priority of every driver, the event was the real deal in terms of competition. A starting light system similar to those used in professional drag racing stood at the starting line, flashing a series of yellow lights down the pole until green lights at the bottom sent the paired drivers flying. At the finish line, a laser system determined the winner, according to Cleaver.

The driver entry fees determined the winners' payouts, Cleaver said. A class with 10 gasoline-fueled vehicles competing, for instance, would pay the winner $50 while the second- and third-place finishers would receive $30 and $20, respectively. In a smaller class with just three competitors, it would be winner-takes-all.

Unlike Bucklew, who was racing for the first time, 9-year-old Lily Vanderhoof of Meadville has been competing for a couple of years and was optimistic about winning on her DRR 90 ATV. But mostly, she said, she likes "having fun and spending time on my four-wheeler."

Vanderhoof, her ponytail hanging down from the back of her helmet as she sat atop her gurgling four-wheeler, offered a couple of tips for success in drag racing.

"Go exactly when the light turns green," she said, "and hold the throttle while you're holding the brake, so when you're ready, you can just take off."

It was a plan that adult drivers like Heather Sample of Conneautville were also trying to implement. Sample, atop a Honda Rincon 680, said she rode trails regularly at home but had not done anything special to prepare for the drag event.

"I'm here to have fun," she said, "but winning would be a bonus."

While she hadn't trained for it, Sample had been eyeing the race for some time. She saw the event when it was held for the first time at the 2021 fair and immediately wished she had known about it sooner so she could have participated. Once she saw what the event was about, she decided she would be back and riding her ATV this year.

And what was the event all about?

"Pure fun," Sample said.

Mike Crowley can be reached at (814) 724-6370 or by email at .