(May 12, 2015) Santa Monica, Calif., is the site for the finish of the 2015 Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Hagerty on Sunday, June 28 at 2 p.m. The Great Race, the world’s premiere old car rally, will bring more than 100 of the world’s finest antique automobiles to the Santa Monica Pier.

The cars and trucks will begin arriving shortly after the 2 p.m. start time of the festivities. The finish line activities will last approximately two hours, and spectators can welcome and congratulate the racers as they cross the finish line. The winner of the race will receive a check for $50,000 plus additional cash and prizes, bringing the total purse to more than $150,000.

The Great Race finish is free to the public and spectators will be able to visit with the participants and to look at the cars as they stop for lunch. It is common for kids to climb in the cars for a first-hand look. Live announcements by "MotorMouth", the traveling Great Race announcer will inform the spectators about each and every car on the race. Spectators can also get souvenir program books that lists all of the cars and racers.


Hemmings Photo

In last year's Great Race, which traveled from Maine to Florida, a 1915 Hudson racer, a 1916 Hudson Hillclimber and a 1917 Peerless were the three oldest vehicles. All of those vehicles are participating again in 2015. Other vehicles include Ford Model A speedsters, British and Japanese sports cars, and classic Corvettes.

Along the 2,400-mile route, competitors will travel parts of The Mother Road in all eight states it originally ran through — Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California — traveling along historic Route 66.  Hosted lunch and overnight stops along the route are a great way for locals to see the cars up close and personal.

“When the Great Race pulls into a city it becomes an instant festival,” race director Jeff Stumb said. “Last year we had three overnight stops with more than 10,000 spectators on our way to having 250,000 people see the Great Race during the event."

Teams will begin arriving in Kirkwood, Mo., in advance of the now-traditional, equally-challenging warm-up rally, the Hagerty Trophy Run, which will be held on Friday, June 19; reportedly it will trace the eastern end of Route 66 in parts of Illinois. Kirkwood will also serve as the official starting point for the 2015 Great Race on Saturday, June 20, at which point teams will rally to a lunch stop in Rolla before finishing the day’s stage in Springfield, Mo.

Lunch and dinner stops from there — in order of appearance — are Claremore and Oklahoma City, Okla., on June 21; Elk City (Oklahoma) and Amarillo, Texas, on June 22; Tucumcari and Santa Fe, N.M., on June 23; Albuquerque and Gallup, N. M., on June 24; Winslow and Flagstaff, Ariz., on June 25; Kingman and Lake Havasu, Ariz., on June 26; Twenty-nine Palms and San Bernardino, Calif., on June 27; and lunch at City of Industry, Calif., before hitting the finish line in Santa Monicaon June 28.

About Great Race

The Great Race is the world’s premier vintage car rally, and it sends collector vehicles on a journey that the drivers and navigators will never forget. Founded in 1983, the Great Race has logged millions of miles throughout North America, visiting hundreds of cities, towns and villages along the way. The competition is fierce, with a $150,000 purse on the line, but the racers are a tight knit group that loves to spend time behind the wheel of a vintage car. For more information click here.