Our 2024 Great Race start city (Owensboro, KY) is hosting a HUGE event on May 10-11, 2024. The annual event is called BBQ & Barrels and it’s a celebration of authentic Bar-B-Que and historic Kentucky bourbon and this year the Owensboro crew is adding a car show to the mix. Experience a car event unlike any others in the region at the inaugural Kentucky Motorcar Invitational! See some of the most unique classic vehicles on display at the Owensboro Convention Center parking lot on Saturday, May 11 from 10:00 AM until 3:00 PM Central Time.

**Limited Entries**
Less Than 100 Vehicles WIll Be Participating For A Chance To WIN The Inaugural KMI “TOP 12 AWARDS” These Awards Are Custom Designed Laser Cut Metal & Aged Wooden Bourbon Barrel Lids by: Rough River Metalworks
**This In An Invitation ONLY Vehicle Show**
To Be Considered Email Photos, Description & Prior Show Information (including awards) With Return Contact Information To:
[email protected] or [email protected]

ALL INCLUSIVE WEEKEND PACKAGES AVAILABLE, That Include:
BBQ and Barrels: KENTUCKY CHAMPIONS MOTORCAR INVITATIONAL PACKAGE
– 2 dinner tickets to Green River Cocktail/dinner pairing on Friday
– 2 VIP tickets for Saturday
– Car Registration
– 2 Polos for car event
– 2 night stay at Hampton or Holiday Inn.
(Hotel will be assigned for you depending availability)

LIMITED Non Package Registration Will Be Offered Also, Those Will Include Only Vehicle Entry Into The Show.
This Show Will Be On The Banks Of The Ohio River In The Beautifully Renovated Downtown Of The CIty Of Owensboro Kentucky.

McCollister’s was founded in 1945 by Daniel H. McCollister. Now, nearly 80 years later, the company has grown into a global business that handles specialty transportation, warehouse distribution and fulfillment, installation services, logistics and classic car transportation. The company is still owned and operated by the McCollister family and continues to grow. McCollister’s has been in the auto transport business since 2005, handling thousands of requests all over the country. From new car deliveries to classic car transportation, McCollister’s guarantees the finest protection for its clients, thanks to a fleet of high-tech trucks and a crew of trusted drivers.

McCollister’s entered the Great Race family in 2022 as the official transporter of the event. Many Great Race teams rely on McCollister’s to transport their vehicle to and from the start and finish cities. The confidence of knowing that your classic car is being treated properly is something that car enthusiasts value greatly, and McCollister’s offers excellent care and service that keeps Great Racers coming back year after year. As part of the sponsorship package, one of McCollister’s 18-wheelers travels with the Great Race to provide transportation for cars that break down and cannot be repaired. We’re glad to have McCollister’s on board as a Major Sponsor again for 2024 and look forward to many years of partnership with the team. Visit www.mccollisters.com for more information on the New Jersey based company.

Hagerty has been a huge supporter of the Great Race since 2011, and the Traverse City, Michigan-based insurance company is our sponsor spotlight for this week. We’ve had the opportunity to watch this company transform from a niche insurance agency to a global automotive brand over the course of our partnership, and it’s been a pleasure to visit their facility on two occasions: 2012 and 2017. Along this journey, Hagerty has adjusted its sponsorship package from a corporate standpoint to now focus on the Hagerty Drivers Club, which is the ultimate community for the collector car world.

Hagerty Drivers Club features exclusive offers, roadside assistance, valuation tools, special content and member experiences that takes Hagerty insurance coverage deeper into your automotive lifestyle. Hagerty Drivers Club membership also gives you unlimited classified listings and six issues of Hagerty Drivers Club magazine. All of this comes at a small fee and can be easily added or removed to your existing Hagerty insurance policy.

Hagerty believes in driving your collector car, so that obviously aligns with our event and it’s been a great partnership for many years. We’re excited to have Hagerty on board once again as a major sponsor of the Great Race, and we look forward to continuing that relationship for many years to come. Visit www.hagerty.com to get an insurance quote, sign up for the Hagerty Drivers Club or check out some of the great content that’s posted daily.

When Coker Tire purchased the assets of the Great Race back in 2010, it hit the ground running with its first event in 2011. That event, from Chattanooga, Tennessee to Bennington, Vermont changed the scope of the Great Race and the event has been in a growth pattern ever since. Coker Tire’s involvement in the Great Race has been all over the map, from marketing to logistics and everything in between. And in 2023, the Chattanooga-based tire company made the move to the Presenting Sponsor position.

Coker Tire was founded in 1958 by Harold Coker. His deep passion for antique cars led to the development of new tire production for early applications like Ford Model T and many others as a side project to the main tire business. It didn’t take long for the side business to surpass the modern car tire dealership, which led to licensing agreements with Firestone, B.F. Goodrich and other tire companies to reproduce classic tires for classic cars.

Coker Tire went on to invent the first wide whitewall radial tire in 1994, then the first “bias look radial tire” in 2013 and is now the world’s leading manufacturer and supplier of tires and wheels for collector vehicles. More than 75 percent of Great Race participants use Coker Tire products on their classic cars, and we hope to get that number closer to 100 in the coming years. Coker Tire continues its presenting sponsorship this year and will continue to be a major part of the Great Race for many years to come. If you’re in the market for tires, wheels or accessories for your collector vehicle, check out www.cokertire.com to browse thousands of great products.

Hemmings Motor News & Marketplace built its legacy in the publishing industry with a collection of the most in-depth, enthusiast-driven automotive magazines in the world. Hemmings Motor News, Hemmings Muscle Machines and Hemmings Classic Car magazines are readily available in stores and by subscription, and there is an endless amount of content on the Hemmings website. The multi-faceted website not only serves the automotive community with high quality photography and articles, but it is also the ultimate online automotive marketplace with online auctions, classifieds listings and reference material to build your dream car.

Hemmings Motor News & Marketplace supports the Great Race in the highest position, as our title sponsor. This partnership has been a key element in the contemporary growth of the Great Race, thanks to advertisements, promotions and activations that have developed through more than a decade of title sponsorship. As we march into 2024, we’re thankful to continue the great working relationship with Hemmings.

If you’re not already connected with Hemmings, jump over to www.hemmings.com, where you can subscribe to the daily email newsletter for outstanding content in your inbox every day. You can also subscribe to the print publications online and you can buy or sell a vehicle from the comfort of your couch, day or night. Hemmings is the online automotive marketplace and the absolute best source for automotive content on the internet, and we’re excited to have them on board yet again for 2024.

Longtime Great Racer John Hollansworth has passed away at age 92 at his home in Hot Springs Village, Arkansas. John was best know for piloting the 1917 Peerless Green Dragon for more than 20 years on the Great Race. He helped get Hagerty involved in the event decades ago with their sponsorship of his car, which holds the distinction of being in more Great Races and having covered more miles than any other vehicle. John had a collection in Arkansas which included cars from all eras, including his son’s Indianapolis 500 entry from the 1990s. He was a great competitor and loved all forms of motorsports. He raced Midgets and IndyCars in the mid-60s with A.J. Foyt, Al Unser and Parnelli Jones. He competed in the Motorcycle Cannonball with a pre-World War I bike at age 80. A Celebration of Life is planned for July 31, and additional information can be found here:

With nine days of rallying behind us, it’s time to look at the results. We enjoyed a great time at our Awards Banquet, celebrating the special award winners and top finishers in each category. If you’d like to see a full listing of daily and cumulative scores, CLICK HERE.

Grand Championship Division
1st
Howard and Doug Sharp, 54.78s (1st overall)

2nd
Olivia and Genna Gentry, 1m01.56s (2nd overall)

3rd
Jeff and Eric Fredette, 1m21.50s (6th overall)

4th
Jody Knowles and Beth Gentry, 1m26.67s (8th overall)

5th
Dave Reeder and Sawyer Stone, 1m28.29s (9th overall)

Expert Division
1st
Dan and Brad Epple, 1m12.24s (3rd overall)

2nd
Neil Myerscough and Shanna Chatraw, 1m19.54s (4th overall)

3rd
Chad and Jennie Caldwell, 1m20.50s (5th overall)

4th
Jeff and Kylie Hermanson, 1m23.66s (7th overall)

5th
Annagret Reichmann and Uli Kammholz, 1m39.00s (10th overall)

Sportsman Division
1st
Tom and Dash Roberts, 1m39.00s

2nd
Patrick Lauber and Ron Smith, 1m48.36s

3rd
Rick Horne and Rob Roemer, 2m21.00s

4th
Ken Kieley and Mike Roberts, 2m24.00s

5th
Kirk and Travis Bugg, 2m25.00s

Rookie Division
1st
Gerno Reinard and Erin Roberts, 1m43.00s

2nd
Jerry and Eric Magayne, 2m32.00s

3rd
Sean and Brendan Gilligan, 3m27.00s

4th
Andrea LaBarbara (motorcycle), 4m31.42s

5th
Pete and Trinity Barger, 5m01.00s

X-Cup Division
1st
Early Ford V8 #2, Jack Pontius, Kennedy Pontius, Connor Miller, 3m04.23s

X-Cup Scholarship Awards

Ace Award Winner — Josh Hull and Trevor Stahl

Best Dressed Award — Frank Westfall

Our Best Friend — Andrea LaBarbara

Never Say Die Award — David and Ethan Brogdon

Doc Fuson Trucking Award — 1965 Ford F350 Flatbed

Best Classic Car — 1940 Indian motorcycle

Best Race Car — 1966 Chevelle SS

Tag and Marybeth Lewis “Best of Show” — 1970 Camaro Z28

McCollister’s Auto Transport “Last But Not Least” Award — Shane Clark and Tom Farinacci

Richard Fredette Perseverance Award — John Classen

Tom McRae Spirit of the Event Award — Steve, Janet and Allison Hedke

The 2023 Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Coker Tire is in the books, and we crowned the Grand Champion on Tejon Street in Colorado Springs, Colorado this afternoon. Howard and Doug Sharp are no strangers to victory lane in Great Race rallying, and they once again put together an incredible nine-day rally to take home the win in the Grand Champion division as well as the overall win. With that comes $50,000, a giant eagle trophy and bragging rights until next summer. They also took home the daily overall victory on Stage 7, earning them a few more bucks and a $500 gift certificate to Coker Tire. The Sharps call Fairport, New York home and pilot a 1916 Hudson Pikes Peak Hillclimber. With Pikes Peak in the distance, the father and son team sealed the day on Stage 9 and celebrated with family and friends during our Grand Finish ceremony and Awards Banquet.

To Finish is to Win! That’s the motto of the Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Coker Tire, and we experienced the thrill of the finish line in beautiful Colorado Springs, Colorado. Crossing the finish line of this grueling nine-day, 2,300-mile challenge is an accomplishment in itself, and the racers had a very tricky half-day course to finish out the intense competition. At the end of the timed portion of the day, racers got to tour Garden of the Gods before rolling into town. A great crowd of people came out to congratulate the racers as they passed through the gate. We had storms all around us at the finish line, but we weathered the storm, despite our finish line arch blowing over in a tremendous gust of wind that caught everyone off guard. We’ll have a comprehensive post of all the winners coming soon, but for now, take a look at the scene from today’s route and finish line.

We’re coming down to the final stretch! Today was a big day for the racers as it begins the Championship run, where none of the scoring legs of the final two days can be thrown out. A simple mistake can be detrimental, but wrong turns, mechanical issues or other obstacles can really throw the scores for a loop. Case in point, our leaders going into Stage 8 were last year’s Grand Champions, Josh Hull and Trevor Stahl, were involved in a collision today while on the clock. The boys are ok, but the car was damaged beyond roadside repair. The morning route had very few instructions, but was short in duration as we had a late start due to the time zone change. We stopped for lunch in Lamar, Colorado, and then jumped back on the route to finish out the day with a challenging afternoon route. Racers rolled into Pueblo, Colorado for a nice stop near at the Union Depot downtown. From there, we actually had a Great Race convoy for about 40 miles north to Colorado Springs! We get to stay in the same hotel for two nights, which is great for the racers and support staff, as we’ll have a half-day of rallying tomorrow and roll into the finish line on Tejon Street in Colorado Springs shortly after lunch. This is it, the final run to the finish!