It will mark the first time Louisville will be part of “MINI Takes the States”, a biennial New York-to- L.A. tour sponsored by MINI USA.

“We're thrilled to welcome our fellow MINI owners to Louisville,” said Joe Atkinson, Director of Operations for MINI of Louisville, which will play host to the visitors. “Here in the Derby City, we know all about horsepower and having fun and our visitors are going to experience a lot of both.”

A special Bluegrass Road Rally will be held that afternoon. The one-hour drive along scenic country roads will begin across from Louisville Slugger Field, travel down River Road into Oldham County, and back. The rally will be led by the MINI Maven, the red-haired brand ambassador for MINI of Louisville who likes to tell people she meets while motoring around in her MINI, "Maven means expert, and MINI means fun. I guess that makes me an expert on fun!"

A “bootgate” (that's MINI for tailgate) party will be held in the parking lot on Main Street, across from Louisville Slugger Field beginning at 4-pm. Later, drivers will walk across the street to attend a Louisville Bats baseball game, where one lucky MINI driver on the tour will win a chance to throw out the first pitch.

Mayor Greg Fischer has declared July 7 “MINI Takes Louisville Day” in honor of the day's events.

Louisville is the 6th city on the MINI Takes the States road rally, which will begin in Woodlake, New Jersey, MINI USA headquarters, on July 4th. By the time the tour ends in Los Angeles on July 14, more than 3,000 MINI owners will have participated in at least one segment of the rally. Two participating drivers will win tickets to the Olympic Games which will be held in London beginning July 27.