Up until today it seems that every time that I have been through Hazleton, PA, it has been in a snowstorm… not today! On a beautiful drive north from Hershey, PA this morning was another one of those up and down hill kind of mornings… beautiful green vistas and smooth driving! While the competitors were following a course through rural Pennsylvania, across a covered bridge making their way to Laurel Mall in Hazleton, PA, MotorMouth scooted up I-81 to reach the lunch stop. Our lunch was at Hazledon Downs, an off-track wagering facility. I think that that’s a first for the Great Race!  Once again, I jumped onto the I-81 to run up to Binghamton, NY… home of the Calder Cup winning Binghamton Senators, AHL affiliate of the Ottawa Senators. Our finish was right downtown on the Court Street bridge over the Chenango River. It was an outstanding finish to the day. The crowds were huge and enthusiastic! There were many former Great Racers there with their cars… including Bill Josler with his 1928 Ford from White River Junction, VT. Bill’s joining us for the Championship Run to Bennington, VT!

After the event, I needed to get away from from the ‘maddening crowd’ for some quiet; asked a police officer to recommend a quality restaurant. MotorMouth loves fine dining… I visited “Remliks”, a downtown Binghamton eatery that offered one of the finest meals I’ve had in a long time… a three onion gratinee crock with caramelized Spanish, Bermuda and Leek onions followed by a pork schnitzel, a savoury cutlet with forest mushroom bread pudding and braised red cabbage in a whole grain mustard cream.. truly a meal to remember! This has been a memorable day!

Tomorrow… the start of the Championship Run. Things are very competitive at the top of the list. There’s $90,000 to be won… the gloves are off! The Great Race is about to get even more serious… stay tuned!