2011 Great Race

John Buonanno and Charlie Sergent of Black Horse Garage just returned from an adventurous 2011 Hemming Great Race!

After months of exhaustive work on our 1915 Hudson Special, the BHG Crew hustled to Chattanooga, TN to make the start in the nick of time. All was well in testing and practice, but come the start of the rally, we encountered some problems that just could not be fixed out on the road. So the crew had to make that painful, late night journey back to the shop in hopes of making repairs - but unfortunately the Hudson could not continue.

Everyone was disappointed, especially Frank, but John was determined not to go home early or give up easily. So rather than quit, he instead grabbed the keys to our 1961 Corvette, grabbed Charlie our body shop manager and hit the road to get to the next stage of the rally. No tools, no spares, no support truck. Just two guys and a Corvette and the open road - the essence of classic rallying!

With their eyes set on learning the ins and outs of the Great Race, John and Charlie had a fantastic time, getting more and more accurate with each stage through the back roads of Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York, and New England. While this was a competitive event, fun was the underlying theme of the week for John and Charlie. A spirit of camaraderie runs deep among all of the competitors in the Great Race and everyone is always willing to lend a hand or offer advice to the rookies.

Nothing can take away the amazing feat that Frank Buonanno and the entire Black Horse Garage and Panel Shop Inc. crew pulled off by building the 1915 Hudson in just a few short months. We were so happy to have the Corvette at our disposal (Thanks Jim!) and it proved to be as reliable as a Camry... but a whole lot more fun! A special thanks to everyone who pitched in their time and efforts to make the Hudson happen. We'll be back and better than ever for 2012! Keep your eyes out for announcements for next year's Hemmings Great Race.