The West End Thunder summer race season is coming to an end soon and it is going out with a bang! On Saturday, Aug. 31 our local racing club will host Hot Thunder Nite in downtown Forks.
Mainstreet will be blocked off so that everyone can come to stroll their way through some amazing machines that will be parked up and down Forks Avenue. At the Rainforest Arts Center, there will be live music, vendors, food and a beer garden.
Bring the family down from 4-9 p.m. If you have a rig you would like to display … cars, trucks, and big rigs can be registered for $10; motorcycles only $5. To register in advance go to westendthunder.com to download the form. And, be sure to vote for the “People’s Choice Award.”
The final race weekend of the season will be held at the Forks Airport on Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 7 and 8. An added bonus, in addition to our local racers, will be the Northwest Nostalgia Tour.
The Northwest Nostalgia Tour (NWNT) was formed in 2009 when a group of drag racers met for the first time at Bremerton Raceway. They knew that people enjoyed watching the full-scale versions of the Mattel Hot Wheels cars they played with as kids, but they also knew that their older cars were difficult to categorize and compete with the more modern, sophisticated cars of today.
The association was born that day when “Nitro” Bob Rude took it upon himself to request the track manager allow the ’50s and ’60s style drag cars the concession of racing together as a group, and they ran with it. The NWNT now proudly boasts over twenty member teams and hundreds of fans, and is growing in popularity each year!
NWNT still follows the “old school” formula of hot rod design, while also incorporating all current safety rules required by the NHRA.
NWNT can be found racing at tracks throughout Washington, Oregon, and Canada; bringing back the days of the ’50s and ’60s when these crazy cars (and their insane drivers) were thrilling crowds from coast to coast. NWNT has graciously squeezed this performance, at the Forks Airport, into their schedule.
If all that racing makes you hungry the drags also offer concessions, with hamburgers, hotdogs and some great traditional Mexican food selections!
WET has had a rough season with some rain-outs, think about becoming a member, or volunteering, membership is only $25, information is on their webpage, and come on out for these next two weekends as summer comes to an end ..and support WET.
Christi Baron,
