Great Race Grand Champions Choose Coker!

Every summer, the Hemmings Great Race presented by Coker Tire hits the road for nine days and travels 2,300 miles of new territory each year. With the ever changing route, the teams see new cities and new roads each year, and there is a huge influx of rookie teams who want to get in on the fun. The event is complicated and expensive, but it's an exciting endeavor that keeps people coming back every year. For 2025, the event started at the Back to the 50's Weekend car show in St. Paul, Minnesota and traveled to Irmo, South Carolina, through Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia and North Carolina. The event featured 17 hosted city stops, and rolled through many small towns and country roads along the way. Every year, the competition intensifies, and this year's event saw tight scores within the Top 5 contestants.

After 9 days of competition, the Grand Champions were crowned in Irmo, South Carolina. It was the father-and-son team of Jeff and Eric Fredette taking the Grand Championship trophy along with $50,000 back home to Illinois. They drive a 1933 Ford Model B pickup truck and they're known for their full throttle turns and flags flying out back. Our Excelsior Stahl Sport radial tires handle the abuse each year.

Second place went to Jody Knowles and Beth Gentry, driving a 1932 Ford Cabriolet, sporting a set of our BFGoodrich Silvertown wide whitewall radials.

Third place overall and First Place in the Expert division was the Coker Tire sponsored team of Gary and Jean Ann Martin in a 1932 Ford five-window coupe. The Martins roll on a set of Artillery wheels and Cooper Cobra tires.

Fourth place went to the father and daughter team of Jeff and Kylie Hermanson, piloting a 1939 Ford pickup truck, featuring a set of our Excelsior Stahl Sport radial tires.

Also rolling on Excelsiors is the fifth place team of Dana and Doug Sharp from Fairport, New York, driving a 1916 Hudson Pikes Peak Hillclimber.