By Tom Young

It's not often one can achieve a reward after retiring from road rallying for over 25 years.  My son, Matthew, achieved this for me and entered us in the 2019 Great Race (Hemmings News) from Riverside CA to Tacoma WA.  There were four British cars entered out of 150 participants.

#23 1953 Alpine finished 69th place

#48 1963 Jaguar E Type finished 75th place

#41 1964 MG TF finished 91st place

#106 1961 MGA finished 104th place

As for Matthew and me, we chose to be in a 1972 Cougar XR7.  We experienced car trouble with an overheating distributor and eventually the timing gear.  We did not finish; however, we were competitive when we were running.

The course was a 2300 mile journey through four states using rural roads along the West Coast and Pacific Northwest.

 The towns greeted us with enthusiasm.  The food was great.  Everyone was extremely helpful and friendly.  Rally results were processed quickly.

We have entered the 2020 Great Race that will start at the Alamo and finish in South Carolina.  One stop we know will be in Mooresville, NC.  Matthew and I got our feet wet and learned from our fellow rallyists about acceptable car modifications.  This amazing experience will help us prepare for 2020.  Wish us luck.