Dr. Rich McKone of Peoria, Illinois will convert his 1967 Aston Martin DB6 to run on multiple alternative fuels for the around-the-world Great Race in 2008. “The Great Race 2008: New York to Paris” will be a re-run of a similar event created a century ago to showcase the newly invented automobile before the advent of today’s modern highways and refueling systems.
New York to Paris Great Race dates announcedNew York to Paris event is rescheduled for April 2009 as part of an exciting menu of automotive events
Great Race Sports has announced that the milestone event from New York to Paris has been rescheduled for April 25, 2009 after being postponed from its original starting date this May. The commemorative re-run of the 1908 New York-to-Paris “Great Race” is widely considered to be one of the most remarkable automotive adventures of the 20th century, an automobile race from New York to Paris before the advent of today’s modern highways and gas stations.
The Great Race 2008: New York to Paris and related events was originally scheduled to begin on May 30, 2008 in New York City but was postponed after the Chinese government revoked travel permits for foreigners traveling throughout the country following demonstrations in Tibet and surrounding the Olympic Torch Run.
The 2009 dates are part of a complete Schedule of Events released by Great Race earlier today. In addition to the new dates for the New York to Paris Great Race, some new events have been added to schedule, including a driving tour through in California this fall, an historic recreation of an off-road race that took place a century ago and a 6-day regional Great Race style rally in the North East, taking place in later summer, 2009. (Read more)
Bill Ewing, CEO of Great Race Sports, regretfully informed participants that the Great Race 2008: New York to Paris has been postponed as the approval to travel through China has been recalled and the permits have been placed on hold.
Read the rest of this entry »
The route for the 2008 Great Race from New York to Paris is set, according to Bill Ewing, CEO for Great Race Sports, the event organizers.
“It’s been fun putting the pieces together to make The Great Race both historical and relevant,” said Ewing. “A special thanks must go to our partners, government officials and especially our staff who worked tirelessly and collected a lot of frequent flyer miles to create a route that I’m sure will make for a great event next summer.”
Read the rest of this entry »
As 6-year-old Germán Ortega waited anxiously for the mail, he searched for newspapers and magazines with pictures of “cars with the lights outside”. One of which was a Ford Model A. Carried away with excitement he would cut them out and type the model year and name below each photograph with a “typing machine”. To finish the collage Ortega’s grandmother gave him a glass frame to showcase his work. Forty-nine years later the original still hangs in the Ortega residence. A constant reminder of how his passion for classic cars began.
Germán grew up in Colombia sharing his passion for cars with his brothers. In 1964 they bought their first Ford Model A. When the boys were not studying in school they spent their time on the weekends restoring it. The Ford had no seats so the brothers would make-do with what they had.
“One day we found an old sofa in the streets, so we fixed it up and managed to fit it in the front seat of the car,” explained Germán. “It was similar to the car of the ‘Beverly Hillbillies’ only the shotgun of the Grandmother’s was missing!”
Germán always loved the look of white tires but could not afford them, so he painted them white instead. This was when his passion for the Model A was born.
His current 1928 Ford Model A Speedster was bought partially restored in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1991 and was then taken back to Colombia to finish the restoration process. The classic still has an original high compression engine, transmission, mechanical brakes, differential and generator. It was built upon a hand made aluminum body in the 1930’s, which was a common practice in Argentina. The design and weight balance makes the classic a versatile and reliable vehicle.
Since then Germán and his wife and co-pilot Jeannette have traveled 35,000 km. in the Model A. They have driven through 17 countries, including Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Argentina, Chile, Spain, England, France, Ireland, Holland, Germany, Italy, San Marino Republic, Greece, Switzerland, and Belgium.
“We chose the Model A because it is our symbol, as well as our trip accomplice,” said Germán. “Jeannette and I discovered that the Model A is not only the car that provides us with the sensation of freedom but also encourages us to live many challenges.”
When German says “challenges” he means it. Along with restoring his Model A, he has restored many cars including a 1929 Rolls Royce Phantom II and a 1920’s La Salle. But his greatest challenge as a restoring professional has been a 1953 Mercedes 300 SL which was given away by Fidel Castro to Gabriel Garcia Marquez, a Colombian Nobel Prize winner of Literature. Marquez eventually gave the Mercedes back to Germán, who continued to restore it part by part for eight years, until giving it to Alfred Sesana, a great Colombian collector.
Germán and Jeannette will be taking on another challenge as they compete in The Great Race 2008: New York to Paris. The couple has nearly 11 years experience of competing in international rallies in France and South America so they are ready for the adventure.
“Our goal is to get to Paris by applying the best practices and being respectful with all the competitors.” explained Germán. “For us and our country it is very important to participate in this Great Race.”