Carpinterian Tegan Hammond, a professional stunt driver, awaits the start of Saturday’s Race of Gentlemen’s Santa Barbara Drags in the 1927 T Ford Roadster she was driving. 
Vintage cars and throngs of spectators gathered on East Cabrillo Boulevard for Saturday’s Race of Gentlemen’s Santa Barbara Drags. 
The pit area in the parking lot of the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort was a beehive of activity Saturday. 
Seth Hammonds of Goleta races along East Cabrillo Boulevard. 
Members of the Danville Dukes talk strategy before the races. 
A 1950s custom car was on display on the lawn of the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort. 
When it comes to speed, Tegan Hammond has no problem putting the pedal to the metal.
The Carpinteria resident has driven to two land speed records on Utah’s famed Bonneville Salt Flats, hitting 294 mph in 2011 before reaching 302 mph the next year.
She is just the seventh woman to earn her place alongside an accomplished group of speed racers in the 300-mph club, a group that also includes her parents, Tanis and Seth, and brother Channing.
Hammond drove go-karts when she was young and now is a professional stunt driver. She was the Ferrari California-driving double for Perdita Weeks in Magnum P.I. and was behind the wheel of the new Ferrari 488 Pista Spider in a commercial shot in California this year. She is the first woman to appear in a Ferrari campaign.
“It was one thing leading to the next, and somebody telling me that there are not a lot of women driving,” Hammond said. “And thinking ‘why not?’ It’s a fun adventure and exciting.”
Saturday afternoon was Hammond’s first time in the driver’s seat of a 1927 T Ford Roadster at the Race of Gentlemen’s Santa Barbara Drags, a drag racing event along East Cabrillo Boulevard near the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort.
The drag race included a select group of drivers who showcased their vintage cars “street racing” to the backdrop of the Santa Barbara shoreline and the Riviera.
“There’s so much style, knowledge, and it’s a special group of people,” Hammond said at the racer pits in the parking lot of the hotel. “I’ve never actually experienced Santa Barbara drag racing, vintage-style, with my family here. It’s quality family time.”
The Santa Barbara waterfront came abuzz with action Saturday, with the sound of roaring engines filling the area.
Racers were joined by hundreds of thrill seekers lining the 660-foot course in front of the hotel.
Eager passerbys looked over the barriers to catch a glimpse of the racing.
The automotive and motorcycle races began around 8:30 a.m. and continued until sundown.
— Noozhawk staff writer Brooke Holland can be reached at bholland@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
