Teams

Gotham Crusaders

Garage Headquarters: Tulsa, OK

Driver: Zack Herrel

Mechanics: Loree McDonald, Patrick O'Hara, Wayne McDonald, Hunter McDonald

Nuts and Bolts:

“This race is about bringing together different minds and creating something wonderful – from thought to paper to reality – and then racing the heck out of it with hopes to win,” says Loree McDonald, captain of the Gotham Crusaders. “That’s the best part: It isn’t even about winning, it’s about coming together with ideas and showing off your stuff.” Loree, her cousin Hunter McDonald, her grandfather Wayne McDonald, and friends Zack Herrel and Patrick O’Hara plan on having a great deal to show off by October 25, when they’ll play on the crowd’s nostalgia for the 1960s “Batman” television series.

The Crusaders are Oklahomans – most of the teammates spend the school year in Norman, where they attend Norman High, the University of Oklahoma, and Oklahoma City Community College. But the group’s Batcave is in Oklahoma City, where Wayne lives and maintains an auto workshop. “He’s been rebuilding cars from the early twentieth century for several years, and has developed quite the gorgeous portfolio,” Loree explains. Wayne will take the lead in shaping the entry’s classic Batmobile racer while the rest of the teammates stretch their limited student budgets to devise costumes that reincarnate the iconic TV characters. “You can expect great things from us because we work so well together and offer so many skills across the board,” Loree promises. “We’ll be the group to watch out for.”