Dennis Holland, a legendary Great Racer from Day 1, has died at his home in California at the age of 68.
Dennis and navigator Wayne Stanfield pushed Hollands 1909 Buick racer across the start line at Knotts Berry Farms in 1983 on the first Great Race because the motor was not in the car. After crossing the start line, the crew spent the rest of the day getting it running and they caught the pack and were able to compete in the race for a while.
Mechanical problems forced them to fall out before the finish, but the following year the car was back and quickly became one of the crowd favorites.
The Buick was the second car ever sold in Orange County, Calif., back in 1909. After competing with Stanfield, Holland raced for several more years in the Buick with his teenage daughter Julie.
Besides his love of old cars and the Great Race, Holland was a wooden boat restorer. You can read more about him in this story in his local newspaper.
And you can see video from the 1983 Great Race, including Holland and Stanfield pushing the car across the start line at the 3:20 mark and again at the 5:20 mark here
I think he was the kind of guy all of us guys want to be. How cool is it that he raced a 1909 Buick in the Great Race and built huge wooden ships in his backyard and didn’t back down to the city.
Dennis was one of a kind. He was an old fashioned individual. He was someone who set very large goals for himself and he succeeded. He is the type of person who built America and made our country great. He certainly did not sit around and complain that there is no opportunity today! He has my respect.
My grandpa, John Carra, owned and restored this car and our family later sold it to Dennis. He was a friend of our family and I spent many years playing with his daughter, Julie, while the ship was built around them. I was there the day the ship was taken down to the ocean, as well as the 1st great race to see our Buick take off.