open engined garden rider (typically the Westwood Lawnbug) and Group 4 being a lawn tractor. All mowers must have their blades removed, retain specified original components such as their chassis, bonnet and drive configuration. Engine regulations vary between clubs, but these are standard lawn mower type engines with little or no modification or tuning. Given the right track conditions mowers can reach speeds of up to 50 mph although track design serves to limit this and ensure that driver skill remains an important element of the sport. One of the best known events is the annual BLMRA 12 hour endurance race which has been held near Wisborough Green since 1978. The first such event was won by Sir Stirling Moss, Derek Bell and Tony Hazlewood (designer and builder of the Westwood Lawnbug). Actor Oliver Reed also participated. The event attracts participants from other British clubs and from all over the world, including competitors from France, Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg, Finland and the United States. 2018 saw the win taken by an overseas entrant for the first time in the event's history when it was won by a team from Luxembourg. The current distance record over the 12 hours sits at 354.5 miles. In 1981 the North west lawn mower racing association (NWLMRA) was formed. Following expansion the NWLMRA races all over the north of England. For more information visit www.nwlmra.org In the United States The Twelve Mile 500 is a lawn mower race held in the small town of Twelve Mile, Indiana, organized by the Twelve Mile Lions Club and occurring annually on Independence Day. The tradition began in 1963 as a race for factory-built mowers with their mowing decks removed but in 1996 split into a two-race event with one for four-cycle Briggs lawn mowers and another for modified mowers. The race adopted the "Grand Prix" style in 1970 and has been held in Plank Hill Park ever since. The race structure has once again changed with the addition of another race. The 2010 race included a superstock race in addition to the briggs and modified races. The Twelve Mile 500 consists of a 15-mile, 60-lap course run on a quarter-mile track in the park, with a maximum of 33 entrants per race. Each participating team consists of a driver, a two-person pit crew and a lap judge, and must meet a speed of approximately 30 mph to qualify just