LEWISBURG W.Va. (WVDN) —The Hemmings Great Race, presented by Coker Tire, is a nine-day classic car rally that spans more than 2,300 miles and features 120 of the world’s finest antique automobiles. The event features 17 city stops, including a hosted lunch stop on Washington Street in downtown Lewisburg on Friday, June 27.
Each stop on the Great Race is free to the public, and spectators will be able to visit with the participants and view the cars. It is common for racers to allow kids to climb in the cars for a first-hand look.
A detailed schedule for the Lewisburg lunch stop includes the following:
9:30 a.m. – Great Race crew begins setting up
Please note that Washington Street will be closed between Jefferson Street and Church Street. Court Street will be closed between Foster Street and Randolph Street.
12:10 p.m. – Arrival Ceremony at Greenbrier Valley Visitors Center
12:25 p.m. – The first car arrives, with one car arriving every minute
Around 120 cars total; each one on the ground for one hour
2:25 p.m. – The last car arrives
3:25 p.m. – The last car departs
3:40 p.m. – Two-block section of Washington Street cleared
3:50 p.m. – The streets re-open
“When the Great Race pulls into a city, it becomes an instant festival,” says Jeff Stumb, Great Race director.“Last year, we had several overnight stops with more than 10,000 spectators, on our way to having 250,000 people see the Great Race during the event. There are more than 500 people just in our entourage.”
Teams and cars from Japan, England, Australia, Canada, and every corner of the United States participate in the annual event, which is often considered a “bucket list” item for car enthusiasts. Cars, trucks and motorcycles built in 1974 and earlier are eligible to compete, and the scoring system features an age factor to keep the earlier cars competitive. In the 2024 Great Race, a 1916 Hudson Hillclimber won the event from Owensboro, Kentucky to Gardiner, Maine. A 1913 Chevrolet, a 1916 Hudson and a 1918 American LaFrance are the oldest cars scheduled to be in the 2025 Great Race.
The Great Race was started in 1983 by Tom McRae and it’s now the world’s premier old car rally. This traveling time/speed/distance rally isn’t just a casual back-road cruise, as it has strict rules to keep competition tight. The vehicles, each with a driver and navigator, are given precise instructions daily that detail every move down to the second. They are scored at secret checkpoints along the route and are penalized for arriving at the checkpoints early or late. As in golf, the lowest score wins. A total purse of $160,000 is split among five classes, with the overall winner taking home $50,000.
The 2025 Great Race will begin on Saturday, June 21, in St. Paul, Minnesota, surrounded by a crowd of thousands at the MSRA Back to the 50’s Weekend car show at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds. Nine days later, on Sunday, June 29, the race will finish in Irmo, South Carolina, near Lake Murray. Between the start and finish, cities are approximately 2,300 miles of competition, and 17 hosted city stops are in Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina.
The event’s main sponsors are Hemmings, Coker Tire, McCollister’s Auto Transport, Hagerty Driver’s Club and Samuel Smith Old Brewery.
