Off to the Swamp Buggy Races

Malcolm Lightner grew up in a trailer park down the street from the original “Mile O'Mud” swamp buggy track, a DAYTONA-inspired race course in the everglades. Drivers reach 75mph in their half boat, half-dragster hybrids, splashing spectators with abandon. Lightner photographed the races for nearly a decade, documenting the beauty contests, Confederate Flags, fried food, and revelry with the affection of a native Floridian. But Lightner wasn't always drawn to the competition; his childhood encounters with the track consisted of searching for his father, who would go missing for days. Returning as an adult to witness the wild weekend-long events at Florida Sports Park allowed Lightner to explore his own heritage (his great-uncle was one of the original racers) as well as preserve the Frontier sport. “I unveiled family connections that I did not know existed and heard numerous stories about my father,” Lightner said. “The races demonstrated to me the All-American desire to compete to win—as well as the power of family and community.” The resulting images have been published by PowerHouse Books and a selection can be found below.

Read more
Hints: View this page full screen. Skip to the next and previous photo by typing j/k or ←/→.

Most Recent

Most Popular on The Atlantic

  1. The Great Resignation Is Accelerating
  2. How Scrubs Reinforce Sexist Double Standards
  3. Is a Democratic Wipeout Inevitable?
  4. A Secretive Hedge Fund Is Gutting Newsrooms
  5. The Children of Sperm Donors Want to Change the Rules of Conception
  6. Dave Chappelle’s Rorschach Test
  7. Dear Therapist: The Child My Daughter Put Up for Adoption Is Now Rejecting Her
  8. The Taliban Is Just as Bad as It Always Was
  9. Democrats Are Ready to Send Steve Bannon to Jail
  10. Slackers of the World, Unite!
Back to Top