The Checotah Carnival and Hot Rod Weekend blew in and blew up the competition across McIntosh County and beyond. It was a thrilling time for young and old to enjoy carnival games and rides as hundreds of locals and visitors packed out the Checotah Sport Complex for four days as well as Downtown Checotah.
The Carnival by Sam’s Amusements took several days to set up and went from Thursday to Sunday with packed out patrons lining up for carnival foods and exhilarating rides every night. Many parents took the opportunity to take their younger children during the daylight hours and then by nightfall the entire theme park area was packed with more youth and families there to get an armband to ride until they couldn’t go around one more rotation.
Friday night the small town of Checotah was busting at the seams as crowds gathered to watch the burnouts at CC Buggy House Car Wash off Broadway. From young boys showing what they could do on their motorbikes to the more seasoned souls who still enjoyed the thrill of burning rubber, the crowd was entertained by billows of white smoke filling the air.
Afterwards town was a buzz with hundreds of cars cruising Gentry and Broadway for several hours.
On Saturday the Car Show and Street Racing didn’t disappoint! Spectators from near and far literally packed out the Checotah Sports Complex as race contenders went toe to toe for hours for bragging rights and cash outs at the Battle at Big Elk Creek. There was plenty of excitement when one of the contenders lost control of his ride and went off road into the trees. Fortunately the driver had the Good Lord watching out for him and only had minor scratched and bruises but his ride, Priest, had to be towed off.
Those who wanted a little slower pace got to enjoy some nice vehicles at the Car Show at the Community Center.
Businesses around town were thrilled with all the activities that brought in tons of patrons all weekend and event staff were glad when Sunday rolled around and the wild, successful weekend had finally come to an end.
