Pre-race days are a constant string of activities, and Friday is no different. We start the day with a giant meeting, inviting our 500-person entourage to get up to speed on the plans for the race. The meeting covers each day of rallying, and it highlights the sponsors, host cities, and other notable details to ensure the event goes smoothly. After the meeting is complete, Rally School is next on the agenda. This offers a great deal of insight to the rookies and any participant who wants to step up their program and try to find their way into the winner’s circle. To prepare for the 9-day rally, we have a warm-up rally known as the Hagerty Trophy Run. It gives the racers a chance to practice and work out the bugs before the big day.

Most Trophy Run days feature an “on your own” lunch, but today’s was a bit different. We had a hosted lunch stop in Lockport, New York, and the turnout was awesome! A local car show was part of the day’s festivities and hundreds of people came out to see the Great Race cars as they rolled into town. From there, we tackled the back roads of rural New York, zig-zagging through farm roads, eventually leading to Gasport, New York. As the racers came off the clock, it was time to head back to Buffalo, and make our way to the Pierce-Arrow Museum for a delicious dinner and award reception for the Hagerty Trophy Run winners. Team Albuquerque took home the X-Cup win, while Shane Clark and Brian Stanton claimed the Rookie win. Sportsman went to Lockport’s hometown team of Brent Powley and Rick McIntosh, while the Expert division was won by Richard Fredette and Jim Caudle. The overall winner was Dave Reeder and Sawyer Stone with a final score of 2.43 seconds. Final scores for the Trophy Run can be found by clicking this link: https://www.greatrace.com/results. Take a look at our highlights from Friday’s action and get ready for tons of coverage tomorrow as we embark on a 9-day journey from Buffalo, New York to Halifax, Nova Scotia.