Great Race Winds Up in Anaheim

Charlie and Uncle Bob Are The Winners

By SMM Staff Photos Courtesy of Great Race

For many, participation in The Great Race is a once-in-a-lifetime adventure. For others, it's an ongoing challenge. Put Bob LaBine and his 15-year-old nephew, Charlie Wheeler, into the latter category.

For the pair -- with Bob being a 5-year veteran, and Charlie a 3-year vet -- it meant gradually getting the hang of things to capture first-place and a cash prize of $25,000. Labine calls Phoenix his home, while the young nephew is from Lone Tree, Colorado.

Together, they drove their 1928 Ford Model A Boattail Speedster all the way from Concord, North Carolina, to Anaheim, California, ending the 4,000-mile, 14-day endurance race on July 14th.

Altogether, 72 teams started the race, with 57 finishing. The route across America proved especially tough for the classic cars and racers as they endured torrential downpours including hail, desert heat and steep mountain climbs. But for LaBine and Wheeler, the obstacles they encountered were not enough to derail their consistency throughout the event.

“Before I did the race, I couldn’t believe people would race within seconds of perfect accuracy, it always seemed impossible,” said Wheeler. “There is nothing like the feeling I have right now.”

The winners ended with 1,020 cumulative points, which was 83 more than the second-place team of Bill Harper and Larry Blair from Hendersonville, N.C. Blair brought with him a history of racing on dirt tracks, drag races, and hydroplanes -- our kinda guy!

“I’ve raced all of my life," said Blaire. "When you get to be a little old, there are still things you have to do . . . and this is it. We’re so excited.”

A race like this, though, requires cooperation between driver and navigator. “I give a lot of credit to my navigator," said Blaire. "Once, we went down a road that I thought was wrong, but he stuck with it and here we are today with $10,000.”

2006 Great Race champions Dave Reeder and 14-year-old Sawyer Stone, finished in third with 929 points, but they weren't discouraged because they figure it was a trial run for next year's race from New York to Paris. In preparation for that huge adventure, they purposely switched cars from their 1916 Hudson to a 1932 Ford.

“We did the best we could with the new car. We knew the Hudson inside and out and were still trying to learn the '32, and that’s the difference,” said Stone. “I can’t wait for next year.”

“Team Bummfuzzle” Pat and Ali Schulte and their 1965 Porsche 356 C took first place in the rookie class, taking home $10,000. The young couple was anything but ‘Bummfuzzled’ throughout the race as they consistently scored high, even after having car problems.

“When the car wouldn’t go into any gear but fourth, we had no choice but to drive with it like that. We didn’t care what time we got, just as long as we made the finish,” said Pat.

After the couple sailed around the world together for three and a half years, the Great Race was next on their list of what they wanted to accomplish.

“The prize money will pay for the Volkswagon that we plan to take as we travel through Central and South America. We will be leaving in October, but we will be back in time for the Great Race next year.” explained Ali.

You can count on SpeedMachines Magazine to provide info on the upcoming race . . . and then race coverage of the 100th anniversary event. Keep checking www.greatrace.com for ongoing news.