If you follow the drag-and-drive scene you know that there are countless ways to get knocked out of competition. While mechanical failures are the most common reason people have to bow out of an event, there is the rare occasion where Mother Nature plays a role in a participant’s early exit.

Mike Chenoweth learned this lesson when his 1970 Roadrunner had an unfortunate meeting with some local wildlife during the final day of the Summit Racing Midwest Drags at Edgewater Motorsports Park. One of the nice things about Edgewater is all the beautiful scenery that surrounds the facility — the problem is that scenery is inhabited by all kinds of critters, including White Tail Deer.

One of those deer decided it wanted to check out the racing action when Chenoweth was making a pass against three-time NHRA Top Fuel champ Larry Dixon. Chenoweth’s Roadrunner is a pretty nasty ride thanks to its Holley EFI-controlled twin-turbo Gen II HEMI. The Plymouth recorded a best pass of 9.10 at 150 mph, so it’s making a whole lot of steam each pass at the top end.

Chenoweth noticed the deer at the last second at the end of his run and watched it make the poor career choice of trying to cross a hot racetrack. The glancing blow that Chenoweth’s Roadrunner dealt to the deer was lethal, but thankfully the animal didn’t breach the windshield or strike Dixon’s Nova. In this video from Tom Bailey’s YouTube channel, you get to hear Chenoweth describe how the entire situation unfolded, and see some great racing from the final day of the Summit Racing Midwest Drags.

Photos courtesy: Larry Dixon