In Patterson, little cars run on a big track

There is a common saying about boys and their toys. For Tri-City Raceway, the “toys” are remote controlled off-road vehicles but it isn’t just for boys. Everyone is welcome.
Tri-City Raceway, 301 U.S. 90 East in Patterson, will be hosting a club race Sunday with practices starting at 10 a.m. and races starting at 1 p.m. Entries are for 1/8 scale nitro buggy, nitro truggy, electric buggy, and electric truggy. Entry fee is $20 first class and $10 each class after. Proceeds go to the club for maintenance of the track.
The public is invited to watch the races with no entry fee. Spectators should bring a chair.
Food and soft drinks will be sold, alcohol is not permitted.
Tri-City Raceway is a nonprofit organization composed of 12 members who maintain a raceway in Patterson.
The land for the track is owned by St. Mary Parish.
“A long time ago, approximately 15 to 20 years, Dr. Francis Metz, Jim Pierce and myself presented the parish with the idea of a race track where the youth could come and race remote controlled buggies,” Mike Izaguirre, a member of Tri-City Raceway, said. “And the parish agreed that it was a good idea and granted our club the use of the ground with the agreement that we maintained it.”
Recently, the members rented equipment and put in the hours to move the dirt and create a new track layout.
Remote controlled racing happens at a national level, and in September, the Southern National’s Competition took place in West Monroe. Tri-City Raceway was able to acquire piping to outline the lanes on the track that the Southern Nationals donated.
“Southern Nationals posted on their Facebook page that any organization willing to tear up the pipe after the races could have it,” Rusty Breaux, vice president of Tri-City Raceway said. “So we got a couple of trucks and trailers, drove the 4 hours there and got it. We were extremely grateful and it made a huge difference for our local field.”
The organization is open to add more members “We are always looking and hoping for more members. We are trying to make this a family-friendly hobby. All ages are welcome,” said Chris Brown, president of Tri-City Raceway.
Membership is $60 for six months or $120 for a year. Fees go to the cost and maintenance of the land and track. For more information, visit their Facebook page, Tri-City Raceway.