turtle Races?! for charity!
Yeah, turtle races. It’s the real sport of kings, and it’s found its home here at Brennan’s for 45 years. In 1975, then-owner Ab Lawrence brought “the world’s stupidest sport” to Marina del Rey as a lark, hoping that he could attract a few people for a couple of weeks. But the turtles knew how to draw a crowd, so the races kept going.
Here's how it works
Every first and third Thursday, the turtles come out of their turtle sanctuary and start limbering up. Come 8:30pm, the first race starts and three turtles will enter the center of the ring. First one that makes it out of circle wins. It’s as simple as that!
Think you’ve got a hot tip on who’s gonna win? Pay for a ticket to put your name in your favored turtle’s hat. If they win, your name might get called—and you’ll get to win a prize from our prize wheel.
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Most importantly, all money collected from "bets" made for the Turtle Races goes directly to charities to improve the well-being of our fellow unhoused Angelenos.
There's only three rules...
1. No pointing! Our turtles get shy.
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2. No "Boo'ing" our turtles. I mean, what kind of person boo's a turtle!?!
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2. No touching our turtles. Only our specially trained turtle wranglers may touch the turtles If caught, well… you’ll just have to come to a race to find out what the punishment is.
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Forty-five years in, and over $300,000 raised for charity. Come visit us on the 1st and 3rd Thursday and take part in the tradition with us. But remember—don’t point!
