By COLE REIF
Great Bend Post
Vintage car lovers will see it all Friday, June 30 with the Great Race making a lunch stop in Great Bend. How about a 1916 Hudson Pikes Peak Hill Climb? Maybe a 1918 American LaFrance Speedster? Those cars will be among the 120 vehicles stopping at Brit Spaugh Park as part of their 2,300-mile race across the country.
Local car club member John Vsetecka said the Great Race is a time,
speed, endurance rally for vehicles that are 50 years old or older.
"They have a book that they follow," said Vsetecka. "They don't have maps or GPS. They have a set of written instructions to tell them to turn left at this sign or turn right at this sign. They have checkpoints along the way. They're penalized for every second they're late or early to a checkpoint. It's based on how many points they accumulate during the race."
RELATED STORY: 1973 and older collector vehicles visiting Great Bend
The 40th annual race started June 24 in Florida and
ends July 2 in Colorado. The vehicles will come into Great Bend from the
south on U.S. 281 Highway and begin arriving at the Brit Spaugh Park, to the
north of the zoo, at approximately 12:30 p.m. The local car clubs raised funds
to provide a meal for the contestants and the zoo staff will have animal
showings for their entertainment.
"Once they get to Brit Spaugh Park, we'll show them where to park, where lunch is and where other necessities are," said Vsetecka. "That will be their primary concern, but hopefully we'll get a chance to talk with them. Each team and their car will only be in the park for an hour because this is a timed event and they have a schedule so they can meet their next checkpoint."
After each vehicle spends an hour in Great Bend, they will depart for Garden
City where they will stay the night. The 2023 winners will receive $50,000.
