On Friday, September 6, the 31st Annual Watkins Glen Grand Prix Festival was held in the village. The daylong event honored the years 1948-1952, when cars raced down Franklin Street and around the State Park on a public road circuit of 6.6 miles in length. The featured marque this year was MG, in honor of its 100th birthday. A wonderful display of Porsche Speedsters highlighted the 70th anniversary of this iconic sportscar.
The IMRRC-sponsored “Legends Speak” program featured Glen Moore, MG historian, racer and owner of the Bob Fergus MG that competed in WG in 1952, as well as Denny Cornett, Roger Linton, and JC Argetsinger. Denny and Roger’s fathers competed here in 1948, and for many years thereafter, and of course, JC’s father, Cameron, was the man who brought racing to The Glen in 1948 and competed in the early races. Warm temps, sunny skies, thousands of smiling fans, and hundreds of cars running the streets made for a perfect day!
On Saturday, the IMRRC hosted its third Center Conversation event of the season. Glen Moore treated the audience to a fascinating and enlightening look at “100 Years of MG,” and noted local artist, Bob Gillespie, spoke about his new book, “One Track Mind,” highlighting his 50-plus year career of race car artwork. The book is a “must have” for any race fan, as Bob’s paintings and sketches seemingly leap off the page at you!
One Track Mind Book
Both the Fergus and Cornett MG’s were on display outside the Research Center and a crowd of over 100 was on hand to enjoy the festivities.
Contact Bob directly to purchase his book at rgillesp@roadrunner.com. A portion of the sales will benefit the IMRRC. Only 100 copies remain of the original press run!