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100 Teams, More Than 100 mph – Grass Races Anything But a Drag

October 08, 2008 - CASCO -- Winter snocross races send high-flying snowsleds 50 feet over jumps and careening around tight corners.

Grass drags, relatively speaking, are more mellow.

But this month's races beside Sebago Lake are sure to lure not only curious snowmobilers but also quizzical spectators, even if they are uninterested in the world of winter sledding.

For the second year, grass drag races will be held in Casco on Oct. 25 and 26. More than 100 teams from the Northeast Grass Drag Series will compete for two days over a 500-foot course to clock times in excess of 100 miles an hour.

"Anyone can see it's fast action, with sleds going 119 miles an hour. There is a lot of atmosphere," said Flint Stone, director of the North East Snowmobile Racing Association in Hudson Falls, N.Y.

The races require snowmobilers to use converted sleds that include special kits to cool them in the grass. But basically, the sport uses the same sleds used on snow to rip it up and race across farm fields.

"Their sleds are converted to run on grass, but not much. There will be sleds there over 200 horsepower. A regular snowmobile probably has a good 120 horsepower," said Mike Tevanian, a fan in Westbrook who used to race.

Tevanian, who owns West-port Motorsports of Westbrook, said all manner of snowmobiles are used at grass drag races, from low-end to souped-up sleds with engines pushing 300 horsepower.

There are three huge grass drag events in the United States – one in Ohio, one in Minnesota and a third in Freemont, N.H.

Some, such as those in New Hampshire, also feature watercross events with snowmobilers racing across lakes. But this activity was banned in Maine several years ago when one too many snowmobiles sank.

Maine's grass drags are more humble and more small-time, complete with a local frozen custard stand, a fresh farm stand, lawn chairs and views to Route 302 leaf peppers heading toward the White Mountains.

Raymond Dingley's 27-acre farm sits right beside Route 302 in Casco, where the grass drag races will return later this month. As many as 1,500 fans and racers are expected to attend.

Dingley became a grass drag fan about 15 years ago, back when a few races were held in Maine. To help bring the sport back, he offered his farm to attract racers to the Sebago region.

His field was leveled; the track built and reseeded. In September 2007, 100 teams brought their snowmobiles to run more than 100 miles per hour across a hayfield near Dingley's cornfield.

"Some fans didn't understand it," Dingley said. "But I haven't heard a bad word about it."

CASCO GRASS DRAGS
WHAT: Snowmobile races on grass.
WHEN: All day Oct. 25 and 26
WHERE: In Casco, just off Route 302.
HOW MUCH: Admission is $10 for adults; $15 for children ages 5 to 12.

DEIRDRE FLEMING, Portland Press Herald, October 2, 2008


Lakes:
Regions: Sebago


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