Gumball 3000 2014 will kick off this week. The jet set rally bears the theme Miami 2 Ibiza this year. You guessed it, the start line is in Miami, Florida with the chequered flag dropping in Ibiza, 7 days later!
As always, the route is interesting with testing drives along both sides of the Atlantic. Below you will find a summary of the different days.
Day 1- 4th/5th June
The cars will arrive in Miami on 4th June this year. They will go on display at Ocean Drive for the entire day and night (when they will be lit by neon) while drivers complete the check in and sticking procedures. The drivers will then party the night away prior to the early morning start, the following day.
The flag will drop at 10 am when the drivers will take a 260 mile drive to the historic Daytona Speedway. After a lunch break, drivers will head back out to their overnight stop in Atlanta. A further 400 miles. Cars might be able to complete day 1 and arrive in Atlanta by 7pm. The destination will be Atlanta’s Centennial Olympic Park.
Day 2 – 6th June
Day 2 is another lengthy drive. Teams will head out between 9 am and 11 am towards Charlotte and the Nascar Hall of Fame. The great hall will facilitate lunch before the drivers head back onto the road and towards New York City.
The US stretch of the rally lasts just two days. The cars will therefore be deposited at the airport for transportation back to Europe while the Gumballers party away in the City that never sleeps! 60 cars will head over to Europe with 30 remaining at Fulton Street.
Day 3 – 7th June
Day 3 will be a quiet one for Gumballers. The cars will be heading over the Atlantic while activities will continue into the afternoon back in NYC. Gumballers will catch their overnight flight in the evening, heading towards Edinburgh airport.
Day 4 – 8th June
Day 4 is virgin territory for Gumball 3000. The day will start in Scotland with drivers picking up their cars from the airport and arriving at The Mound around 9 am. The first stop of the day will be Manchester City Football Club.
The afternoon leg will see the cars head off towards London. Previously, Pall Mall has been the Gumball 3000 destination of choice, however, this year Regents Street will be made available to the cars. They should arrive from 6 pm, although events will be happening from 12 pm. The cars will be on display overnight.
Day 5 – 9th June
Paris is the destination for Day 5, however, the itineracy is apparently a closely guarded secret. The cars will leave London at around 10 am. The first checkpoint is apparently two hours outside of London although that is all the detail that has been provided. We are advised to check Twitter and Instagram!
The drivers will arrive in Paris at around 6 pm with the Port Champs Elysee offering parking for the cars while the Gumballers party away at the Place Vendome.
Day 6 – 10th June
From Paris, a 9 am start will see drivers head out towards Circuit D’Albi in France before pushing on to the Spanish capital of Barcelona. The night will be spent at the W Barcelona Hotel with arrivals at the beach front and a VIP party!
Day 7 – 11th June
The day will start a little later than most of the others. At 11 am, the cars will head out of Barcelona to the port of Denia ready to set sail in the evening to the party capital of Ibiza.
Cars will be joining too and the route will take teams from San Antonio in the West, to the Port of Ibiza in the South. A glamorous award ceremony and closing party is a certainty.
Day 8 – 12th June
Cars will remain at the Career Andenes until the evening when most drivers are expected to trek back to mainland Spain. We hear that Eve and Maximillion Cooper will get married in Ibiza. Perhaps this will be the day?
As with last year, the grid will be determined by the amount of charitable donations a team makes. The team currently in the lead is Team 17 with a Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe. Other cars to expect include a McLaren P1, a Brabus E v12, a Brabus G 700 6×6, a Ferrari F40, the Batman Tumbler and Deadmau5 in his bespoke Purrari 458!
