At SixSpeed, the summer projects look a little different than your typical advertising or marketing agency. As an agency, we are privileged to work with many inspiring brands, brands that enable people to build, innovate and achieve. And some that have a history in racing. As an agency of action, you can only read and write so much about what brands and their people are doing before you need to jump in the driver's seat yourself. So, we decided to take on a venture that fueled us in a new way; breaking us from the day-to-day and giving us real experience by building and racing a car in the 24 Hours of Lemons.
24 Hours of Lemons is a “tongue in cheek” take on the famed 24 Hours of Le Mans race. It’s an endurance racing series on dedicated road courses using $500 cars that are not worth more than junkyard value. All the cars are track-prepped for safety and inspected by the organization to make sure they are race ready. Make no mistake; these are amateur teams and tuned-up junkers hitting the track, having a bit of fun, and earning some bragging rights on the circuit. Teams typically consist of 4-6 racers that drive the would-be scrap metal through the course until the wheels fall off or they emerge victorious.
On August 12-14, 2022, our race team traveled to Joliet, Illinois to race a refurbished junker. This year’s selection was a 1999 Honda CRV; a unique choice in our efforts to strive for the poorest of podiums. Did we think we’d get very far? No. Did we prove ourselves wrong? Absolutely, while learning a few things along the way:
Hold your line
Anyone can be a mechanic if you watch enough YouTube
If you've made no stealth performance improvements to your 500 dollar car, there's no need to bribe the judges.
Signal your turns and bring a second set of brake pads
At SixSpeed, we are a fully integrated agency specializing in brand action and full-service campaign marketing with a mission to help brands find their next gear. To make this challenge a little more meaningful, we set a goal to donate $1 per mile raced to The Lift Garage a non-profit Minneapolis garage dedicated to mobility for the impoverished.
After 291 laps, placing 9th in our class, receiving the Judge’s Choice Award, and donating over $1,200 to two organizations doing big things, we’d call this a big ol’ victory.
1 agency with big, dumb dreams
7 dipsh*ts who should know better
4 sponsors who believed in our need for, um, speed?
1 unnecessary bribe for the b.s. inspectors
1 $500 grocery-getter
1 1999 Honda CRV
146 sweet, sweet hursepurrs
291 laps
611 miles
2 Black Flags
Over $1200 donated to – @lemonsoflove14 & @theliftgarage
2 sets of brakes
Finished 9 of 19 in class
Finished 36 of 63 in overall race
1 Judge’s Choice Award
Countless memories for a lifetime
Also featured in MPLS Egotist, AdAge, AdWeek, Little Black Book.
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