There’s really nothing quite like getting back to our roots to race motorcycles with our buddies. And when Hell On Wheels decided to throw their Hot August Nights flat track race at Industry Hills Speedway this past weekend, we couldn’t pass up the good time. What’s better than strapping on a helmet, bringing just about any bike you want—including a smoke-belching three-wheeler if that's your thing—and throwing it sideways into the first corner? Aside from activities that are barely legal, there’s not much that can top an evening of holding it wide, getting sketchy, and laughing every step of the way.

After a brief rider’s meeting, the evening started at around 6:00 with practice followed by heat races and main events. Hell On Wheels’ laid-back founder “Meatball” always puts on relaxed, fun events and this one was no exception. There was plenty of downtime to bullshit with buddies, check out the eclectic assortment of bikes, and partake in some cold ones if you weren’t racing. On the track, the action was extremely entertaining—paint was traded, parts were bent, and egos were undoubtedly bruised after some of the crashes we witnessed. Our Fasthouse crew also made quite the impression over the course of the event, with a huge presence in the pits that included dirt bikes from just about every era and plenty of cold 805s in our ice chest.

Decked out in the White Lightning jerseys—which have become an HoW tradition for us—the FH crew was either consistently up front or consistently having the most fun on the track. Tyler Bereman even raced with a cast on his left arm from a fresh break a few weeks ago, and in every race, he’d somehow would “not notice the checkered flag” so he could sneak in a few extra laps. TB’s dad Randy also made the drive from up north to race with his son, bringing out his immaculate Bultaco dirt track bike, aboard which he displayed some picture-perfect flat track style on his way to victory. He wasn’t the only podium finisher in our group, though, as Brendan Lutes took the Vintage Class win, FH head honcho Kenny Alexander finished third in vintage, TB took the Mini Bike victory, Wacker finished second in Bomber, and Matt Cerami took second in the Modern Class. We definitely conquered the circle track, logging countless laps and dusting a case or two of 805s while smiling the entire time. Here’s to the next time we get to have a good time at one of the Hell On Wheels’ events. Check out our huge photo gallery to see what you missed out on.

If you weren’t able to make it to the event, it was broadcast live on Livestream.com/expocenter and is currently archived on there to check out at any time.

Photos by Max Mandell

Words by Brendan Lutes