Nisswa Turtle Races

[UncleDave]

Has anyone ever participated or brought your kids to this weekly event?  My parents had a cabin in Merrifield when I was a kid and we did the race one year.  What a blast.  I came in 2nd out of about 100 "racers".  Great memories.  If you are in the area, give the kids a shot at the title.  They even rent out turtles if you don't have one.   

[deadeye]

Regretably, anamal rights groups got wind of the races.  They claimed attempting to make a turtle crawl faster was cruel and threatened to sue any kid found with a turtle!

[Randy Kaar]

remember who lives in merrifield deadeye?

randy aka bh

[iceman]

UD,
you talking about this one ??

Web

http://www.nisswa.com
This is a family fun traditional event for all ages! Races are held every Wednesday from June 11-August 20, rain or shine, at 2:00 pm sharp. Turtles are provided at the race site. Prizes are awarded to the winners of each race. 350+ racers show up weekly to see who has the fastest turtle. This event is a must attend!
Type of Event

Festivals & Events
Directions to Event

Nisswa is located on Hwy 371, approximately 13 miles north of Brainerd/Baxter.
Additional Rate Info

Purchase a turtle button at registration for $3.00 per racer.
Dates

6/11/2008 to 6/11/2008
6/18/2008 to 6/18/2008
6/25/2008 to 6/25/2008
7/2/2008 to 7/2/2008
7/9/2008 to 7/9/2008
7/16/2008 to 7/16/2008
7/23/2008 to 7/23/2008
7/30/2008 to 7/30/2008
8/6/2008 to 8/6/2008
8/13/2008 to 8/13/2008
8/20/2008 to 8/20/2008
Availability

Held every Wednesday at 2:00 pm in the parking lot behind the Nisswa Chamber of Commerce building, Main Street, Nisswa.
Additional Information

    *
      Event is Accessible to Disabled

Looks like they are still having it 

[Ryan]

I think I will be taking my kids tomorrow.  According to my schedule it starts at 1:00 though.

[GirlGuide]

Thanks for the info Iceman!!  One of these day's we are going to have to take our kids to this, it's not too far from our cabin, and I know they would have a blast!

 

gg

[UncleDave]

Iceman, this is the one.  What great memories.  We brought our own turtle and then released them when we were done.  My brother and I scoped out the shallows in my parents pontoon for turtles and jumped off of the front to catch several.  We arced them at hoem and we brought the two fastest.  Man, that was almost 30 years ago.  How time flies.

P.S.  I am still ticked today about losing.  The other kid I raced for the final couldn't get his turtle out of it's shell and mine was raring t go.  He was shaking it to try to "wake" it up when he accidentally dropped it onto the pavement.     That did the job and the turtle couldn't wait to go.  It was a photo finish, but my turtle trophy was not to be...   I still have nightmares and I often wake withe the shakes sweating uncontrollably.

[PJ Maguire]

I used to sell turtles there with the neighbor kid every Wed. It was a blast! Always a good time at the races.

[backwoods]

I can relate to the turtle marketing aspect of the races.  I lived on Hubert as a kid and would try and make a quarter renting turtles.  I even numbered them so I would get em back.

Anyone remember when Howard Wallentine ran em in the 60s?  Thats when I was there...lol