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There comes a time in every middle-aged man's life where he
feels mechanically unsatisfied. At this point, he can purchase a shiny new
sports car, like a Corvette, or perhaps a hog, preferably Harley Davidson. He
could also hunker down in his garage/man cave and tweak that minivan into doing 180 mph.
But for some, that need for speed comes with the third lap
around his house on his Cub Cadet lawn tractor at a blistering 8 mph. Yes, this
is the post that will be about lawn mower racing.
 ...via Photo Camel
Credit must be given to The Cricketers Arms Pub in England,
where in 1973 several young men complained about the excessive cost of
motorsports. Shortly after, they formed the British Lawn Mower Racing Association. A United States version of
this organization exists, with 45 local clubs. Various small Canadian clubs
exist as well.
This isn't a history lesson, so let's get to the nitty
gritty.
 ...via Zazzle
The lawn mowers used in this event are of the
ride-on variety. The racers remove the blades and any other accessories that
add unnecessary weight, but the cutting deck is retained and bolted firm. The
engines are stock, but may be upgraded with performance parts. These parts are
typically hand fabricated for each mower. There are four divisions in mower
racing, which edict what you can or can't do with your mower. Stock and IMOW
divisions allow for very limited amounts of mower tuning, and the stock governor must be retained, which limits the engine to 3650 rpm. For
the Prepared division, racers are allowed to utilize custom performance parts
and transmissions. These division races usually get up to about 35 mph. The
Factory Experimental (FX) division is pretty much a free-for-all, with mowers
that have exceeded 60 mph in circuits.
 "For some reason, I really want to mow some lawns right now." ...via G-Team
These mowers are rather easy to customize and tune. If Tim "The Tool Man" Taylor can do it, I think any of our CR4ers can as well. (For your viewing pleasure, I've skipped
the parts that feature Patricia Richardson. You're welcome.)
The majority of racing mower components can be adapted from go
carts and motorbikes. The first alteration to the powertrain should be
providing the transmission belt some slack so the transmission's stock pulley
can be replace with a smaller one. The other side of the powertrain is
connected to the motor, and this pulley should be replaced with one of a larger
size. This enhanced gear ratio may need a new belt as well.
 ...via Craigslist
For most assemblies, the lawn mower's governor is a small piece of metal on top
of the carburetor with a 90° bend in it. Other manufacturers will place a plastic governor under the flywheel on top of the engine. By bending this straight, or removing it completely,
the mower's internal speed regulation is compromised. This will essentially make your mower unsuitable for regular mowing applications, since this also regulates rpm based on blade speed.
 Briggs & Stratton governor system. ...via B&S
To further transform a
normal riding mower into a racing edition, it may be desirable to install a
foot throttle. This can be done with a simple lever attached to the mower, with
a cable connecting to the original throttle cable. In many instances the brake
on a racing lawn mower can be removed altogether, because the new gear ratio
will provide enough of a deceleration to slow the mower down, nearly to a stop.
 ...via Kai Eiselein
Not all of this can be accomplished-at least safely-without
also exchanging some stock parts on the mower. New tires are required to
maintain traction, as well as new axles to prevent the stock ones from
deforming. Since most mower racing is done on flat, dirt tracks, a new
suspension isn't required, only recommended. In fact, bringing a racing-tuned mower into a field is extremely dangerous.
Now CR4ers, this isn't your typical Saturday afternoon DIY
project. I've left out some very obvious modifications that need to be made so
DO NOT follow these above instructions. This is more of an overview of
something many of us are capable; a 'bare bones' review if you will. However,
if you insist on building your own, a simple "Roundsearch" will lead you to many
walkthroughs. And, if any CR4ers are mower racing enthusiasts, please add your two cents below.
An alarming number of TV shows cover this topic, yet I've never seen it on SportsCenter.
As for me, I've always preferred the pushing, non-electric
kind of lawn mower. Or the kind that I pay to mow my lawn. Or better yet, the kind that I don't pay to mow my lawn. Get to it HUSH Jr.!
 "Ummm, I'm speechless." ...via Maine.info
Resources
Yahoo Voices - How to Build a Racing Lawn Mower
Barette's Small Engines
G-Team Racing
Instructables - How to Make a Racing Lawn Mower
USLMRA
Wikipedia - Lawn mower racing
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Re: Not Your Grandma's Lawn Mower
