Got LeMons? Make lemonade

Believe it or not, this is one race where it's possible to have the worst car and still be the big winner.

The 24 Hours of LeMons — like the famous endurance race in LeMans, France — has different classes for different cars. In this race, however, all the cars are pretty much, well, lemons.

Remember that first used car you learned to how to drive? Maybe it had some dings. Maybe it leaked oil like the BP Deep Horizon. One of the basic tenets of this race is each car must be bought and prepared for $500 or less, which means a lot of these cars aren't likely to go the distance.

"This race started because a bunch of car guys from San Francisco wanted a place to go where your checkbook didn't decide how well you did," said Jay Lamm, the race organizer.

The green flag starts the race at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at Infineon Raceway. Racing continues at 9 a.m. Sunday. Tickets are $20 per day or $30 for a weekend pass, which includes an all-access paddock pass.

"This is basically a party where some racing happens to take place," said David Swig of Corte Madera, who has competed in the race every year since it began five years ago. He's hoping to get his first win this year after regularly  finishing in the top five. If Swig does win, he'd better have a wheelbarrow to carry home the prize. Top prize is $1,500 in nickels.

"Really ,you win by having the most fun," Lamm said. "There are two trophies: one for the car that completes the most laps and wins. We also have one for how you do with the worst car. We have a sliding scale for the crappier the car and the better you do."

What started as an idea for some weekend fun five years ago has turned into a national series with 24 events. The series returns to Sonoma on Oct. 22-23.

TWO-TIME NASCAR CHAMPION JOINS PACHYDERM

Two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup series champion Tony Stewart stopped in Oakland on Thursday on his way to Southern California for Sunday's Auto Club 400.

Stewart was in the Bay Area to promote the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway (June 24-26) with his new best friend Osh, an 11,000 pound, 16-year-old male elephant at the Oakland Zoo. Working alongside Elephant Manager Jeff Kinzley, Stewart helped complete some of the daily care for Osh, including a “pedicure,” mouth check and feeding him lunch. Osh even kicked off the countdown to race weekend by passing Stewart the official green flag.

“That’s a pretty incredible animal, and this is like nothing I’ve ever done,” said the driver of the No. 14 Office Depot/Mobil 1 Chevrolet Impala for Stewart-Haas Racing. “It didn’t take long to realize how much respect you have to have for that animal.”

Stewart also had the chance to interact with some of the zoo’s other popular attractions, including a skink, tortoise and a 48-pound Columbian red-tail boa, before participating in a Q&A with fans. Stewart also introduced a special Trackside with Tony race package.

“I always enjoy going to Sonoma. It’s not only a beautiful area, but I always enjoy the road courses,” said Stewart, who has two victories at Infineon (2002, 2005). “The competition is getting better and better on the road courses, and I can honestly say there are 12-15 guys who can go home with a win.”