After some significant adversity more than halfway through their journey, members of the Lawrence Auto Club team used some good luck and cooperation to finish their cross-country vintage car race on Saturday in a 1957 Chevrolet Bel-Air.

The team of eight Lawrence High School students and graduates, along with one Free State student and one Oskaloosa student, pulled their vehicle across the finish line of the Great Race’s 14th and final leg Saturday afternoon in Tacoma, Wash.

“It was worth every penny,” team member Sam Suitheimer said during a phone interview Saturday. “I’d do it again if I had a chance to.”

The team finished third out of three cars in the X-Cup, or student, division. The race, which spanned more than 4,000 miles, began June 25 in Harrisonburg, Va., near Washington, D.C.

In the Great Race, rules disallow the use of electronic devices. A driver and passenger must aim to arrive at each leg’s destination in the exact designated amount of time to avoid a penalty. Team members must keep track of miles traveled with a watch, clock, speedometer, pencil and paper.

Suitheimer, who graduated from LHS in May, said that considering what his team went through when their bus, which doubled as a lodging on the road, broke down in Nebraska, they were happy just to finish the race. When the team decided to move on, members of the race staff assisted with hotel lodging and, in the case of Danielle Jones, who just finished her junior year at LHS, pitched in for clothing she had to leave on the maligned bus.

“They supported us and made it a lot better,” Jones said.

Michael Davis and Travis Smith drove the final leg Saturday. Other team members were Justin Fox, Shawna Randall, Kyle Hodge, Ronnie Burress, Robert Moore and Brett Yulich, with team leaders David Tenpenny, an LHS auto instructor, Ted Crady and David Bailey.

Tenpenny was pleased with his team’s performance on the trip and how far they came not only in distance but also in teamwork.

“Sometimes it takes a while for you to learn a new family. It’s kind of a bittersweet deal. Nobody wants it to be over,” he said.

The students will return from Seattle on a Greyhound bus and likely arrive Tuesday, Tenpenney said.