Hot Wheels has kicked off a three-week, six-city, cross-country road trip from Mattel, Incorporated El Segundo, California headquarters to celebrate its 40th anniversary. The road trip will travel closely along U.S. Route 40, making stops at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah; Speed, Kansas; the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum in Indiana; and the Automotive Hall of Fame in Detroit, before culminating in a grand finale celebration on September 5 in Watkins Glen, New York, home to American road racing.
At each stop, Hot Wheels will host a free event open to the public, featuring life-size Hot Wheels cars, historic Hot Wheels memorabilia, kiosks for kids to create custom Hot Wheels drivers licenses, Hot Wheels die-cast races, autograph sessions with Hot Wheels designers, and many more family-friendly activities.
"Over the past 40 years, Hot Wheels has been a part of children's lives around the world, creating a tremendous, passionate fan base," said Geoff Walker, vice president, Wheels and Games Marketing, Mattel Brands. "We wanted to be able to celebrate this milestone with our fans and bring a unique experience to their neighborhoods."
During the road trip, Hot Wheels will return to Speed, Kansas, the site of the 2006 "Need for Speed" event that drew 10,000 people to this 47-person town. Featured activities in Speed include a car and motorcycle show, soap-box derby and performances from local musical groups, Carbon Cowboy and The Heartland Band, featuring Miss Hot Wheels 2006 Megan Brumbaugh, as lead singer.
Other road trip stops that will have localized activities include Detroit where Ford, one of the automotive partners of Hot Wheels, will be displaying life-size vehicles. In addition, designers from Chevy, Ford, Honda and Mitsubishi will be signing sketches of their winning Hot Wheels Designer's Challenge vehicles.
The Hot Wheels Designer's Challenge was a historical anniversary initiative in which Hot Wheels went outside the company for the first time ever to solicit designs from six major automotive manufacturers. The design mandate was to embody their respective companies' brand essence but also represent the attributes of Hot Wheels - speed, power, performance and attitude.
Also on display at each road trip stop is the custom jeweled Hot Wheels(r) car, created by celebrity jeweler Jason of Beverly Hills, as a way to commemorate the production of the 4 billionth Hot Wheels vehicle. This unique car, the most expensive in Hot Wheels history, contains nearly 3,000 diamonds, weighs nearly 23 carats and is valued at approximately $140,000. The road trip will be the last opportunity for the public to view this one-of-a-kind Hot Wheels that will be auctioned to benefit Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles and the Inland Empire.
Hot Wheels collectors will have the opportunity to receive a commemorative 1:64-scale Hot Wheels die-cast car created especially for each stop, available while supplies last. The commemorative vehicle to be given away is based on the Hot Wheels car seen on late-1960s packaging, originally designed by Otto Kuhni. The car featured on the packaging was never produced in die-cast form. As a tribute to Otto for this milestone anniversary year, Hot Wheels designers recreated his design in die-cast form for the first time.
General Hot Wheels 40th Anniversary road trip stop details are listed below. For more detailed event information as well as photos, videos and event recaps from the road trip, cruise over to www.hotwheels.com/40th.
* Wendover, UT - Thursday, August 21 - Hot Wheels celebrates Speed Week at Bonneville Salt Flats. Activities run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. (local time)
* Speed, KS - Sunday, August 24 - Hot Wheels returns to the Speed wheat field, the site of its 2006 celebration honoring the rich automotive history of America's rural highways. Festivities will be held at the Intersection of Highway 9 and W. 500 Rd (CR-534) from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. (local time)
* Indianapolis, IN - Saturday, August 30 - The racing capital of the world opens its doors to celebrate the Hot Wheels 40th Anniversary. Join in the fun at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum, 4790 W. 16th St., Indianapolis, IN from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. (local time)
* Detroit, MI - Monday, September 1 - Motor City celebrates Hot Wheels(r) at the Automotive Hall of Fame Museum, 21400 Oakwood Blvd., Dearborn, MI from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. (local time) with free admission to the Automotive Hall of Fame Museum on event day.
* Watkins Glen, NY - Friday, September 5 - The road trip comes to a close at the Grand Prix Festival, 100 N. Franklin St. Watkins Glen, NY with activities from Noon to 7 p.m. (local time)
For more information, go to www.hotwheels.com.