Hot Rodders cruise into town for the weekend

BOWLING GREEN Ky.-Everyone, start your engines.

The National Hot Rod Association is at the Beech Bend raceway for a fast-paced Memorial Day weekend. Naturally, Bowling Green residents aren’t the only ones who come out to enjoy watching and racing.

Racers like Doug Duell from Evansville, Ind. stopped by to have some time on the track.

“I’ve been coming down to Bowling Green for years. I only live about 100 miles north of here. This is by far my favorite racetrack to go to,” Duell said.

Before the big race, the drivers take part in what is called test and tune. This is where vehicles get tested to make sure they’re ready to hit the ground running come race time, which is something track manager Broc Porter looks forward to every year.

“They’re dialing in the engines, tuning the carburetors, whatever they need to do to get ready for this weekend’s race,” Porter said.

This race happens every weekend from the first weekend of March through Thanksgiving weekend. With Memorial Day weekend coming up, Porter said visitors from out of state will fill the town.

“We’ll have racers here this weekend from all over the country. We’re expecting probably about 300 to 350 racers. They’ll be from anywhere and everywhere,” Porter said.

While the Sports National Race is not the biggest event in Bowling Green, Porter said the unique racetrack will help fill other Bowling Green businesses this Memorial Day weekend, as spectators and racers get ready to dash.