14th Annual World Power Wheelstanding Championships - Are They Nuts?

Greg Leideker's backflip last year set the bar high, and the competitors at the 14th annual Byron Dragway World Power Wheelstanding Championships defied rain, snow, hail, and 55-mph winds to become legends in the eyes of Byron Dragway's frozen fans.

This event has become epic over the last few years, and as the purse gets close to $40,000 in total payouts, the crazies have emerged with their sights set on backflips, fires, and barrel rolling. Each year in October, promoter Ron Leek organizes this year-ending spectacle that is open to all comers. To win, you have to pass tech and then capture one of the seven classes that include the highest, longest, and our favorite, most violent. There is a panel of judges, but it's really about who is the crowd favorite. That honor is usually earned with smashed fenders, sparks, and leaking fluids. If you need some cash and don't mind breaking stuff for it, visit byrondragway.com or show up in person and join the fun.

Most Photographic
Jason Carr's nitrous-injected, small-block, Chevy-powered '92 LX Mustang rolled up to the line looking like an average street racer. As he sat on the line, his buddy opened the valve on the nitrous bottle. Jason was worried about the insane winds that were blowing across the track. The grandstand on the west side of the track blocked the wind up to about the 400-foot mark. He figured he'd have to put it down before the end of the bleachers. Right before Jason staged, he saw the flags relax for just a second and thought he had a window of opportunity to make a full run. He launched the car and screamed down the track, scraping his bumper all the way to the 450-foot mark. Once he got past the grandstand, the wind caught the underside of the car. At the speed he was going, the car took off like an airplane. Jason says, "It felt like I got hit by another car when I got past the grandstands. It changed directions so suddenly. When the car stopped, someone opened the door and told me not to move." This was the first time Jason's dad ever saw him race. We wonder what he thought of his son earning his wings and winning the Most Photographic Wheelie.

By Mike Yoksich

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