The Gumball 3000 is back for its 13th rendition in 2012 and it guarantees to be just as wild and crazy as it has always been. The 2012 Gumball 3000, for those that do not know, is a roughly 3,000-mile rally that begins in New York, heads into Canada, and eventually ends up in Los Angeles, all while hitting five check points between New York and L.A.

At each checkpoint, the entire group gets together and throws one massive party with the key party coming at the very end in L.A. Though the Gumball 3000 is touted as a race, it is more of a leisurely drive that features a wide array of celebrities and all types of awesome cars, from the downright powerful and sexy to the economical and environmentally friendly.

This year’s Gumball 3000 is set to kickoff on Friday at noon and is in no way lacking celebrity appearances and tons of flashy rides.

Click past the jump to read more about the Gumball 3000, as well as the cars and celebrities making appearances.

History and Tradition

The Gumball 3000 Rally began in 1999 when Maximillion Cooper put together the race, which is a perfect combination of music, art, film, and cars. This rally is said to be about “…challenging tradition and taking a non-conventional approach to exploring and developing cultural and creative boundaries,” according to Cooper.

The Gumball 3000 was stricken with tragedy in 2007, when one of its participants crashed into another car head on at an estimated 100 mph, killing the driver and passenger of the other car, but leaving the participants unharmed. After this occurrence, the Gumball 3000 organizers took a much firmer grasp on driver safety and have become the ambassadors of road safety throughout the world.

Since the 2003 running of the rally, the Gumball 3000 has also become a center stage for showcasing alternative fuel vehicles. It began with the running of bio-diesel-powered vehicles and later morphed into electric vehicles making their way into several legs of the rally in 2007.

The Gumball 3000 is also a charitable corporation, as it has involved various fundraising events to support a wide array of charitable foundations, including: Everyman Cancer Research, Eve Appeal, Kids In Need, Water Aid & The Big Issue and Stay Strong Stephen.

As you can see, the Gumball 3000 is not all about celebrities, partying, and cars, it is also a race for awareness and helping those in need.

Signing Up and Regulations

Signing up is extremely simple. Just head to Gumball 3000’s website and fill in an application. Once you complete the application, organizers will call you to discuss the application and your eligibility, which basically consists of having a valid driver’s license, insurance, and a heartbeat. From there is where it gets a little more tricky, as the entry fee is a whopping ₤25,000 ($39,282)!

That fee covers a room at a luxury hotel every night of the race, from May 25th to the 31st, food at the hotels and checkpoints, entry to all of the Gumball parties along the route, and tickets to the Indy 500. You have to find your own way to the start line, buy your own gasoline, pay for your drinks at the Gumball parties, pay for your insurance, and find your own way home from the finish line.

The regulations are easy, stay on the assigned route and drive carefully. Short of that, just have a blast and don’t do anything that David Hasselhoff wouldn’t do…

The 2012 Schedule

Like we told you, the race kicks off on May 25th at noon at Times Square in New York. From there, the whole gang heads up to Niagara Falls, Canada and should be there between 7:00 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. Then they head up to Toronto and will arrive around 9:00 p.m. and stay the night.

On the 26th at 9:00 a.m. the convoy starts up again and they head over to old Detroit Rock City, which the schedule estimates arrival at 1:00 p.m. and departure at 4:00 p.m. Once they leave Detroit at 4 p.m., they head off to Indianapolis and stay the night there. On the 27th, the entire group heads off to watch the Indianapolis, which is included in the entry fee. The group stays the night in Indy on the 27th.

On the 28th, everyone wakes up and heads down to The Gateway Arch in St. Louis, and they hang out there from 3:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. From there, they all head to Kansas City Missouri and pull in at about 10:00 p.m. and stay the night.

On the 29th, the group wakes up, eats some breakfast, and jumps back in the driver’s seat to head down to Santa Fe, New Mexico. The group arrives in Santa Fe around 7:00 p.m., then stays the night there. The following morning, the 30th, the group heads to Las Vegas. At around 7:00 p.m., the Gumballers pop into Las Vegas and attempt to get a little sleep for the next day.

On the morning of the 31st, the group heads to their final destination, Los Angeles. They hit Hollywood Boulevard at about 7:00 p.m. and then the real partying begins! Keep in mind, pretty much everything is covered during this trip, sans drinks at the parties, fuel, and any additional food you choose to eat beyond what you are offered at the luxury hotels you get to stay at.

The 2012 Celebrity Entrants

There are a total of 37 celebrity entrants in the 2012 Gumball rally. Some are well known, while others you likely couldn’t pick out of a police lineup. We will focus on the handful of recognizable names topping this year’s entry pool.

Maximillion Cooper:

Well of course Mr. Cooper would be in it. He founded the race and has been a part of it ever since its 1999 Debut. He is a man of many talents, as he is a racecar driver, fashion designer, and business man. Quite the resume, sir!

Eve Jeffers:

She is better known as simply “Eve.” She is arguably one of the best female rappers of recent history and has also tried her hand at acting. She has been a participant in Gumball since the 2010 running and is making an appearance again in 2012.

David Hasselhoff:

Yup, the Hoff is in for the fourth straight year. Hasselhoff is most famous for co-starring with a talking Trans Am in Knight Rider and saving drowning beach dwellers in Baywatch. More recently he is famous for all sorts of craziness that has nothing to do with acting.

Idris Elba:

Idris is best known for his acting in the British TV Series “The Wire.” He is also an acclaimed DJ and participated in the 2011 Gumball rally with a torn Achilles tendon – ouch.

Lawrence Muggerud:

Muggerud is better known as DJ Muggs from Cypress Hill. The 2012 running of the Gumball rally will be his third running in as many years. He also has a tendency to perform at the Gumball parties, so he is pulling double duty.

Derek “Buttsy” Butler:

Buttsy was one of the first professional drifters in Ireland. He helped launch the Prodrift Series and has been seen in events all over Europe. This year will be Buttsy’s second time running the Gumball rally, as he ran it in 2009 too.

Tony Hawk:

C'mon, if you don’t know who Tony Hawk is, you need to crawl out from under that rock you’ve been hiding under for about 30 years. He is to skateboarding what Carroll Shelby is to the automotive world. The dude revolutionized the sport and gained his notoriety after performing the first ever 900 at the 1999 X-games.

Denis Rodman:

“The Worm” is making his second appearance at the Gumball rally. He was once known for his awesomely fierce rebounding skillsin the NBA, but later became better known for simply raising hell and doing so wearing a lovely evening gown.

Brandon Margera:

No one will know him by his real name, but anyone that loved the show and movies Jackass will know him as Bam Margera. He became famous in the early-1990s as a pro skateboarder and later moved onto doing insane stunts on the controversial show and movie series Jackass. Bam started running in the Gumball 3000 in 2006.

Travis Barker:

Barker took part in the 2006 Gumball 3000 and missed the 2007 running. In 2008, he was in a frightening plane crash that only he and one other passenger survived. Fortunately, this running of the Gumball 3000 is in the U.S., so he can skip the plane ride, if he chooses.

Alvin Joiner:

Okay, you likely have no clue who that person is, unless we give you his stage name, Xzibit. He is a hip hop artist that is most recently known for guest appearances, as opposed to making his own albums. He was also once the host of “Pimp My Ride.”

Travis Pastrana:

Travis is a well-known rally car driver that was recently tapped to drive the all-new Dodge Dart rally car in the World Rally Championship.

Ndamukong Suh:

Yeah, that’s someone’s name, but don’t laugh, because he’s a big boy. Suh was a first round draft choice by the Detroit Lions – an NFL football team for those that don’t know. He was the 2010 Rookie of the Year on the defensive side and continues playing at a high level. He drove his first Gumball 3000 rally in 2011 and is coming back for 2012.

That about sums up the well-known celebrities running in the 2010 Gumball 3000 rally, and it is a rather eclectic bunch. We can’t wait to see the television series this year!

Notable Cars

To date, the Gumball 3000 organizers have not released a list of cars running this year. If it is anything like the past, we are in for a list of cars about as eclectic as its celebrity list. We will update you once they release a list of cars.

Make sure to keep an eye out for the Gumball 3000 eight-part TV series that will highlight all of the antics of this motley crew of drivers. We are likely all in for one hell of a good time!