And they’re off: Quirky Nevada races in 2016

Submitted by Kirk Williams

If you want to race it, Nevada will let you. Cars, bathtubs, camels, enclosed bicycles that resemble little bullets and other things both mobile and not: there are races for all of those and more in the Silver State. Here’s a look at a of Nevada’s quirky races.

Cocktails & Cannons: The Great Bathtub Races, June 25, Ely

Bathtubs show their adaptability as seaworthy vessels during The Great Bathtub Races at Cave Lake State Park in Ely. Both motorized and non-motorized tubs compete in this event born out of a hotel remodeling project, a little ingenuity and a town that knows a good idea when it sees one.

The event started in 2009 as Cocktails and Cannons, an outdoor event at Cave Lake featuring fireworks, according to Meg Rhoades of the White Pine County Tourism & Recreation Board. As part of the festivities, Cave Lake was decked out with floating bonfires made out of bathtubs recycled from a hotel remodeling project.

“It looked a little redneck during the day, but it looked amazing at night,” Rhoades said. And then someone floated the idea of racing the bathtubs the next year. The rest is history.

International Camel & Ostrich Races, Sept. 9-11, Virginia City

Camels have been racing in this historical mining town for the past 57 years. Or actually, they run around the Virginia City Arena and Fairgrounds, jockeys desperately hanging on, hoping the animals decide to cross the finish line. Over the years, ostrich, emu and zebra racing also has been a part of this quirky event, which began as a joke.

In 1959, Nevada-based newspaper the Territorial Enterprise announced that a camel race would take place in Virginia City. That was a fib, but the idea gained traction and an actual race occurred in 1960. Director John Huston, in the area to film “The Misfits,” won the first International Camel Races, and the event continues today.

Virginia City is about 26 miles south of Reno. Lodging includes the Silverland Inn & Suites;  Edith Palmer’s Country Inn bed and breakfast; and the Gold Hill Hotel. For more, see the Virginia City Tourism Commission’s webpage on the International  Camel & Ostrich Races. 

Human Powered Speed Challenge, Sept. 12-17, Battle Mountain

There’s no place like Battle Mountain. Especially if you want to see how fast a bike can go.

Battle Mountain is home of the annual World Human Powered Speed Challenge, where recumbent bicycles enclosed in aerodynamic shells race down a stretch of Nevada state Route 305, attempting to break the record of 83 mph.

What makes Battle Mountain so perfect for human-powered speed challenges? It has a long stretch of road where the slope is no more than 2/3 of 1 percent — the slope allowance necessary for this sport.

“It’s a very special place,” Al Krause, who runs the event with his wife, Alice, said. 

The event, which is expected to draw 23 to 25 competitors this year, attracts teams from all over the world. Teams consist of a single racer, who is pushed along a 15-meter section of the course before launching into a 5-mile run culminating in a 200-meter tract, where the speed is recorded.

Battle Mountain is about 218 miles east of Reno on Interstate 80. For more on Battle Mountain and lodging there, visit BattleMountainTourism.com. For more on the World Human Powered Speed Challenge, visit Recumbents.com, click on the “Racing” link and scroll down to “WHPSC at Battle Mountain.”

National Championship Air Races, Sept. 14-18, Reno

High-performance aircraft race on circular tracks at this event, the only one of its kind in the country. The annual National Championship Air Races routinely draws upwards of 150,000 spectators to see pilots race in six categories, including the unlimited class, in which air speeds often exceed 500 mph.

Between races, there are air shows and flight demonstrations, and attendees also can view displays of static aircraft. The Air Races are in Reno, in the community of Stead. For lodging information, visit the Reno-Sparks Convention and Visitors Authority website, VisitRenoTahoe.com.

World Championship Outhouse Races, Oct. 1-2, Virginia City

Outhouses on wheels, pushed by teams with names like Sport A Potty and Commando Commode, race on the main street of historical Virginia City in this crapshoot of an event.

As random as it may sound, the Outhouse Races do have a historical basis: according to the Virginia City Tourism Commission website, it marks a moment in history when townspeople took their outhouses to the streets and marched to city hall to protest new ordinances that outlawed outdoor toilets. 

Participation is possible, as the race is open to the public — registration closes Sept. 28 — but it’s not for the fainthearted. Teams have to put together a functional outhouse that is at least 6 feet tall, not including chimneys or flags, among other requirements. But steering and brakes are optional.

For more, see the Virginia City Tourism Commission’s webpage on the World Championship Outhouse Races.

Red Run Race, October, Virginia City

Foot racing meets zombie theater at the Red Run Race in Virginia City. This year is the fourth anniversary for this event, where in the past runners have had three registration options: register as the dead, meaning you will dress as a zombie and be assigned to a “dead zone”; register as a “living insane,” meaning you will act crazy and pour fake blood on people; or register as a runner. Runners just run and “finish alive,” according to the event website.

Crazy? Yes, but this is Virginia City, which has a reputation for hauntings (“Ghost Adventures,” a Travel Channel show, got its start here) and as well as quirkiness (the town is home to the International Camel Races and the Outhouse Races). Details on this year’s Red Run Race are still developing; check the Virginia City Tourism Commission website for developments. 

Bed Races in Beatty, part of Beatty Days, Oct. 28-30, Beatty

Beds on wheels, pushed by five-person teams, are raced up and down a hilly street in Beatty as part of Beatty Days, Oct. 28-30.

Why?

“I don’t know,” Linda Shirley, Beatty Chamber of Commerce administrative assistant, said. “They’ve always done it.”

But racing beds makes perfect sense in the context of Beatty Days. The annual event also includes a root beer drinking-and-belching contest for children; a Pickle Liquor Hoot-N-Holler competition (you drink pickle juice and hot sauce and then yell; the loudest yeller wins); and Chicken Bingo, in which a numbered panel is laid out, you bet on a number, you let chickens run on the panel, and … you can imagine the rest. Beatty Days has more traditional events, such as a chili cook-off and a car show, but the Bed Race is something of a sleeper hit.

For more on the Bed Race, Beatty Days and Beatty lodging, visit the Beatty Chamber of Commerce website, BeattyNevada.org, and click the link to events.