ELEGANCE at HERSHEY

We arrived at the Hotel Hershey on June 10, 2011 to attend the Elegance. Since we arrived early, we spent the afternoon at the AACA Museum of antique and historic cars where we are pictured below at left.

On June 11 and 12 we attended the first ever Elegance which included the running of the historic Hershey Hill Climb featuring vintage race cars. The Elegance featured some of the world's most impressive vintage collector cars from 1906 through to 1960, displayed in the unique setting of the Hotel Hershey formal gardens. It included the three Ps of antique cars: Packard, Peerless, and Pierce-Arrow. The Elegance is a celebration of a bygone era when the automobile stirred imaginations and caused excitement. The Elegance is an invitational showing of some of the country's finest cars hand-picked representing what many consider the formative years of the automobile through the immediate post-World War II golden age. Having attended the Hilton Concours de Elegance since its inception nine years ago, I can attest to the collection at Hershey as being the finest I've ever seen. Not only the cars, but the setting itself brought out the beauty and charm of these lovely automobiles.




The first event was the Hill Climb held on Saturday, June 11 on the grounds of the Hershey Hotel. Below are pictures of cars at the start at the bottom of the hill on the grounds of the hotel.





























And here is the start.
























The track runs through the woods and up the hill to where the hotel is situated.


































The video below provides an idea of the race's sights and sounds as the cars come roaring through the woods and up the hill to the finish line.



















The Hershey Hotel's grounds are beautiful and made for a fantastic setting which actually enhanced the beauty of these already beautiful and rare vintage automobiles.























Our room is right over my left shoulder on 3d floor.











Below are pictures which give an overview of the Elegance and the hotel gardens.























































Here are some of the car we particularly liked and voted for as "People's Choice".
We liked the 12 cylinder 1932 Packard series 903 below, which garnered our votes for "People's Choice". My father worked for Packard as an upholsterer around this time and it's quite possible that he worked on this one. As a child, I remember seeing rear carpeting from similar cars which he had brought home. Around this time, he also worked on a car being custom made for the Czar of Russia which was never delivered since the Czar was murdered in the Communist revolution.

















































The yellow one is a 1938 Peugeot 402 powered by a 2-liter/70HP ohv twin-carburated 4-cylinder engine and a four-speed Cotal electro-magnetic gearbox, allowing quick, clutch-less shifting similar to today's paddle-shift units, like on my BMW 335i convertible.






































Below are some of the many cars which we thought were exceptionally beautiful. In the garden I'm standing next to a 1936 Cadillac series 90, which would be unimpressive in any other setting. The yellow 1935 Bugatti type 57 was one of my favorites, however, I thought the yellow 1938 Peugeot just a bit more interesting.

































Below, Lillian is standing next to a beautiful 1932 Packard series 905 V-12 coup-roadster, while I'm sitting in a 2012 Fiat 500. Boy, that Fiat is really small inside, you fit in it like a sardine in a can, but no oil to ease entry or exit. This is really a cute coffin with wheels.
























It's hard not to show all my pictures, as there was really no uninteresting automobile. I took over 300 pictures and so had to cull the few you see here. However, I cannot end this blog without showing a few more beauties that caught my eye. The red one below is a 1952 Muntz jet. Anyone who lived in the NY area in the '50s will know of mad man Muntz and his TVs from the many commercials on NY TV. Next to it is a 1954 Hudson Italia sporting a hand crafted body by Carrozzeria Touring of Italy. This is one of only 26 ever built. Below these is the beautiful, aerodynamic, futuristic 1937 Delahaye 135M. Delahaye finished 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th at the French Grand Prix behind the winning Bugatti, won the Monte Carlo Rally in 1937, and the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1938; a really impressive history for a mark we seldom hear about or see.













































Below, left, is a 1939/47 V-12 Rolls-Royce Phantom III. It was shown at the 1947 Paris Concours. At the right, is a 1934 Brewster ford. Brewster & CO, a wholly owned subsidiary of Rolls Royce offered four different custom built Brewster bodies on Ford V-8 chassis.






























Oh! Did I mention that the following marks were also an display: Tucker, Duesenberg, Daimler, Isotta-Fraschini, Hispano-Suiza, Locomobile (my father also worked for them), Palmer-Singer, Lozier, Stevens-Duryea, Lincoln, Alfa Romeo, Mercury, Plymouth, and Avions Voison. Well, I must show you a picture of the 1931 Avions Voison V-12, 4.9 liters, 115 hp. I'll bet you haven't seen anything like this!



















As the cars lined up to receive their trophies, it started to rain heavily. It was threatening all day, but around 3pm the rain came and along with it a mad scramble to get cars, drivers, judges, and spectators under cover. We had umbrellas, but we still got wet, especially shoes and socks.





























As noted on the umbrella, that's my American Gal!


























With this rain, we left around 3pm and got home the next day around 6pm.

137th KENTUCKY DERBY

On May 3d we left to join the Good Sam Samboree in Louisville, KY for the Kentucky Derby. Our trip also included three days in Elizabethtown to tour some bourbon distilleries and Bowling Green to tour the GM Corvette Plant and Museum. We got back home on of all days Friday, May 13th. Our trip, however, was not without problems. We made an intermediate stopover in Clinton, TN, just past Knoxville. The following morning, the battery in the Honda CRV we were towing was dead. I jump started the car and in doing so, the alarm went off, even though I used the key to enter and start. It took about an hour with some help from a fellow camper to turn off the alarm; just used the key in the door to lock and unlock the car again. The second came on Mothers Day when I lost my iphone somewhere between the Expo grounds where we were camped and the Elizabethtown Crossroads RV Park where we were on Mothers Day evening. Checked every place we stopped that day, but no luck. Eventually had to get a new one and new cell number.

We camped at the Kentucky Expo Center, about 1.5 miles from the track. It was right under the flight path of UPS planes as can be seen in the picture.






















Despite all this, we had a very enjoyable time in Louisville and the Derby. On Thursday we had a free day which we spent in downtown Louisville visiting the Slugger Museum and factory, viewing the Pegasus Parade and dining at the Makers Mark Lounge.





















The Pegasus parade is held on Thursday before the Derby.
























The Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory is identified by this giant bat out front.



































We had an infield suite near the starting gate which included all the food and drinks we could consume. I'd say that I got my money's worth in drink alone. We were dressed up for the Derby as is the custom for these suites.









































Below is the start. Our money was on Soldat 17, Midnight Interlude 15, Shackleford 13, Pants on Fire 7, and Dialed In 8.

























And here they come! Our picks Schackleford, Pants on Fire, Mucho Macho Man and Midnight Interlude are looking good, just behind # 5, Decisive Moment. Animal Kingdom nowhere to be seen here. Starting to count our money.























Shackleford takes the lead over # 19 Nehro. Looks like we have a winner!





















And from nowhere comes Animal Kingdom to win the Derby. Shackleford did, however win the Preakness two weeks later. The Maryland track is one sixteenth of a mile shorter than the Derby at Churchill Downs; Animal Kingdom was coming up to challenge Shackleford, but he just did not have enough track left to catch and pass, he came in second, hence no triple crown winner this year; a 34 year drought. Affirmed in 1978 was the last one.


We left Louisville and stayed three nights in Elizabethtown to tour the bourbon distilleries: Jim Beam, Heaven Hill, Four Roses, and Makers Mark. In the US, bourbon is a special form of whiskey created, distilled, and aged in the eastern United States, mainly in the state of Kentucky. It is classified as a distilled spirit made from a fermented mash, mainly consisting of corn, and aged in white oak barrels for at least two years. The unique nature of bourbon is derived from the iron-free water used in the distillation process which is found in Kentucky, as is the corn. Bardstown is at the center of these distilleries and we had a nice Mothers Day dinner at the historic Old Talbot Tavern. Even though it was Sunday, the local liquor store was open and I bought some Old Bardstown bourbon. This is know only to the locals and is one of the greatest bargains in good bourbon. None of the local distilleries will admit that they make it, but it is as good as Makers Mark but only costs about $20/liter. I recommend this to anyone who enjoys a good bourbon. Unfortunately, it is not sold outside the area.

Jim Beam had the best bourbon chocolate candies, Heaven Hill the best display for understanding the bourbon making process while Makers Mark was the only place where the whole process could be seen. There, we even dipped our fingers in the corn/barley/wheat/rye brew and a bottle of bourbon in their distinctive red wax. Bourbon requires at least 51% corn; the amount of barley and wheat distinguish most bourbon distilleries as does the length of aging in the barrels. I'm not sure which use rye.

At Makers Mark we had a nice lunch in the Toll House Cafe and then a tour of the distillery, purchase of some bourbon and dipping my bottle into the red wax.




























And below is my master piece!

















We toured where Makers Mark bottles are dipped in wax and packaged, as well as their vats, storage facilities and distillery operations. We stuck our fingers in this vat, tasted like liquid bread, smelled terrific. To be bourbon, need at least 51% corn.

























The odors at these distilleries reminded us of Reston, VA when Virginia Gentlemen was brewing its bourbon. Can you imagine a whole town with the odor of brewing bourbon? I tell you, it is something special and here we relived this special fragrance.


We also visited the Patton Museum at Fort Knox. It was very interesting and depicted his life and career.



































While in Elizabethtown we also visited the Swope's Cars of Yesteryear Museum. They have a great collection from the turn of the 19th century through the 20's, 30's and into the 40's. The collection is part of the Swope dealership and is free. Below are some cars of interest.











This last picture is the Bonnie & Clyde car about which Clyde wrote Mr. Ford complimenting the car's performance which suited robbing banks. The letter is shown in the photo.








After Elizabethtown we went to Bowling Green, home of the Corvette factory and museum.
Here we are in front of the Corvette Factory. Visiting this factory was like stepping back into time. We've toured BMW in Munich 30 years ago and in Spartenburg, SC a few years ago; no comparison. In Munich, BMW was making on the same line cars for delivery to several countries meeting their various specifications such as left/right hand drive, pollution, etc. Lots of automation and at the hand of the few workers on the assembly line. At GM it seemed a hand operation; cars of the same color were grouped together, spec sheets on paper, not digitally encoded, manpower intensive. Here one can see first hand how unions are making us uncompetitive.






































At the museum we learned that the first Corvette logo was to have contained the flag, but a last minute change used the Chevrolet symbol and the fleur-de-lis .