What's going on here? Charlie Gadeken, founder of the most unique drag race anywhere, is pictured holding a combination power tool/punk-driven drag racer which would take to the track the following weekend during the two-day 8th annual Power Tool Drag Race event right here in Bayview.
Seriously?
Seriously fun.
Charlie, Jim Mason and cohorts at Ace International Speedway (where the event was held) and Cyclecide (host group for Chicken John's Las Vegas event and similar whackiness), told us they hosted several hundred participants. From motorheads to Burning Man folks, robot gamers, Mouse Trap officianados, party animals...and families.
Think Mad Max on holiday. But when it all began, Max was perhaps a little less mad.
Charlie began with an interest in kinetic art, but eventually found himself wanting more "fluff and jingle," as he put it. From creative mind to reality...poof!...it's a whole new past-time...er...sport.
Seriously?
Yup! You might even have seen the races at the Maker Faire. Combine a 75 foot track with a big-block belt sander (leave your wimpy tools at home, please), throw in rockin' bands and some beer...and you can take the idea global. Seriously. Ask Charlie.
"I license the rights to hold these events for a 12 pack of beer," he said. At those steep prices, you might wonder if licensees ever pay up. "I'm still looking for a lawyer who will sue for 3 beers." That would leave him ahead of the game...er...business.
Seriously. Check it out. It's a great way to see some of the industrial space that helps make the neighborhood so unique, meet a cool group of people, and have the kind of fun you're not likely to find any where else. Find all the details online.
PS, Thanks to Jim Ansbro, who seems to know everything worth knowing about Bayview, for the tip!
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