Some time ago, one of my volunteers came across this photo while scanning and asked me if I knew anything about it. I had nothing, but after doing some research, I discovered what was going on in it.
Taken for the front page of the October 2, 1975 issue of The Romeo Observer, it shows a man operating a snowmobile on grass with onlookers in the background. I bet you're wondering, "Why is he doing that? Does running a snowmobile on grass damage it?"
It turns out that this was a part of a snowmobile drag race sponsored by the Washington Lions Club held the weekend prior. What we're seeing is the "start of the championship heat of the superstock racing."
And get this, this was the fourth annual snowmobile drag race sponsored by that organization! In 1972, the Washington Lions Club and the Stony Creek Snowdrifters held the intial races during the weekend of September 16th on 26 Mile and Romeo Plank Roads. They even had an advertisement for the event published in the September 14th edition of The Romeo Observer.
During the following year, the Washington Lions Club were the sole sponsors of the event, which took place on Sunday, September 23 on the Lions Field. It was also under non-sanctioned Michigan International Snowmobile Association (MISA) rules. The MISA gave them permission in the first year.
In addition, the Lions Club provided a chicken barbeque dinner along with hamburgers and hot dogs for the day. More information about the second year can be seen in the September 13, 1973 issue of The Romeo Observer
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For the 1975 race, the promoters must have done a good job because more than 10,000 people showed up. Sadly, we have no idea who the driver is nor the outcome of the championship heat. I hope that guy won the race.
Although the Washington Lions Club doesn't do this kind of event anymore, it's fun to see what they did to bring people together. A snowmobile drag race in the late summer/early fall is a unique way of going about that, and it demonstrated that it's perfectly ok to run a snowmobile on grass.
To learn more about snowmobile drag races in the area, you can contact the Romeo Community Archives at rca@romemodistrictlibrary.org or call (586) 690-4890. If you want to search for articles on that topic, you can find the Romeo newspapers like The Romeo Observer on the Suburban Library Cooperative's Local History Digital Collection website.
Images and sources courtesy of the Romeo Community Archives; Melvin E. and Joan D. Bleich Collection, The Romeo Observer, September 14, 1972, p.1-A and p.2-A; September 13, 1973, p.6-A; and October 2, 1975, p.1-A