Author Archives: Dave Hord

2016 Hagerty Silver Summit – Day Three Photos

Day Three of the Hagerty Silver Summit opened with sunshine, a fantastic breakfast, and a slightly stressed organizer. The clutch cable, you see, had snapped just as I arrived the night before in Mt Crested Butte. With no spare on board, there was only one option…drive without. Park the car? Trailer the car? These are not valid options, where is the adventure!?! At home, which is sea level, the car will roll on the starter in first and get going without any issues. Up at 8,000+ feet, however, was going to be an adventure indeed.

With the Driver’s meeting concluded, some of our group stood with cameras and video cameras. The whole group waited for my car to leave first, so as to give me the best chance of getting going without impediment. As I reached down to turn the key and see if it would go, the real reason for my stress was finally here. I wasn’t worried about driving without a clutch, but I was worried about getting it going the first try with an audience! We rolled for a moment, it coughed and sputtered and then suddenly the rally bug came alive and day three began in earnest!

Soon we were traveling along, below the posted speed limit so the rest of the group could catch up. We drove from Crested Butte to Gunnison with Erik and Andy in the Oldsmobile 442, another car which was not expected to arrive at the finish. Coming out of Gunnison, West along Highway 50, we lead a pack of Porsches and a Pontiac GTO before letting them pass for the Black Canyon of the Gunnison.

The route book took us along the North Rim of the Canyon on CO-92. As the road winds and twists its way along the Canyon edge, you get the unique opportunity to see your fellow enthusiasts as they motor along ahead and behind you. With almost zero traffic, and the sounds of our classic machinery around us, it was very easy to imagine a time when the roads were only filled with classic cars.

With the tight twists for the sports cars taken care of, it was North through Crawford, Hotchkiss and Paonia on touring roads best suited for big engines. We then wound our way through Bowie and Somerset, literally driving underneath the Coal-Mining equipment on the highway. We then wound through red canyons cut by rivers, and finally broke through the West Elk mountains via the 8,755 ft high McLure Pass.

Our group gathered to end the day just shy of Glenwood Springs, at the Ironbridge Golf Course. Our parking lot party, and following lunch was no longer a gathering of entrants, but rather a gathering of friends. Following lunch, we awarded the traditional Classic Car Adventures awards. The Macgyver award, for best fix on the event, was awarded to Jacob and Ross for their record fuel filter swap times. The Hard Luck Award was given to Kevin Lewis, as he had to switch from his gorgeous Bug-Eye Sprite to a rather modern looking S2000 when the transmission in the Sprite died. And the Hagerty Spirit of the Summit award? That was given to Nathan York, of Oklahoma City. Nathan heard about the event from Randy Kaplin (Spirit runner-up!), and promptly began roping a whole crew of cars from Oklahoma into joining him. Sharing a love of driving and adventure is a sure way to earn a nomination for a Spirit Award!

Sadly though, it seems all good things must come to an end. After an amazing weekend of great cars, amazing roads, brilliant weather and fantastic friends…it was time to say goodbye. The 2016 Hagerty Silver Summit was complete, but not before we were asked for the 2017 dates. It would seem our Colorado Family is all ready to gather again next year, and hopefully introduce a whole new wave of enthusiasts to our brand of adventure. We can’t wait, it’s only been a few hours and we miss our friends already.

Andrew Snucins and Dan Evans were able to snag some amazing early Day Three photos before rushing to the airport for their flights home. A preview of today’s work:

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2016 Hagerty Silver Summit – Day Two Preview

Day one of the Hagerty Silver Summit was dominated by tight, twisting roads with multiple switchbacks going back and forth. With fantastic weather and new driving friends, the group awoke excited for what day two would bring. The Driver’s meeting was held outside in the sunshine, with a promise of perfect driving weather ahead…

Normally, when we dismiss the driver’s meeting there is a small version of a LeMans start as driver’s and co-driver’s try not to look like they are running for first position on the road. Our group today, however, was interestingly different. Despite cars being warmed up before the driver’s meeting, despite bags packed and washroom breaks taken, the group wasn’t jockeying for first spot on the road. No, instead it seemed road-groups were forming, everyone making sure each car was ready before heading out.

Today’s route was designed with the ‘bigger’ cars, in both size and engine, in mind. We looked for highways and byways which we consider to be great ‘touring roads’. They meander through the countryside, offering elevation changes and sweeping corners. Rather than rowing between 2nd and 3rd gear in the switchbacks, driver’s were predominantly moving between 4th and 5th gear throughout the day.

We certainly didn’t forget about the twisties though! Each hour of faster touring brought a section of twisting corners or a mountain pass to challenge both car and driver alike. Whether it was carving corners through the canyons on CO-114, or climbing one of the many mountain passes…the route found something for everyone to enjoy.

Especially enjoyable today was the way in which the whole event seemed to spend time hanging out with each other. The first group stop I came upon in the Rally Beetle was at the summit of Monarch Pass. Here, over 11,000ft up, a group of cars were building snowmen from the snow on the side of the road. We had our usual meet ups at the Petrol Stations, but it was in the town of Del Norte that the group really found a bond.

The first cars to arrive at Del Norte decided on an outdoor patio and wood fired pizza for lunch. Just as they were finishing their meal, the next wave of cars arrived. A third wave arrived, just in time to see the first set of cars off. Just as the 2nd and 3rd wave were preparing to leave, the final set of cars from our group pulled in. Throughout the course of an hour the entire event enjoyed a well organized, but completely spontaneous, lunch together.

The afternoon continued our mix of touring roads and mountain passes, climbing to over 10,000 feet on Spring Creek Pass, and then over 11,000 feet on Slumgullion Pass. In the late afternoon, climbing through one of the passes, the view suddenly opens up and the West Elk Mountains, completely snow capped, suddenly dominate the horizon. For the rest of the day we drove towards them, eventually arriving in Mt. Crested Butte for the finish of day two.

A preview gallery of photos from Andrew Snucins Photography is available below:

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2016 Hagerty Silver Summit – Day One

Typically, the week of an event, I stop watching the weather reports. By time our first driver’s meeting begins, it’s too late to worry about it. The weather is, what the weather is. Last year in Colorado, however, taught me differently. No where else in the world does the saying “don’t like the weather, wait five minutes” ring more true. 2” of snow on our first day last year wasn’t what I was hoping for…so this year, I’ve been watching the weather like a hawk.

By the time this morning’s Driver’s meeting began, I knew today would be a weather hit. True, there was a threat of rain for part of the afternoon, but we’d be in the lower valleys by that point, and snow free for certain. With a final check of the road reports, I opened the morning’s participant meeting.

By the time we departed the Hagerty Collector Car Insurance Denver office, the anticipation and excitement for what lay ahead was palatable. Right off the bat, half the entrants turned right instead of left…Yup, this was going to be just as fun as all our other events! With a quick correction, or meeting up around the block, we were off onto the first highway into the mountains.

Today’s morning route took the group through Golden, up Mt Evans and over Squaw pass into Evergreen. We enjoyed gorgeous pine forests, tight switchbacks front range mountain passes. The morning route took the group by some snow, to remind them of our opening year, but fortunately this year it was just on the side of the road and not falling! After passing through Evergreen, we explored twisty low roads and then climbed up towards this historic mining town of Victor, before descending down into Canon City for our evening finish. Along the way we found B-roads and C-roads that even our lifetime Colorado residents didn’t know existed.

The day wasn’t without it’s mechanical difficulties. Kevin and Mary’s beautiful bug-eye Sprite decided to give them only 4th gear in Evergreen, and unfortunately won’t be repairable this weekend. They’ll be meeting us tomorrow in their “other Sprite”, cleverly disguised as a Honda S2000. The Mercedes guys seem to be having fuel issues, but suspected problems before the event mean they’re traveling with a trunk full of filters and simply change out at regular intervals. Duncan’s Mustang has a curious case of vapour lock. Curious, because it carries a fuel-injected modern drivetrain! Otherwise we haven’t heard of any problems, and the two cars we anticipated to have issues (the beetle and the 442) are humming along nicely.

No trip to Canon City is complete without a run up, and down, Skyline Drive. With 800 foot drops on either side, this 1903 road follows the spine of a ridge and gives a most unique perspective of the city as you arrive. Upon arrival, it seemed dinner wasn’t that important. Everyone was more interested in sharing stories, debating the best road option, or discussing the details of cars and friendships. Never before have we had to encourage folks to get up and join the buffet line, usually it’s a stampede!

A preview of photos from Andrew Snucins Photography is available below:

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2016 Hagerty Spring Thaw – Day Three

Following a frosty night in Nelson, we met for our third Driver’s meeting in basked in warmth and sunshine. Day three promised to be a fantastic day of driving as the group trekked from Nelson over to Osoyoos for our finish.

Despite being our shortest day of driving, it was not without challenges. The route book joked about the entire route being uphill, and soon the group found themselves climbing yet again. The first casualty was Geoff’s MG, it’s coolant departing the radiator in a steamy cloud. Not ones to leave a fellow motorist stranded, each passing car stopped to hand over whatever water they had on board. “Sorry, we only have Vitamin Water,” one car apologized. “No problem, the MG will take anything!” and so the radiator was filled with whatever watery-like substance would get them home.

Next up was a Caterham Seven, it’s hayabusa engine leaning out dangerously on the climbs. The RWM&Co sweep team arrived, worked out the intake leak problem and issued a temporary fix which was likely to get the car home.

And so the day continued, sweep stopping every once and a while to help with a repair or two…completely expected when one takes 80+ classic cars and asks them to drive for so many kilometres.

All of our entrants who aimed for the finish made it under their own power. Of the cars which turned back early for home, all but one avoided the dreaded tow truck ride home. And for our unlucky flat-deck gents, it was less a ‘need’ for a tow truck and more the convenience of one showing up at the right time! For the first time in Hagerty Spring Thaw history, the “Hard Luck Award” (given to the team which breaks down permanently) was placed back in the box to be used next year. Simply amazing!

For everyone, whether stopping to repair or simply enjoying the drive, the day was filled with incredible scenery and spectacular weather. We wound our way through Rossland and Trail, the historic town of Greenwood and eventually dropped through the switchbacks down into Osoyoos.

Our finish this year was at the Osoyoos golf club, where they rolled out the preverbal red carpet to host our group. In this case, the red carpet was replaced with orange golf shirts, worn by the many hosts who directed the group into reserved parking spaces. The course hosted a parking lot party, followed by a finisher’s lunch in the course restaurant. The only downside to the day? We had to say goodbye to our entrants and friends for another year…

Photo’s courtesy of Andrew Snucins Photography

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2016 Hagerty Spring Thaw – Day Two

With but a few hours sleep, the alarm was going off to begin day two of the Hagerty Spring Thaw. Problem though, was it the correct alarm or the other alarm? The event, you see, had traveled from the Pacific time zone into the Mountain Time zone, but just for the night. The route book explained the event would run on Pacific time, and to simply ignore the local time. It all seemed so reasonable and simple before an early wake up!

The CCA entrants, though, are a hearty bunch. I think a few people had an extra hour to polish their cars in the morning (some were suspiciously clean), only one driver’s meeting was needed (8:45am Pacific time) and all were in attendance. That in itself might be impressive considering the time issues, but even the Mini crew who swapped out a head gasket after dinner were all accounted for. Every car that started the event, was there at the driver’s meeting.

Today brought sunshine, some cloudy periods and a touch of rain if you were at the tail end of the group. The weather in the mountains can be rather unpredictable, and while some of us were enjoying finishing beers in the sun at the hotel, a mere 36km away other entrants were experiencing a deluge of water. As the organizer, who was conveniently at the finish point sun by this point, I could claim today was a sunny and rain free day of motoring. Unfortunately our amazing photographer Andrew Snucins was standing in that deluge of rain getting his final photos for the day!

The route brought us east of Cranbrook for a series of figure eights and loops roads never before touched by a CCA event. Whether it was the gentle sweeping highways favouring the touring cars, or the very narrow twisty back roads for the sports cars…there was something for everyone. The entire first half of the day was played to a backdrop of the Canadian Rocky Mountains, and then we ventured over the Kootenay Pass to settle into Nelson for the night.

At dinner we welcomed in the newest members to the “Five Year Club”, celebrating those who have attended five years of Hagerty Spring Thaw events. We followed up with the generous prizes and gifts donated by sponsors, and amazingly sent every car home with a prize from the mountain of gifts we had.

Tomorrow promises more good weather as we head back East towards our finish.

Teaser pics from today courtesy of Andrew Snucins Photography.

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2016 Hagerty Spring Thaw – Day One

Months of planning, miles of road scouting, hours of map pouring and an embarrassing amount of time designing the ‘perfect’ coffee-cup giveaway…and it’s finally here; day one of the 2016 Hagerty Spring Thaw.

The parking lot this year is pretty incredible. It’s too difficult to list all the amazing cars, because I’m sure to leave something out. But here’s the thing, what’s cool at an Auction house or on the online forums isn’t what gets attention here. True, people were definitely checking out the Shelby Cobra after it was unloaded from the trailer…but a much larger crowd was gathered earlier around the Plymouth Business Coupe. That ‘regular’ MG over there? Yeah, it’s got a V8 swapped into it. Everything here has a story, and some of them are incredible. You’ve probably seen a bug-eyed sprite before, but the example here was Kevin’s first car. Not “my first car was a Sprite”, but “this Sprite here was the first car I ever bought”. I often find the story at our events is just as good as the car we’re looking at.

With the Driver’s meeting complete, we worked our way out of downtown Vernon and onto the beautiful Highways 6 and 31 towards Kaslo. Without much of a warm-up, Highway 6 sends you into roller-coaster like twists and turns, working it’s way through the Monashee Mountains. Occasionally the co-driver gets a break from hanging on, and the views delivered are fantastic. Well, they would be fantastic if we didn’t have a bit of grey and rain creeping in.

Rain? Grey? Psshh, these are not the worries of Classic Car Adventurists! Incredibly the open topped cars kept the tops down, driver and co-driver alike bundled up against the weather. It may have rained a little, okay a fair bit today, but it wasn’t as bad as day one last year. At least in 2016 no one stopped to drill holes in the floorboards!

Mid day guests were given the choice between taking the Kootenay Bay ferry and heading down the East side of the lake, or driving the West side of the lake via Nelson. The weather certainly favoured those who took the ferry, though Jim Kenzie (co-driving in the Cobra) might lead you to believe he had the wetter of the two routes!

Upon reaching Creston both halves of the rally met back up, and continued on the same route to our overnight hotel stop. The organizers do, of course, take full credit for the way the clouds parted about 30min out, and the wonderfully dry parking-lot-party that occurred as we finished for the day.

Overall, despite the rain, a fantastic day one. All our entrants, with the exception of one, arrived under their own power and in time for dinner. The unfortunate Mini, which blew a head gasket early on, was trailered to the finish where a team of experts from the entry list are working to swap out the offending gasket. Should be on the road tomorrow!

Oh yeah, and that Shelby Cobra? It’s a proper, genuine, Cobra…not a replica. Driving roughly 550km today in the rain, just like the rest of us…smiling and laughing at dinner about how great a day they had. #drive4adventure

While the hours of editing are still to come, a small gallery of images, provided by Andrew Snucins Photography, is available here:

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2016 Hagerty Silver Summit Registration

Registration for the 2016 Hagerty Silver Summit opened on Wednesday this week, and we’ve already filled 20% of the available spots! This year’s event starts in Denver on May 20th, and finishes in Glenwood Springs on May 22nd. We’ll be doing approximately 700 miles of driving over the three days, on some of the best driving roads North America has to offer. Registration information for this year’s event can be found on the Hagerty Silver Summit information page.

Before entering the event, please be sure to read the “Supp-Regs” document in full, it contains important information about the event you will need to know.

The 2016 Entry Form can be found here: 2016 Hagerty Silver Summit Entry Form