Wow, what a difference a day can make! We’ve spent the entire first three days of the 2022 Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Hagerty Drivers Club with unseasonably chilly temperatures. That changed today! We started our day in Erie, Pennsylvania, where the temperature was already higher than it had been all week. From there, we blasted into Ohio to start our day of competition. Within a few minutes of going on the clock, we passed through a beautiful covered bridge. The rest of the morning was spent making our way through farm land, and the would set the tone for the rest of the day’s rally. Corn, soy beans, wheat and other crops made up the scenery with a challenging mixture of at-speed turns, stop signs and speed changes. For lunch, we stopped in Medina, Ohio, where we were greeted by thousands of spectators who braved the heat for an awesome experience, as 120+ Great Race cars rolled into town. Perrysburg, Ohio also had a huge turnout of folks, complete with a car show with lots of great local cars. The team that tamed Stage 4’s challenges was Jody Knowles and Beth Gentry, with a score of 6.48 seconds. It was actually a tie for top spot between Knowles/Gentry and yesterday’s winners, Hull/Stahl with the 66 team winning the tie breaker. Stay tuned for more coverage tomorrow, as we cross into Indiana and Illinois!
45-stop-45-stop-45-stop….
This is a pattern the rally master has used before. If it’s new to you, as little as a one second error per stop sign, times 15 or 20, adds up the score, so much so the inexperienced don’t know why they have such a high score. Experience counts.
I am amazed at how close the times are that the participants are turning in. We were in Plainfield IL on Wednesday evening for the arrival and met some great people. Every Tuesday there is a cruise night there but doesn’t draw quite that many spectators.
Day 4 Perrysburg Ohio. This was something I always wanted to see. Congratulations Perrysburg. Great job of representing Ohio. The local Diners and Pubs also fantastic job.
Great pictures
Thank you for stopping in Medina for lunch. Our church (UCC Medina) was pleased to provide the lunch spot. Seeing all the racers arrive and park on the beautiful Medina Square was quite a treat. Best of luck for the rest of The Great Race!
Such a great experience!!!
Especially proud of nbr. 163.
Go TEAM GAVIN
A route to consider taking when heading back East is U.S 2 (once known as the Theodore Roosevelt Highway) that runs across Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and plugs into other routes starting at the Straits of Mackinac. Way cool (and typically cooler weather). And it runs all the way to Washington State if you are headed in that direction.
Perfect time of the year to follow that route back! I grew up in MN and lived in WI so know that route well!!
Thank you for the wonderful pictures! I wish I could have gone to Medina, but heat is not my friend. Enjoy looking at the pictures and videos of the stops.
So glad I got to see some of these cars on my way home last night. What a cool sight!
So happy we got to see you all in Erie, Medina, and Perrysburg!
Really miss doing the race this year, but hope to get back in next year!! Safe travels to all!
We miss you both and that fantastic Vista Wagon!
It was great seeing you.
See you next year!!
Found a shady spot in Scotch Ridge, near the intersection of State Route 105 (very winding road) and State Route 199 (which was the race road.)
Car # 88 was the first to arrive-what a treat!
Marked cars off my list as they passed, some alone some as a group.
Was going to be sure to get a picture of the last one, only with 24 #s still on my list, 2 “STAFF” vehicles went by at 7:18 p.m., guessed that was the end.
A big THANK YOU to those “staff” people and everyone else who made this a great way to spend the first day of summer!
P.S. A little disappointed you chose to come into Perrysburg on State Route 199 and not HISTORIC ROUTE 20. The milepost markers between Fremont (formerly Upper Sandusky) and Perrysburg are neat but may not work into your criteria. The drivers might not have been able to resist either Speedtrap in Woodville nor Pee Wee’s in Stony Ridge for a needed ice cream on such a hot day.
I am so jealous! I need to add this to my bucket list!
No pictures of Medina area?
There are three photos on the square in Medina.
Although there are three Medina photos, I was a bit disappointed that there isn’t more equitable photo coverage here. A couple more photos that reflect the charm of the gorgous Victorian homes along the rally route into and out of town, the vibrant Medina Square anchored by its gorgeous Gazebo, the completely restored shops around the Square that offer hospitality and retail bliss…..
There was three photos of the square. They were 18 photos from the covered bridge.
What an amazing spectacle. I was in awe at the site of the rally cars that passed my house on the route! Most traffic our little town of Hartsgrove has seen in one day on these country roads!! Something to remember for sure 🤩
As I was putting the top down on our 64 Corvair to make a trip to Milan OH, several of the cars passed our home, great site!
My sister Wendy and I have been driving a 1999 Ford 250 diesel support vehicle for Kip and Elliott Steele in their 1961 International Scout. When we were parking for the night we had the ABS light on and figured out that we were leaking brake fluid. We started the hunt for someone that could take us in on short notice and finally got a sympathetic ear from the good folks at Steve Rogers Ford in Waterville, OH. They bailed us out, replacing the brake line sensor and got us back on the road in just 3 hours. We really thought we were going to be stuck in Perrysburg for days and are so appreciative of their willingness to interrupt theirs days schedule to fit us in. I think we might have also recruited several new fans of the Great Race as we had time to explain the whole event with several of the staff members there.
Enjoyed seeing all the cars in Medina and talking with a number of competitors including they guys driving the Volvo 142 similar to the 1972 model that I once owned. Also got to visit with the Studebaker owners as my great aunt and uncle owned a Studebaker-Packard-Mercedes dealership in Barberton, OH from the 1940s to 1965.