SEPTEMBER 2016 | 9
CHINOOKOBSERVER.COM
Slow riders test wits and gears at Port of Ilwaco
I
LWACO — A refrain from a classic
song makes it clear that “Low riders
go a little slower.”
On Friday afternoon, going a little
slower is the theme as the first event of
the yearly Rod Run to the End of the
World kicks off with the slow drag at
the Port of Ilwaco.
Sponsored by the Port of Ilwaco
and the Ilwaco Merchants Associa-
tion, dozens of cars compete to see
whose custom machine can coast the
farthest on Howerton Way.
A large crowd watches the race, the
rules of which are relatively simple.
Both cars leave the starting line
at the same time and accelerate to a
maximum speed of 20 mph for ap-
proximately 60 feet before crossing
the “coast line,” that consists of a fire
hose stretched across the roadway.
After the rear wheels cross the
coast line, the driver immediately puts
the vehicle in neutral and allows it to
coast along the road until reaching an-
other section of fire hose at the finish
line.
Use of brakes is prohibited, as is
spinning the vehicle’s tires at the start
or excessively revving up the engine.
The winner is the vehicle closest
to and with all four wheels across the
finish line that is approximately 200
feet away.
Many of the entrants are slow drag
veterans.
“This is the second time I’ve been
here with this car, but I have been in
the race five or six times with other
cars,” said the driver of a white 1959
Cadillac four-door, with 126,000 actu-
al miles on it. “Last year, I coasted too
far and lost,” he said.
Vehicles of every description —
not always “souped up” hot rods —
are entered. Some recent entries have
included newer vehicles including
several PT Cruisers and a 2010 Chev-
rolet Camaro.
Family and friends also participate
in the race, and pickup trucks some-
times have passengers seated in lawn
chairs in the truck beds. Whether the
extra weight on the vehicles helps or
hinders the ability to coast is open to
question.
The Slow Drag at Port of Ilwaco on Friday night of Rod Run weekend gives spectators a close-up look at beautiful classic
cars in slow motion.
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