LANCASTER – The city of Lancaster will be the first overnight stop for the 2019 Great Race, the largest and longest-running vintage car rally in the nation.
Great Race participants and staff will be arriving on The BLVD on Saturday, June 22, and the city of Lancaster will welcome them with an evening of festivities — from the time the first car enters Lancaster at 4:15 p.m. to around 8 p.m. The celebration will be free and open to the public.
“There is no better way to show our appreciation and hospitality than to host these visitors from around the world in our downtown cultural epicenter – The BLVD,” Lancaster Mayor R. Rex Parris said in a news release. “We look forward to greeting greatness with greatness, and sharing an evening of enjoyment and entertainment with our community.”
The Great Race celebration will include live music, children’s activities, plein air painting and cultural presentations by the Museum of Art & History (MOAH), as well as a classic car show featuring more than 130 vintage vehicles. Some Great Race racers will allow children to sit in their cars for pictures.
The Great Race was established in 1983 by Tom McRae and Norman Miller. Each summer, people from around the world navigate across varying areas of North America in vintage cars, built in 1974 or earlier. This year, the cars will travel from Riverside, California to Tacoma, Washington on a nine day excursion, from June 22 to 30.
Participants continue to race each year in hopes of winning the more than $150,000 awarded in prizes. There are five different divisions, each having a varying set of qualifications. Every car must have a driver and a navigator who follow 220 to 250 instructions per day. This race is about much more than speed. Teams must work well together, follow specific directions, possess a strong sense of timeliness, and be attentive to the particular needs of their respective vintage cars.
“We expect the Great Race to attract many residents and visitors,” said Lancaster Councilmember Ken Mann. “As everyone comes out to support the racers, we anticipate a truly positive impact on the local economy.”
For more information on the 2019 Great Race, visit greatrace.com. For more information on the celebration in Lancaster, visit destinationlancasterca.org.
[Information via news release from the city of Lancaster.]
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Willem says
So Wrecks is inviting people to enjoy his “downtown cultural epicenter – The BLVD”. Too bad his wife won’t set foot there even though she has a concealed carry permit.
O, the hypocrisy of Wreaks reaches new lows with each passing day.
What he should have done was to tell people to bring plenty of spare change to give the the BLVD pandhandlers. Now that would have been the first good advice coming from his lying lips in years.