THOSE RAPIDLY RACIN

The Company May Have Collapsed and Been Forced into Merger with Nash - But Nobody
Could Outrace a Hudson if the Ground Between Them was Level

The Hudson has played an important part in the history of American automobile production. Unfortunately, like the Packard and the Studebaker, its corporate size did not survive the post - World War II change in the nature and makeup of the American car industry. Hence, there will never be as many Hudson to find lying around the country as one will see in Chevrolets or Fords. However, the way the newer Hudson were designed and the great motors they all had made them a popular stock car of choice - on all levels - in the earlier days of stock car racing. My college buddy, Steve Ladd, loved those cars so much his home yard was a jumble of old Hudson stuff.
This page will simply get all of my Hudson race pix into one place.

Ladabouche Photos
Buddy Bardwell's Hudson
Shown here lining up
for a high handicap
heat at Fairmont, may be the
last existing Hudson race car
that is actually raced.

Ladabouche Photos
Vern Baker works around his
6 PAC - an early '30's
Hudson that starred in
two different decades. In
the 1950's, legendary
Wally LaBelle drove. In the
'60's Vern had Ed Baker,
no relation to him.

From Dan Ody's 8MM DVD
Wally LaBelle, in action
at Whites Beach Speedway
around 1952. Check out
the similarity between that shot
and one of Red Smith's
33 1/3, another car from
Athol, NY, around 1963.

Ladabouche Photo

Source Unknown
A similar Hudson
on Long Island.

Courtesy of A. Alexander
The Hudson Wasp Steve Ladd,
of Chelsea, VT, drove at
Bear Ridge Speedway. Below-
Steve Ladd, an old college buddy
of mine, might have been the
biggest Hudson fanatic on the
planet.

Courtesy of A. Alexander

Alexander Family Photo
Alex Alexander, at Bear
Ridge, with what he says
is a Hudson. I wouldn't
know, but Steve Ladd
would have.

Lebanon Valley Classics Photo Joe Messina, a Troy, NY driver, loved his Hudsons. Ladabouche Collection Joe, at the Pine Bowl.	Ladabouche Photo Vern Baker and Ed Baker finally replaced the old LaBelle Hudson with this newer Terraplane. It was a disaster, for the most part and Vern called it a career. [Below] The old Hudson, when the CVRA made them replace the fenders. That's Ed. Ladabouche Photos	Source Unknown An old Islip entry. This car was almost exactly the same color scheme as the last Baker Hudson - just had a fuller body.	Bob Mackey Photo Courtesy of John Rock This rough - looking Hud ran at Airborne Speedway. It might have been Howard Rock.
Ladabouche Collection Pete Peterson - a Pine Bowl competitor. McDowell Photo Courtesy of Ken Gypson	St. Lawrence Plain Dealer Photo Speedy Williamson, at St. Lawrence Valley Speedway, Canton, NY	Courtesy of Cho Lee Dale "Tubby" Hatch at Thunder Road.	Bob Mackey Photo Courtesy of John Rock Dick Gushlaw, with the 0 Hudson - also driven by Shorty Carmichael - Airborne. [Below] Ladabouche Collection
HAMB Photo A win at Pine Bowl	Source Unknown Lou Figaro wrecks a Hudson in NASCAR's short track series, somewhere in California.	Bob Mackey Photo Courtesy of John Rock Vermonter Wayne Chandler wins at Airborne in the 50's.	Courtesy of Ed Fabian Joe Messina, in Al Green's wrecky - looking, but fast Hudson. This program, the car threw a wheel almost into the stands. Source Unknown Al Green's 3 1/7 Hudson - when ewer.
Lebanon Valley Classics George e Gowie, with a Hudson, in a Valley tangle.	MCDowell Photo Courtesy of Ken Gypson Al Ostrander, at the Pine Bowl.	Bob Mackey Photo Courtesy of Mike Watts Henry Jarvis, in the #77 A&W Hudson, in a lineup at Airborne. From dan Ody's 8MM DVD Henry, at Saranac Lake. That smoking monster in the rear is the first car of Wes Slugger Moody.	Ladabouche Collection Somebody in a Hudson runs Langhorne in 1961. Trailing, is the #179 of Hoppy Jensen.
Bob Mackey Photo Courtesy of John Rock What looks like the 8 Jr. Hudson, in a lineup at Airborne, at far right.	Christian T- Gaz Genest Photo G. Bergeron, at Fury Speedway, an early 60's NASCAR sportsman track in the Montreal area.	From Dan Ody's 8MM DVD Hudson #52, Bob Zimmerman at the Stateline Speedway, near Bennington, VT	Bob Mackey Photo Courtesy of Mike Watts Looks like Gushlaw again.
Courtesy of Buffy Nelson Carl Nelson [shown here] and his his brother, Meredith, put this one together for early seasons at Thunder Road.	McArdell Collection Courtesy of Midstate Club John Roberts wins with a Hudson sedan at Waterloo Speedway.	Source Unknown Paul Jett's Terraplane.	From "Clint Eastwood" on you tube An old Hudson plies Oxford Plains in its early dirt era.
Ralph Jones Photo Stan Lupka

THE FABULOUS HUDSON HORNET

Local Users Only - No Herb Thomas or Marshall Teague