Today, the 2014 Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Hagerty officially kicked off with a full day of registration and tech inspection on more than 100 vintage vehicles. A long time Great Race (21 years to be precise) Richard McKone experienced a transmission failure in his 1936 Ford Tudor before he even made it to registration. Several parts were chewed up beyond repair, so several phone calls were made and Rex Gardner brought a spare transmission with him for just this purpose. Keep reading to find out how it all shook out.


Rex gave Richard the go-ahead to grab the transmission out of Tommy’s Trailers’ sweep truck. By this point, Hal Everett had already removed the transmission (as well as the rear end) and diagnosed the problem. They had the choice of overnighting components to fix the existing transmission or swapping the entire unit for Rex’s spare. For the sake of time and effort, Rex’s transmission was used, and just a few short hours later, they were back on the road. The hospitality of Hal Everett, Greg Cunningham, Rex Gardner, a couple of support guys, and the folks at a garage just down the road in York, Maine. We couldn’t have gotten Richard back on the road without all those guys for keeping the shop open and letting us use their lift. They also provided great company and kept us laughing the whole time. The end result is Richard’s car is back in action and ready for the start right here in Ogunquit on Saturday, June 21st!