Hueston Woods

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 ricksjeeps513 wrote:

The 2021 Willys Jeep Rally is now in the record books. We did a lot of pre-show arrangements to try to get as many activities as we could in this year's Willys Jeep Rally.  The Covid19 restrictions were dropped on June 2, 2021, so up to that time we had to work under those restrictions.  We could not have the picnic due to social distancing mandates, and the banquet was moved to a larger room.  
Our demonstrations crew had been at the farm site weeks ahead of time tuning up the equipment and mapping out the trial ride and clearing brush and obstacles.  The creek was at a good level then, and all was prepared for the demonstrations and trail ride.  Then on the Wednesday and Thursday before the show, we got a total of more than four inches of rain.  The crew did try to set up on Thursday, and they all got soaked and hypothermic as a result.  We could not rut and ruin our hosts' farm land trying to put on the demonstrations.  The creek was out of its banks and the scenic off-road trail ride had to be cancelled.  We were able to put together a modified trail ride.  Oh, well, there's always next year.

Mother Nature did give us two beautiful days on Friday and Saturday.  Many Jeeps were on display and we even gave short demos with some of the working Jeeps.  There were vendors on site with NOS, new reproduction and used parts.   The Lodge provided a nice selection of eats at their food tent.  

The banquet on Saturday evening was well-attended.  There was a tribute to the memory of John Ittel in the form of video interviews that his grandson had compiled during his grandfather's lifetime where John talked about his life-long interest in Jeeps and anecdotes of his experiences involving time on the farm and Jeeps.  John's widow, Phyllis, and his son and the son's wife were kind enough to attend.  Barry Thomas presented the results of his research into the history of Jeep implements, which included a formerly lost film made in the 1940s.  The presentations were enjoyed by all.

We did our best to put on a quality show in a world that had been turned upside down for the past year.  We appreciate the support of everyone who attended.   We are already planning next year.  We hope to reinstate the Friday picnic in some form, the demonstrations and the trail rides.  This is a lot of work for our small crew, and anyone who would be interested in helping out in any form for any amount of time should contact Rick at 513-423-8724. 

We hope to see all of you at the Willys Jeep Rally on June 3 and 4, 2022.
I agree with everything Rick has said.  All things
considered, this was exceptional show.  Except for my presentation. 
I had an emotional melt down after watching the John Ittel tribute.  John
was my friend, mentor, hero, and idol.   I sincerely apologize to all
those in attendance. This was a special evening and I had what I thought was a
fun presentation.  What they saw was in no way a representation of the
quality of this show.

 John and I shared a special memory about one of his Jeeps
being in an art museum exhibit.  You can read about it here
- https://www.farmjeep.com/2012/10/14/the-art-of-the-farm-jeep/ ; When
he told the story in the video, I simply lost it.  So I’m glad that Rick has provide a means for
me to explain my behavior.

 The presentation was based on the Monroe movie from
1948.  Footage from this movie has
appeared several times, as late as March 2020. 
I had intended to show how Willys would continue to show old, discontinued
models, even when introducing new ones.  You
can read about it here -https://www.farmjeep.com/movies/

 Over the two days of the show, I met new and old friends, gathered
material for several Farm Jeep posts and saw some amazing Jeeps.  I also saw sharing of technical skills as non-running
Jeeps were brought to life, and I had my oil leaks diagnosed.

I know next year will be even better.

Barry