HOUSTON — Tens of thousands of drag racing fans will descend on Baytown this weekend for one of the largest events of its kind in the country.
TX2K officially begins Thursday at the Houston Raceway where this year’s event is expected to draw the largest crowd in its history.
Twenty-two years ago, Houstonian Peter Blach was a college student in love with racing.
“I thought, ‘How can we emulate a street race in a safe, welcoming environment where there’s ambulance, fire, safety,'” Blach said.
He came up with an idea to rent the Houston Raceway for one night so he and his buddies could have some fun.
As the years went on, the event grew.
“There was no internet, there were no websites, no webpages or social media, none of that existed, so it was word of mouth with friends,” Blach said.
Blach said last year there were about 30,000 people who came to the event.
“[This year,] I anticipate we’ll be closer to 35 or 40,000 people,” Blach said.
Hundreds of drivers come from all over the world to drag race and roll race.
“Two cars line up next to each other they pace one another at 60 miles per hour,” Blach explains. “[The monitor] clicks it green, and the cars that are next to each other race.”
And each year during TX2K weekend, Houston-area law enforcement agencies increase their presence on the roads.
The Harris County Sheriff’s Office says its units specializing in street racing and reckless driving will be out through Sunday.
A sheriff’s office spokesperson says there has been an increase in street racing since 2019, which he says is driven by social media where reckless drivers post themselves imitating what they’ve seen.
Peter Blach says what happens on Houston’s highways has nothing to do with his event.
“Nothing that TX2K does leaves these premises,” Blach said.
During Wednesday's drag race testing, an announcer repeated an advisement to those at the racetrack to obey traffic laws outside of the park.
“What people choose to do on their own time, we can’t control, but we don’t condone it,” Blach said. “Street racing is here whether we’re here or not.”