The Four Post 400 two years ago was in downtown Greenfield. This year’s event will be at the Hancock County Fairgrounds.
Submitted photo
GREENFIELD – Teams will race in beds at the Hancock County Fairgrounds Sept. 19 in what organizers hope will be a growing tradition to support local veterans.
The sixth annual Four Post 400 Bed Race is 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sept. 16. Hosted by the Dale E. Kuhn American Legion Post 119, the event encourages teams of five to run a bed-on-wheels along a path in a light-hearted fundraiser for the legion and local veterans in need.
“There are four people running the bed, one person in the bed, and they go down so far on the asphalt and they turn around and come back,” said Ken Meier, one of the organizers of this year’s event. “Also this year, because there are some people who can’t race or don’t want to race, we’re going to have (a trophy for) the best decorated bed.”
While the event has been in downtown Greenfield in the past, this year’s race is expected to be a bit bigger with the addition of four provided beds on wheels. Meier said it was a deterrent to expect groups of people to provide their own bed; this year, the post has a total of six beds with air mattresses available for anyone to race.
Teams pay $50 to enter the race. Vendors will be on site starting at 11 a.m., followed by a presentation of the nations’ colors, pledge and invocation at noon. A parade of beds begins at 12:30 pm., followed by racing with double elimination from 1-3 p.m. A cornhole tournament for all levels will also be available.
Meier encourages people to sign up to decorate or race a bed, or simply come and enjoy the fun.
Brigette Cook Jones, director of the Hancock County Tourism Commission, said she encouraged the legion to start a bed race based on its popularity in other communities. Jones herself raced at the Ball State University event in the 1980s and was a champion.
“Hopefully it’ll grow into something that will become a unique spectator-type of thing,” she said. “The other communities that have bed races, they’re huge events and they have quite a following and you have people that come watch them because they’re fun. Your team comes dressed in costume, there’s themes. Even if you’re not in it to win it, there are other elements in it to make it fun and exciting.”
Businesses, nonprofits, churches or groups of friends are encouraged to sign up. There are also sponsorship levels from $50 to $500.
Proceeds support the legion building and a veteran’s assistance program. Bob Workman, the county veterans service officer, said the fund helps veterans who need assistance – sometimes they need gas, for example, or a hotel room to hold them over until they can get back on their feet financially.
“We’ve been doing it four or five years now and we’ve helped a lot of veterans that way,” he said.
While this is the sixth event, there was no bed race in 2022 due to the legion building four new beds for a bigger event this year. Workman said he’s looking forward to it.
“I’m too old to run, and nobody offered me a ride but I’ll be there for sure,” he said, chuckling. “It’s a nice event; a lot of people get a big bang out of watching it, and it gets pretty competitive too.”
To register for the race or learn more, contact Meier at 317-649-2469; Brian Smith at 765-541-0354, or email [email protected].
