41st Annual Fall Meet
Lake George, NY - October 12 -15. 2011

Rob and Marnie Kern - Meet Hosts


The 41st Annual Fall Concours Meet was held at The Fort William Henry Resort & Conference Center in Lake George, New York, October 12- 16, 2011. The weather prediction did not generate enthusiasm for a picture perfect 5 days. Fortunately we were blessed with an inaccurate forecast and the rain that we experienced did not lessen our enjoyment of each other or the 'Brutes! Located on the southern end of Lake George in the foothills of the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York, Fort William Henry served as an active military fortress during the French and Indian War. We were constantly reminded of its historic significance with the Fort in the background during the parking lot activities. The first night had several club members holding flashlights over the engine bay of Keith Boonstra's C which decided it had enough after traveling 900 miles and when turning into the hotel parking lot shed it's A/C compressor pulley. Keith arrived pushing the car in the parking lot. A 300 Angel at work? Needless to say the mechanical and intellectual talent of club members came to the rescue enabling Keith to carry on driving his C to all the meet activities and home.


Thursday turned out to be a majestic weather and fall foliage day contrary to a weather report that tried to put a damper on things. We traveled up the Prospect Mountain Veteran's Memorial Highway for a majestic view of the southern end of Lake George and The Great Adirondack Park. We then proceeded along a 32 mile drive to the northern end of Lake George to Fort Ticonderoga for a box lunch and tour of this Revolutionary War fortress. Thursday evening we boarded the vessel Mohican for a smooth evening cruise with a delicious buffet dinner and dancing to a responsive DJ. Smooth and responsive cruising….just what we adore in our 300s!

Friday morning the weather forecast was accurate in that the rain did pour. We started the day with our annual business meeting presided by President George Riehl. After the business meeting RJ Kern's 2012 Chrysler 300 Calendar was introduced and went on sale in the hospitality suite. The Resort provided us a portico to do the concours judging of three pristine Letter Cars. A motor vehicle accident (fortunately not involving any of our contingent) managed to close part of route 9L and brought down power lines that energized Lockhart Mountain and The Top O' the World Golf Resort where we planned to spend lunch. Thanks to due diligence on Pete Fitch's part (the good lawyer that he is) we learned of this situation and my brother-in-law George Hagerty drove from his home in Queensbury via an obscure route and got to the Farmhouse Restaurant at Top O'The World to see them grilling our lunches on gas broilers with the dining room lit by candlelight. George guided us on a detour and we arrived at Top O' The World during a break in the rain and had a delightful lunch with power being restored in time to get our bills processed! Another 300 Angelic moment? Friday afternoon had a majority of our attendees trecking to Hadley, New York to visit Bruce Brownell's treasure trove of 7 300Cs and an plethora of NOS parts. Bruce was a former Model Year Consultant for the 300C and the word amongst those that went there was that it was like Christmas in October! Friday evening found us in the White Lion Banquet Room at the Fort William Henry Resort for a splendid BBQ and time to make new aquaitances and catch up with long-time friends. The evening was capped off with Doug Mayer in his finest hour (or two) telling historic/ghost/humorous stories to a club audience around the fireplace in the lobby of the Resort.

Saturday morning proved to be the start of a splendid day for our car show. A beehive of car washing, detailing, trailer unloading activity was witnessed in the Resort parking lot. We all congregated on the front lawn of the Saratoga Automobile Museum at the state park in Saratoga for a delightful showing of our 'Brutes and other 300s that came from the Capitol District area of New York to participate in the festivities. The local Saratoga Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep dealer had new models on display. The Saratoga Automobile Museum exhibit featured Racing Porsches and the History of the Automobile in New York State, which provided a nice break for those wanting a different venue from peering under hoods and trunks and filling out People's Choice voting ballots. An onsite outdoor food vendor provided a scrumptious Italian feast for a modest price when the hunger alarm sounded. The Awards Banquet was held Saturday evening in the Fort Edward Room of the Resort. The menu was fabulous and we highlighted dessert by celebrating club member William Irving's 75th Birthday with a raspberry jelly filled chocolate birthday cake with of course all the candles! People's Choice and Concours Awards were presented. The hard luck award went to Keith and Judy Boonstra for all the hurdles they confronted while traveling to the meet from Holland, MI in their C. It was unanimously agreed that the long Distance Award be presented to Ted and Louise Larangeira in absentia. They drove their F from Castaic, CA to New York. When they arrived in NYC to see family prior to starting the last jaunt to Lake George, Ted became seriously ill and required an intensive care admission at a NYC hospital. The Larangeiras and the 6 others in their contingent never made it to the meet. Fortunately Ted was released from the ICU on the Sunday we all departed and flew back to California to his accepting physician a few days later. The F was shipped back home. Another 300 Angelic moment!

There were many club members, friends and relatives that made this meet a success. Marnie and I would like to thank them and recognize them for their help. Rob's sister Meg Hagerty arranged publicity in the Glens Falls newspaper, The Post-Star, and arranged for and delivered the banquet birthday cake. Brother-in-law George Hagerty took delivery of all shipments for the meet at his home and at a moment's notice journeyed up Lockhart Mountain to establish communication and reroute us to the Farmhouse Restaurant. Bruce Brownell provided ramps for the concours judging, suggested we include the Farm House restaurant as a dining venue and hosted us to his 300C garage. Martha Kreszock, Linda Glavis, and Lena Cornett coordinated the People's Choice balloting. Kudos to all the concours judges for the time, effort, and expertise they exhibited. Don Cole tabulated the concours points. Terry McTaggart assisted in setting up the hospitality suite. Mick Kreszock assisted in the apparel venue. Carlton Schroeder and Ron Kurtz lined up meet publicity and contacted club members living in states and Canada near Lake George and encouraged them to attend the meet. Thanks also to Doug Mayer for his Fireside Chat (and tossing me the keys to his L to drive up Prospect Mt. and to Fort Ticonderoga), and all the Club officers and directors for helping us pull off another great meet and putting their trust in us to be your hosts!

300'ly, Marnie and Rob Kern



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