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On Oct. 16, Buckalew Bog and Fast Track at 7312 County Road 174 in Cusseta, Alabama will host Fright Fest 2021, an event that will include truck racing and a kids costume contest. Racing will start at 2 p.m. Admission is $15, but kids 12 in under can get in free. The truck racing will be part of the Southeast DOT Series. Visitors of all ages are encouraged to show up in costumes, according to Jeff Daves, who works at the venue.

Daves said the races will involve trucks, ATVs, side by sides, “and maybe some rails and cars.”

“There will be race teams coming in from all parts of the southeastern United States,” he said.

He explained that the Southeast DOT Series is a points series. Whoever has the most points at the end of the series is the champion.

Buckalew Bog and Fast Track has two lanes for drag racing and a mud bog, according to Daves. He said the track is mud and that the bog is a bit deeper than the track.

Various types of racing will take place at the event, including outlaw DOT, modified, limited, small tire, small block, big tire, consistency, and 3.5 breakout.

Daves explained the meaning of outlaw DOT.

“It means as fast as you can build it, you can run it,” he said. “I am sure there are other restrictions I do not know about.”

William Hair, owner of Hair’s Repair Service and sponsor of the Southeast DOT Series, said that one way to do an outlaw DOT modification is to add nitrous oxide to your vehicle’s engine. He said nitrous oxide is used to boost an engine’s horsepower.

“Outlaw vehicles are the fastest,” Daves said. “Some have thousands of horsepower.”

Hair explained some of the other terms. He said modified means adjusting a truck in ways that would be legal on a highway. Limited means there are limits on how much power you can add to your vehicle; nitrous oxide isn’t allowed. Small tire means the truck has tires 35 inches or smaller, while small block means a small engine. Big tires go from 38 ½ inches up to 44 inches.

Consistency means that rather than racing against another person, you’re racing against a clock.

“So if I make a run, and I make it in five seconds, come back and repeat that, do five seconds again, that’s a winning time,” Hair said. “You want to get as close to your first time on your second run as you possibly can.”

Daves that a 3.5 breakout is a race in which vehicles try to get as close to a 3.5 second elapsed time without going faster.

This is an annual event, which Daves said has grown every year. He expects this year’s event to be the biggest.

“We keep it really family friendly,” he said. “Usually, we give out candy to the children. We have a cafe there where people can buy delicious food, snacks and refreshments.”