mowermovie.com

WASHINGTON, DC − March 23, 2009 − Nightclub DC9 will be hosting a fund raiser to benefit the production of On Your Mark, Get Set, MOW!, a documentary on the sport of lawn mower racing. Dubbed the " Poor man's NASCAR " lawn mower racing has offered an opportunity for middle class motor sports enthusiasts to participate in accessible and affordable racing. While people can get involved in the sport for a few hundred dollars the top racers chasing the national championship often spend thousands on their " mowchines ". Although the racers come from a wide range of socioeconomic backgrounds they all share the ability to tweak small engines for maximum performance sometimes achieving speeds of over 50 MPH during a race. The races are held at locations throughout rural America offering racers the opportunity to compete locally or at the national level sometimes involving driving times of up to twenty hours to get to a race. There are no cash prizes in organized lawn mower racing, instead the racers compete for plastic trophies and bragging rights. Many times gate receipts from the races are donated to local charities. The charities range from volunteer fire houses to efforts to find cures for debilitating diseases which have affected the racer's lives in one way or another.

Mike Ratel has spent two years traveling to over ten states documenting lawn mower racing and the community of racers who are involved in the sport. During this time he has discovered that there is much more to the sport than winning and losing. There are racers who have redeemed their lives though the sport and those who have had the satisfaction of using the sport to raise money to fight diseases which took the lives of loved ones.

DC9 at 1940 9th Street, NW Washington, DC will be hosting a fund raiser benefit for the production of the film on Monday, March 30th at 9pm. Performing at the benefit will be Pup Tent, Phoebus, Tim Bracken, and Janel and Anthony. It is expected that the trailer for film will be shown at the event.