In the past, the Great Race has visited more than 800 North American cities and the participants have logged nearly 7 million vehicle miles, stopping at such well-known landmarks are the U.S. Capitol building and the Ellipse at the White House in Washington, D.C.; the Statue of Liberty Centennial Celebration; the Plaza de la Reforma in Mexico City; the Grand Canyon; Indianapolis and Daytona Motor Speedways; and a Parade down Broadway in New York City. The event navigates the back roads of America and that too is an appealing aspect, as entrants will see and visit some great "blue line" places.
For those not familiar with the rules (it's a true competition), simply put: The Great Race is based on driving in cars (and components) that are at least 45 years old, and the driver/navigator teams attempt to follow hundreds of driving instructions each day. There are checkpoints secretly located along the race route where the cars are timed. Low score wins. Event regulations limit the teams to a speedometer, time-of-day clock, stopwatch, pencil, and paper.
This year the "finish line" has a decided street rod flavor, as it will take place on Fourth Street in downtown San Rafael, the location where George Lucas filmed "American Graffiti" in 1973. The San Rafael City Council has already passed a resolution supporting the event and there's incredible support from other local agencies, such as the Marin County Visitors Bureau, San Rafael Chamber of Commerce, Redevelop-ment Agency and Business Improve-ment District, along with Infinion Raceway and Lucasfilms. According to the Great Race officials, this may very well be the best finish in the 24-year history of the event.
Should you have an interest in being one of the six street rods entered in the exhibition class, call (800) 989-RACE, or visit www.greatrace.com, and get in on the fun! If you should plan on doing this, drop me a line since there are other SRM readers who would be thoroughly interested in your story as well.