Visit Champaign County is excited to give the local economy a boost this summer by safely bringing the popular HOT ROD Power Tour presented by HP Tuners and driven by Continental Tire back to Champaign County on Friday, August 27, 2021, the fourth time it will pass through Central Illinois.
The State Farm Center was set to host the event in June of 2020, but like all events, it was canceled due to COVID-19. “Following the pandemic and the lost jobs and dollars this community experienced, hosting the HOT ROD Power Tour will be a shot in the arm for our local businesses, hotels, and hospitality workers,” states Jayne DeLuce, President & CEO of Visit Champaign County.
The 27th year for the world’s largest traveling car show will have cars cruising into the State Farm Center for the final stop of the tour, which kicks off August 23 at the Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio.
The show will run at the State Farm Center from 12:00–6:00 p.m. this Friday. The public is invited to experience the show, checking out thousands of hot rods and visiting with vendors on the Midway. There is no cost to attend, however due to COVID-19 precautions, all spectators must sign up in advance at https://mtg.ticketspice.com/hrpt2021, selecting “Free Spectator Admission”.
More than just a traveling car show, the HOT ROD Power Tour is widely considered to be the finest high-end hot rod–based automotive tour in the world, bringing together more than 5,000 vehicles. Classic cars and hot rods travel city to city while performance car lovers and HOT ROD editors and photographers follow alongside the tour, all cruising through small town America like one big family reunion road trip. Participants can join for one day, two days, or be a HOT ROD Power Tour long hauler and join for all five days.
“This event has been embraced by this community in year’s past, and we hope that people will once again come out to discover the impressive array of cars,” explains Mike Koon, Visit Champaign County’s Director of Sports, Events & Film. “We want to ensure the community that event organizers and the local event team at State Farm Center are diligently following guidelines established by the CDC and our state and local officials and all local safety protocols will be followed.”
Koon states that the anticipated economic impact for the event will exceed $800,000, with a near sell out in local hotels and participants dining in local restaurants following the close of the show.
The Hot Rod Power Tour stopped in Champaign County at the State Farm Center (then Assembly Hall) in June 2012 and had the highest number of one-day registrations in tour history with over 3,000 cars in attendance. In 2015, the tour traveled to Parkland College, with the state-of-the-art Applied Technology Center on campus, and again had the highest participation along the tour with 3,700 registered cars. The last time the event rolled through was 2017 at the State Farm Center with over 4,000 registered.
The 2021 schedule for the HOT ROD Power Tour includes:
- KICKOFF / Day 1: Monday, Aug. 23— Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio
- Day 2: Tuesday, Aug. 24— Montgomery County Fairgrounds, Dayton, Ohio
- Day 3: Wednesday, Aug. 25—Lucas Oil Raceway, Indianapolis
- Day 4: Thursday, Aug. 26— World Wide Technology Raceway, St. Louis
- Day 5: Friday, Aug. 27— State Farm Center, Champaign, Illinois
For more information on Hot Rod Magazine and the HOT ROD Power Tour, visit www.hotrod.com/events.
For media inquiries, contact Mike Koon, Director of Sports, Events & Film at 217-898-3519.
About HOT ROD
HOT ROD has been the most recognized brand in the world of high-performance cars since the iconic American magazine was founded in 1948. Today, the authoritative HOT ROD media footprint connects with more than 5 million individuals per month. The HOT ROD Network includes HOTROD.com; the two largest events of their kind, HOT ROD Power Tour and HOT ROD Drag Week; plus Roadkill and HOT ROD Garage shows on the MotorTrend App, the world’s only auto-dedicated subscription video-on-demand service.
About Visit Champaign County
Visit Champaign County’s mission is to promote a welcoming destination experience for visitors to strengthen economic opportunity and enhance the lives of residents