Empire, Michigan | Racing Since 1964

History
of the Hill

A quiet stretch of road. Generations of racers. More than six decades of motorsport history on the shores of Lake Michigan.

1964

Just a short walk from the shores of Lake Michigan, a stretch of Wilco Road has been home to one of Michigan's most distinctive motorsports traditions.

The Empire Hill Climb was first run in 1964, bringing competitors and spectators to the Village of Empire for a beautifully simple challenge: one car, one driver and a race against the clock.

More than 60 years later, the hill remains part of Empire's racing story.

The Empire Timeline
1964
The Beginning
1980
Original Era Ends
2014
The Revival
TODAY
Still Racing
Chapter 01

The Original Era

1964 to 1980

From 1964 through 1980, an extraordinary variety of machinery made its way to Empire.

Sports cars, open-wheel racers, American muscle and purpose-built competition cars all came to this small village on the Lake Michigan shoreline to answer the same question:

Who could make it up the hill the fastest?

The cars changed. The competitors changed. But the challenge remained remarkably simple.

Austin-Healey Jaguar E-Type AMC Gremlin Formula Ford Formula Vee Triumph Corvette Porsche Ferrari
The Challenge

Start at the bottom.
Stop the clock at the top.

From the Empire Archives

The Cars Change.
The Hill Remains.

1960s
Empire Hill Climb in the 1960s
Where It Began
The Empire Hill Climb began in 1964, bringing sports cars, open-wheel machines and competitors to Wilco Road for a race against the clock.
1970s
Empire Hill Climb in the 1970s
The Original Era
Through the 1970s, Empire welcomed an extraordinary mix of machinery, from European sports cars to American muscle and purpose-built competition cars.
34 Years Without Racing
Chapter 02

The Hill Comes Back

2014

After the final running of the original era in 1980, the engines went quiet. But Empire hadn't forgotten its hill climb.

In 2014, after a 34-year absence, competition returned to Wilco Road.

The revived Empire Hill Climb immediately captured the character of the original event. The entry list stretched from a Formula Ford to a modified circle-track car, with the circle-track car ultimately taking the fastest time of the day.

The hill was back.
Chapter 03

A New Generation

2014 to Today

Since its revival, the Empire Hill Climb has grown into an annual gathering of racers, volunteers, spectators and an entire community.

Vintage race cars line up alongside modern performance cars. Rally cars share the paddock with open-wheel machines. Home-built specials compete alongside highly developed race cars. The modern era also brought drift cars to Empire, eventually becoming a competition class of their own.

Some competitors arrive chasing a class victory. Some arrive chasing the course record.

Others simply want to say: “I raced Empire.”

Through it all, the character of the event remains remarkably close to the race that began here in 1964.

Generations Apart | Same Hill

Then
& Now

Two Volkswagen Sciroccos. Two eras of Empire. Nearly the same view of a car doing exactly what competitors have done here for generations, attacking Wilco Road against the clock.

Historic Volkswagen Scirocco competing at the Empire Hill Climb
Modern Volkswagen Scirocco competing at the Empire Hill Climb
Then | Original Era
Now
Different Decades. Same Machine. Same Hill.
Volkswagen Sciroccos competing at Empire generations apart.
← Drag to travel through time →
Brian Blaine competing at the Empire Hill Climb
6×
The Modern Era

Still
Chasing
Time.

Brian Blaine, six-time King of the Hill, represents the modern era of Empire competition, chasing speed and adding new records to a story that began in 1964.

Adam Buchanan competing in the Drift Class at the 2026 Empire Hill Climb
2026 Drift Class Winner
A New Kind of Competition

Drift Comes
To The Hill.

The modern Empire Hill Climb has continued to evolve while keeping the spirit of the original event intact. Drift cars became part of that mix, bringing a completely different style of competition to Wilco Road.

The Drift Class combines the spectacle of drifting with the challenge that has defined Empire since 1964: getting up the hill as quickly as possible.

Adam Buchanan captured the Drift Class win in 2026, adding his name to the growing modern history of Empire.

More than sixty years after the first hill climb, Empire is still finding new ways to go fast.

The Experience

The Hill

Part of what makes Empire special is how close spectators can get to the experience. The natural hillside creates a spectacular viewing area as competitors attack Wilco Road below.

01

Downtown Empire

Parc Exposé brings the race cars and drivers into the village, giving spectators a chance to see the machines up close.

02

Wilco Road

Then the road closes. Drivers leave the village behind and prepare for their run against the clock.

03

The Start Line

The course goes quiet. A car rolls forward. The starter gives the signal, and another run at Empire begins.

More Than
A Race.

The Empire Hill Climb has survived because generations of people believed it was worth preserving.

What started in 1964, disappeared after 1980, and returned in 2014 is once again part of the identity of this small Lake Michigan community.

Every running adds another chapter to the story.

Drivers
Volunteers
Corner Workers
Officials
Sponsors
Photographers
Spectators
Local Businesses
Village of Empire
Race Fans
Empire Hill Climb | Established 1964

Different Cars.
Different Generations.
Same Hill.

One hill. One car. One clock. And we're still racing.