A collage of photos from previous The Arc North Florida lawnmower races.

It’s time for The Arc North Florida’s Lawnmower Race. For 17 years, The Arc North Florida has been hosting the race as a fundraiser to help benefit people with developmental and intellectual disabilities. The event will take place on Saturday, March 28, at John’s Lawn Equipment, which has sponsored the event all 17 years. The event will be located at 1629 Ohio Ave. North, Live Oak. John’s Lawn Equipment will provide the mowers.

Racers and fans can arrive and register at 8:30 a.m. and racing will commence at 9 a.m. 

There will be individual races, $100 minimum entry fee; and team races, $250 minimum entry fee. The individual races will consist of four people and the winners of each individual race will compete in a run-off for the title of individual winner. The team race is relay style. Each team member completes one lap around a small racetrack. After a team member has completed his or her lap, they will trade off with another teammate until each member of the four person team has gone around the track once. 

There are also pit stop challenges, $500 minimum sponsorship fee, that require all racers to stop and complete a task at different pit stops around the track. The task is usually related to the line of work the sponsor of the pit stop is involved in.

David Hogan, developmental coordinator at The Arc North Florida, said this year, it is important for The Arc North Florida to raise extra funds to help support their services. 

“We need the friends and family of The Arc North Florida to pull together, raise funds and ensure that we can continue to provide the much needed services to individuals in our community,” said Hogan. 

Those who do not want to race can also help support The Arc North Florida by being a track sponsor, a minimum donation of $100.