THEY cut corners.

A lot of them.

They also cut in front of each other.

As often as they can.

Occasionally their engines cut out.

Or rarely, but far more spectacularly, flame out.

The only thing they don't really cut is lawn. Except when they run off the track and plough up a stretch of a local oval.

What a bizarre evolution for the ride-on lawn mower, which normally moves at a pace somewhere between snail and geriatric.

Then again, even on a downhill stretch, your average ride-on lawn mower does not hurtle across the backyard at speeds of 100km/h or more.

But that's exactly what the big boys of the Australian Ride On Lawn Mower Racing Association do.

Australian racing legend Gavin Barry, the undefeated king of the track for the past three years, has an edge - he is a professional motorbike mechanic, running his own business in Berrigan.

And AROLMRA rules state a racing machine must be 30 per cent motorbike (including the engine and handlebars) and 70 per cent lawn mower.

At the controls of the Berrigan Monster, Gavin just keeps on winning, although work demands restricted him to only three events last season at Cobram, Berrigan and Yarrawonga.

But boy, when he gets the John Deere green machine on the track, its 400cc engine is widely recognised as the hottest power unit in the business.

"I first saw the sport years ago at Yarrawonga and thought it was something pretty exciting, and different," Gavin says.

"But with my own business and other things I did not really get back to it until four years ago when there was a race in town, in fact, right across the road from my home."

"That's when I decided I just had to give it a go."

His timing could not have been better.

Gavin had a motorbike in the workshop which had just been totalled in a crash, but which still had a viable motor.

So that was jammed into an old ride-on body; the front end was beefed up and chassis rails were strengthened, a straight axle and chain drive installed and a racing legend was born.

"For a mower built from scratch I guess I have sunk about $4000 into the Monster," he says.

AROLMRA runs 12 meetings a season, with one under lights at Yarrawonga.

"There have been more, but one a month is good and is a great reason for everyone to get together for a social weekend in the host town," Gavin says.

He says when he first saw mowers race the sport was in its fledgling years and riders sat much higher than they do today.

He was amazed more of the early machines did not flip more often as they were set so high and had so much power in the motors.

"Today, though, everything has been lowered and the centre of gravity has helped make the sport faster and safer," Gavin says.

Not so safe, mind you, that Gavin did not roll the Monster on its first outing and once more since then.

However, he insists they are much safer than quad bikes.

"The sport is scrutineered and there are strong safety regulations, but among riders they are known as collarbone breakers because that does happen a lot when they do go over," he says.

"People also do ankles and plenty of them have somehow managed to run over their own legs as well."

The story goes that in 1978 Australia's first mower race was dreamt up in the pub at Harrietville.

Australia is now part of an international network of racing, with a strong base in the US and UK.

A far cry from a bunch of guys fuelled more by alcohol than two-stroke, challenging each other to a race around the local hills on their ride-ons.

But according to AROLMRA stalwart Brian Ross, the early event pulled half the town's 100 people, 300 sheep and 150 dogs.

There are classes for the ride-on competition, starting with juniors using postie bike motors under 110cc. Machines must all have the same tyres and sprocket so the riders make the difference.

Then there is up to 200cc, 200-250cc and 250-450cc.

Gavin says he has been clocked at 101km/h in the straight, but most of the trouble happens on the bends. Most towns keep straights to a minimum, because the action is trying to get around corners and other drivers on corners, Gavin says.

But in the open class, where he competes, the big problems for all the other riders, it seems, is getting around Gavin. Period.