The only particles in the air Saturday were clouds of dust flying off the tires of the crowd-pleasing riding lawn mowers.

A total of 14 racers showed up at the annual Wild Coyote Saloon Days celebration at the iconic bar in the woods by the same name.  The annual event’s signature attraction wound up with 13 active lawn mower racers, one machine would not start, but the reaction from the hundreds of folks who showed up and lined the Thompson Pass, aka Montana Highway, 471 got what they came for. 

“This is our second year in a row coming here”, said Coeur d’Alene resident James Campbell.  “We had such a good time last year we marked it on our calendar.  The kids love to watch the lawn mowers and so do I”. 

One festival spokesperson estimated the crowd at more than 400, or about the same number as last year. 

In addition to the lawn mower racers, the bar featured live music, good food and cold beer. 

And with a much-needed break in the area’s string of hot days and choking wildfire smoke, skies in the mountains outside of Thompson Falls were mostly clear with temperatures in the low to mid 80’s. 

“This is a good turnout and we couldn’t be happier with the weather,” said a race spokesman.  “The only negative I can think of is our top three racers are not here this year, they went to a big country music concert”. 

The mowers, which have their cutting blades removed and are limited to 27 horsepower, reach speeds near 30 mph as they roar around the approximately quarter-mile track.  Race positioning is determined by an opening round of time trials, followed by races of up to four mowers at a time. 

Across Highway 471, on the Wild Coyote side of the road, a long line of spectators sat on tailgates and lawn chairs, soaking in the sunshine and cheering on the racers.

    A section of the crowd of fans lining Highway 471 outside the Wild Coyote Saloon during the bar's annual Wild Coyote Days this past Saturday. (Chuck Bandel/VP-MI)
  

    A lawn mower racer riding his John Deere machine holds on during a fast turn around one of the track's tight corners.
  

    A contestant in the Wild Coyote Saloon Days riding lawn mower race roars around the quarter-mile dirt track across from the saloon this past Saturday. (Chuck Bandel/VP-MI)