Motorcycles descend on Anderson airport

ANDERSON — A lot of tires rumble over the runways at Anderson Municipal Airport but rarely racing tires on a motorcycle.

But a lot of motorcycles roared up and down one of the runways at the airport Sunday as part of the second Streetbike Shootout in Anderson.

For hours, motorcyclists from around the Midwest drag-raced their bikes down an eighth of a mile-long runway Sunday, trying to determine who had the fastest streetbike this year.

Mayor Kevin Smith, who was on hand to watch some of the racing, said the city was approached a couple of years ago about holding a street race in Anderson. He said having the race at the airport made a lot of sense.

Jeremy Teasley came from Columbus, Ohio, to take part in Sunday’s race. A competitive motorcycle racer since he was 13 years old, Teasley said he spends a lot of time at different tracks. He said this event marked his fifth consecutive week he’s been at various races.

He said racing on a runway is a little different for him.

“There’s not a lot of traction out there,” he said. “It’s different than an actual racetrack. The bikes have a tendency to get a little sideways if you’re not careful.”

The racers got a couple of hours to try out the track and get a feel for it before the real racing got underway. They were greeted by a large crowd as close to 1,000 people showed up at the airport to watch the racing. There were also about 100 motorcycle racers.

With such a large crowd on the second year of the event, Smith said he thought the race had a good chance to become a big event in Anderson. He also thanked the airport board for all the cooperation necessary to hold a day of racing on one of the airport’s runways.

Michael Peak, who works for the city’s park department, was helping out for the day. He said the race organizers were going to keep this event going for a long time.

“It’s a pretty cool thing we have here,” he said. “And people seem to like it.”

Follow Zach Osowski on Twitter @Osowski_THB, or call 640-4847.

​Follow Zach on Twitter @Osowski_THB, or call him 640-4847.

Motorcycles descend on Anderson airport