Lawn mower racing to return to Clements farm

Friday, July 11, 2008

This week’s rain helped settle down the clay surface of the course at A Maze N Place Farm on Budds Creek Road, owned by Tommy and Tina Bowles, who donated the use of their land for the event benefiting the 7th District Volunteer Rescue Squad and the 7th District Optimist Club.

‘‘They’ve been a tremendous help to us,” Ronnie Mattingly, the squad’s president and event chairman, said Wednesday as final preparations continued.

‘‘There’s a lot of time getting the track right,” Mattingly said, including lining the track with hay bales.

‘‘We set them up all around the track to make it safe,” he said. ‘‘The bales hold [the mower riders] in on the track. If one of them slides off, it holds them back and keeps them from going into the crowd.”

About 70 contestants are expected, including about a half dozen from St. Mary’s. Businesses in the Clements community have teamed up to form Party Time Racing, with Jason Brown at the wheel of their modified twin-cylinder, 20-horsepower mowers that reach engine speeds of 6,000 rpm.

‘‘They scream. They make a lot of noise,” team mechanic Francis Guy said Wednesday from his family’s marine and small-engine business.

Brown already has won three races during earlier competitions this year in Florida and North Carolina, and this week’s contests in the team’s hometown could further their members’ aspirations at the national points race to be held Labor Day weekend in Ohio.

‘‘We’re in good shape,” Guy said. ‘‘We hope we’re ready.”

Gates open in Clements at 5 p.m. today, and at 2 p.m. on Saturday. Other activities will include children’s rides, a moon bounce, barrel rides, a kiddy tractor pull, toy-tractor displays, police dog demonstrations, pony rides, face painting, life size boxing robots and antique tractors on display.Ê The Smith Tucker Band will perform at the conclusion of racing on Saturday.

For more information, call 847-729-7363 or go online to www.letsmow.com and www.bowlesfarms.com.

Saturday concertsto feature jazz, brass

Free Saturday evening concerts begin tomorrow at downtown Leonardtown with a 7 p.m. concert by the Francis Bridge Jazz Quartet, to be followed a week later by the River Concert Series Brass Quintet.

The town’s restaurants will be open, and concert goers also are encouraged to bring a chair or blanket to enjoy the music. For more information, call 301-475-9791.

Vacation Bible school to start Monday

Hughesville Baptist Church will be holding its annual vacation Bible school for children age 4 through sixth grade starting next Monday, July 14, and continuing through the week.

The school sessions run from 9 a.m. to noon, and this year’s theme is Cactus Canyon. For more information, call 301-274-3672 or 301-884-8645. Registration can be done online at www.hughesvillebaptistchurch.com.

Library book groupto celebrate 10th year

The Leonardtown Library Book Discussion group meeting since 1998 will celebrate its ten year anniversary on July 17 at their regular monthly gathering. Anyone who has participated in the discussion group is invited to the celebration, which starts at 7 p.m.

Robin Bates, an English professor at St. Mary’s College who has been the discussion leader since it started, will conduct a talk on Cormac McCarthy’s book, ‘‘No Country for Old Men.”

Greenwell plansJuly 19 yard sale

A yard sale at Greenwell State Park in Hollywood from 8 a.m.-2 p.m. on July 19 will provide county residents a chance to sell their items, at $10 per space or $20 per space with a six-foot table. Setup begins at 7 a.m. Payment is due in advance. No payments will be accepted the day of the event.

Also, yard sale donations will be accepted between noon-4 p.m. on Sunday, July 6, or Sunday, July 13, at the Greenwell Canteen.

Proceeds from the sale of vendor spaces, table rentals, food and drink, horse tack and donated items benefit the Greenwell Foundation.

For more information, call 301-373-9775 or send e-mail to dbruton@greenwellfoundation.org.

Sheriff announcessafety patrol zones

Traffic enforcement is more about safety than surprise, and the St. Mary’s sheriff’s office has announced targeted locations for its summer traffic safety enforcement program designed to deter speeding, aggressive driving and other violations.

The announced enforcement schedule includes:

July 14 - Cedar Cove and Greenbrier

July 15 - Hickory Hills and Buck Hewitt Road

July 17 – Route 5 and Washington Street in Leonardtown

July 18 - South Essex Drive and Patuxent Homes

July 21 - Old Village Road and Baptist Church Road

July 23 - Persimmon Hills

July 24 - Breton Bay and St Clements Shores

July 25 – Wildewood

July 28 - Hunting Quarters, Wilderness Run and Indian Bridge Road

July 30 - Town Creek and Patuxent Homes

July 31- Golden Beach

Maryland has new child safety seat laws

St. Mary’s Sheriff Timothy K. Cameron issued a reminder last week on Maryland’s new child safety seat law that went into effect this month, which requires that all children younger than 8 years of age be secured in a federally approved child safety seat.

An exception is allowed for children in that age group who are 4 feet, 9 inches or taller, or weigh more than 65 pounds.

A child restraint must be right for the child’s size, age and weight.

Child safety seats include infant seats, convertible seats, forward-facing seats, booster seats, or other safety devices federally approved for use by children in motor vehicles. The safest location in a car to buckle up a child is in the middle of the rear seat.

Maryland’s law also states that a child younger than 16 may not ride in an unenclosed cargo bed of a pickup truck.

For more information, call the sheriff’s office at 301-475-4040, Maryland Kids in Safety Seats at 1-800-370-SEAT or the Maryland State Highway Administration at 410-787-4077.