[Centurion]

Robb Johnson is a member of the North Cascade Chapter of the BCA, and he's one of those guys who makes this a great hobby. Robb completed restoration of his 1909 Buick Model F last year, and his participation in our trip to Flint last year was one of the highlights of our journey.

Recently, the AAA celebrated its centennial here in Washington state, and the organization sponsored a reliability tour for pre-1914 cars. Over the course of a few days, the early cars traveled all the way from Spokane in Eastern Washington to Seattle, concluding the journey at Safeco Field. The route, which exceeded 300 miles, took the vintage vehicles through the state's wheat farming and apple orchard areas, and the cars even climbed 4,200 foot Stevens Pass in the Washington Cascades.

Of the eighteen cars that participated, seventeen successfully completed the journey. Four of the cars -- or nearly a fourth of all cars completing the route -- were early Buicks, including Robb's 1909.

Here's Robb's 1909 Buick Model F. Some of you may recall Robb's car parked near the entrance to the Sloan Museum in Flint during the Buick Centennial.



Other Buicks that participated in the event were Don Poffenroth's 1906 Model F from Spokane:



Mike Yeakel from Bellingham drove this 1907 Buick Model G:



The fourth Buick completing the journey was this 1910 Buick Model 14B:



All of the above photos were taken by Jim Woodworth of Spokane. I can only imagine what a thrill this trip must have been for those fortunate drivers of the early cars.

Here are a few shots of Robb's '09 from our trip to Flint last year. The first photo was taken in Staples, Minnesota, and Robb is giving a ride to David Chaffey from Hobart, Tasmania -- one of our Australian passengers.



As we lined up for the final few miles into Flint, Robb's 1909 was the number two car in line, right beyond a 1908 Buick from Fargo, North Dakota:



Robb has recently acquired a 1923 Buick, and I'm eager to see that one at the next opportunity.

Brian,
I certainly remember Robb's 1909 Buick at the Centinneal. In fact I believe IT was the car that started my drueling that lasted for 3 straight days. I remember exclaiming to my son "Now thats BRASS". I have recently gained greater respect and admiration for the early Buicks, especially the mid to late teens.
Thanks for posting these as well as all the other photos and interesting reports of such events. Such items are what keeps this forum almost like a daily gazette. I never miss a day of checking in (at least once).

[Centurion]

I saw Robb tonight, and he advised me that a fifth old Buick (another '09) had hooked up with the tour just outside of Spokane, and a total of five Buicks finished among the seventeen cars that completed the trip.

Robb said that there was some competition to see which cars could arrive first at the appointed stops along the way, and the Buicks were the consistent victors in this friendly competition. Robb said the Buicks "left a few Maxwells behind in the weeds". He also noted that a 1902 Oldsmobile performed quite impressively, but a 1903 Rambler managed a top speed of only six miles per hour. The Buicks cruised along at 30 - 35 miles per hour.

Robb hopes to gather some digital photos taken along the route, and we have hopes of getting some posted here. A "Bugle" article may also be in the works.