• In a flurry of dust, the racers take the corner, with Tyler Michaud in the lead, followed closely by Drew Boucher. ASHLEY SAARI / Ledger-Transcript
    In a flurry of dust, the racers take the corner, with Tyler Michaud in the lead, followed closely by Drew Boucher. ASHLEY SAARI / Ledger-Transcript
  • Tyler Michaud has the pedal to the metal. ASHLEY SAARI / Ledger-Transcript
    Tyler Michaud has the pedal to the metal. ASHLEY SAARI / Ledger-Transcript
  • Tyler Michaud and Drew Boucher with their families on race day. ASHLEY SAARI / Ledger-Transcript
    Tyler Michaud and Drew Boucher with their families on race day. ASHLEY SAARI / Ledger-Transcript
  • The karts like up at the starting line, with Tyler Michaud in the green kart and Drew Boucher in the yellow. ASHLEY SAARI / Ledger-Transcript
    The karts like up at the starting line, with Tyler Michaud in the green kart and Drew Boucher in the yellow. ASHLEY SAARI / Ledger-Transcript
  • Dust flied as Tyler Michaud takes a corner. ASHLEY SAARI / Ledger-Transcript
    Dust flied as Tyler Michaud takes a corner. ASHLEY SAARI / Ledger-Transcript
  • Drew Boucher is in the lead. ASHLEY SAARI / Ledger-Transcript
    Drew Boucher is in the lead. ASHLEY SAARI / Ledger-Transcript
  • Drew Boucher is in the lead. ASHLEY SAARI / Ledger-Transcript
    Drew Boucher is in the lead. ASHLEY SAARI / Ledger-Transcript
  • Drew Boucher and Tyler Michaud ready for a race on Michaud's home track. ASHLEY SAARI / Ledger-Transcript
    Drew Boucher and Tyler Michaud ready for a race on Michaud’s home track. ASHLEY SAARI / Ledger-Transcript

The woods behind a house in New Ipswich are alive with the sound of buzzing engines, with two go-karts exiting the trees on a curve, kicking up dust, as Tyler Michaud and Drew Boucher make their moves.

Michaud and Boucher make up a field of two for what they call the New Hampshire Dad Kart Racing League. The “League” is a casual monthly meet-up where they go head-to-head for bragging rights and custody of the coveted “Chicken Trophy,” a Target-bought tchotchke they trade back and forth depending on the most recent victory on the track.

As for who currently holds the Chicken Trophy?

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Michaud said, tellingly.

“That would be me,” Boucher tacked on, with a grin.

Boucher said the two of them grew up loving speed and motors, spending time on go-karts and dirt bikes. They grew up in the same circle of friends and bonded over dirt bikes. Michaud said a few years ago, he was watching some go-karting videos on YouTube and became intrigued.

Despite his wife having had a new baby, Michaud said he bought his first go-kart in the fall of 2023.

“I had a kid in August, and I think in September is when I decided, ‘I guess this is a good time to purchase a go-kart,'” Michaud joked.

And of course, Boucher added, once he saw a few videos of Michaud driving his kart, he wanted one of his own. They each bought their racers from Facebook Marketplace, Michaud’s in forest green and Boucher’s in bright yellow.

Once the two friends each had their own go-kart, the natural next step was to see who was faster. The League–so far with Michaud and Boucher as its only members–was born. They printed up T-shirts for them and their family, who act as cheering squad on race days, picked up the Chicken Trophy as a prize (mostly, they said, just for the ridiculousness of it) and Michaud had a track built around his new home in New Ipswich.

Race days, which happen about once a month, but not usually on a fixed schedule, have become full family affairs, with the morning spent grooming the track, removing leaves and rocks, doing some practice laps, usually having to pause to fix something that broke, a barbecue lunch, and then the afternoon spent racing for official times.

“The grind of Monday to Friday gets old,” Michaud said. “This is something the whole family can do together. The kids love it, the wives love it. We hang out, have some barbecue, and it’s a nice way to get your mind off the day-to-day and have some fun.”

The pair says they race in almost all conditions, as long as the track is drivable. Their first race this year was in January, and they said snow and mud just make the experience more fun.

They started with a shorter track and have since expanded it to a slightly longer one, which takes about a minute and 20 seconds per lap, “pedal to the floor, and you don’t let up,” as Michaud puts it.

Boucher holds the long track record with a time of 2 minutes and 20.48 seconds for two laps.

Boucher and Michaud said they are open to new members joining their league and encourage anyone who is interested to contact them to learn more about the sport. They run a Facebook page, NH Dad Kart Racing League, where they regularly post about their race events, as well as go-karts that are for sale in the region.

Ashley Saari can be reached at 603-924-7172 ext. 244 or asaari@ledgertranscript.com. She’s on X @AshleySaariMLT.