A shot of the first gathering on Saturday, March 31, 2012 at Hunt Valley Towne Centre

History

Northern Baltimore County needed a place for automotive enthusiasts to gather. We're talking about all marques and generations of automobiles and all generations of respectful enthusiasts.

After 2 months of weekend planning, Hunt Valley Cars & Coffee launched on Saturday, March 31, 2012. The setup was simple. Invite everyone from the regional enthusiast community to gather on Saturday mornings from 8 - 10 at Hunt Valley Towne Centre in Hunt Valley, Maryland and see what happens. Talk cars. Talk life. Meet old friends. Make new friends. Get the day rolling with some coffee, tea or whatever moves you. After anything from 20 minutes to 2 hours of eye candy, caffeine and 'catching up', start the rest of your day.

200 cars took part in the inaugural gathering. [The photo on the top bar comes from that gathering.] The first year was a time of tremendous growth. For the 1st Anniversary, 850 show cars, trucks and SUVs and 2400 spectators participated. The movement became large enough to merit the creation of an LLC. Out of respect for the standing trademark for Cars & Coffee, a new name was chosen. Hunt Valley Horsepower was born in February 20, 2013. Soon afterwrds, there was a meeting with Randy Moss, the first owner of Collectors Car Corral. In appreciation for the first 11 months of gatherings, he offered to pay for the community’s insurance. At that point, CCC was the first unofficial partner.

Days later, an unnamed man from Under Armour’s upper management appeared at a gathering with his long-time friends and business cohorts at his side. Those friends had shared their thoughts on HVH over the opening months. Enough was on the table to make an appearance and an offer. Review the open position listings, choose the best fits and to come back the following Saturday at HVH with those selections. You’ll get one. Welcome to Under Armour. Over time, a big full-time gig would have meant less time for the community, a possible location transfer in the future, etc. It’s all speculation but in the course of growth within a corporate structure, it could have meant the end of leading the community.

Before the open position selections could be delivered to Under Armour, NAPA Auto Parts in Hunt Valley requested a meeting. The heralded Brett Dolinger oversaw the location. NAPA-Hunt Valley happened to be the #1 NAPA in wholesale sales in the U.S. He asked about the 3-year plan for HVH. He asked if I had ever considered transitioning HVH from a hobby into a business. I had not but the structure flowed to mind. After seeing Brett’s educational exploits on the wall, I asked him if he had heard of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. When you nodded yes, I asked for a pen and paper and told him that I would be creating Will’s Hierarchy of Fiscal Needs. This triangle would lay out a tiered partner structure that remains to this day. The tiers would involve businesses that would be practical partner fits. Wheel repair, detailers, auto glass repair, vehicle maintenance, dealerships, auto parts stores, etc. At the base was the single service provider with a smaller staff. The next level could offer a few services with larger staff. The next level would be all dealerships. The top level would be a keystone partner that everyone knew. For sake of example, NAPA was set in that space. Brett asked for cost. With the goal to keep the lights on at home and to somewhat counter the financial prospects of the Under Armour positions, tier cost was calculated and the figure was delivered to Brett. He had been furiously taking notes and he ripped a page from what I thought was a notepad. It wasn’t notes. It was a check with a question. It was time to decide who to choose. Big money and back to the corporate world or taking a big chance with a business prospect that was drawn on a paper moments ago. The risk was taken. We shook hands. HVH had its kick start.

In early April 2013, after an exploratory phone call that escalated into an office of apparent immediate decision making, Red Bull offered to buy Hunt Valley Horsepower on the spot. A dollar amount was presented along with a to-be-determined pay rate….or HVH could carry on as usual with an offer of having a Red Bull truck appear with product giveaways. Since that sort of solicitation wasn’t permitted by the site contract and I wasn’t ready to sell what felt like a young child, the offer was turned down. March forward.

For the 2nd Anniversary in April 5, 2014, 1800 show cars, trucks and SUVs and 5000 spectators celebrated. That morning was featured during an episode of MotorWeek. The 3rd Anniversary on April 4, 2015 brought together over 3000 automobiles and over 6000 enthusiasts - meeting the site's overflow capacity. In the 2015 calendar year, over 12,000 automobiles participated in gatherings of Hunt Valley Horsepower. In 2016, over 12,000 automobiles participated even without the massive anniversary event. At SEMA in 2017, there was a surprise TV series offer but after consideration of its impact on the community, it was respectfully declined. Fast forward. Imagine that a total of 65,000 enthusiasts participated in 2025. Back in 2012, the recent years for the community would have been impossible to comprehend. Automotive enthusiasm within the Mid-Atlantic region is clearly evident and Hunt Valley Horsepower continues to maintain a respected standard.

Not only are we gathering under a common love for automobiles, we're also giving back to the community. Adopt-A-Road, Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, Toys for Tots and Mothers Against Drunk Driving have been the featured community efforts.

From the formative days when the community was just a dream taking shape on a notepad in my living room in late 2011 to today - where the community is progressing through its 15th year - the vision remains the same.

Bring the family. Invite your friends and your car club. We're building a very special family of respectful automotive enthusiasts. If you love your car, truck or SUV, you're invited. See you down the road!

-- Rich "Will" Williams, Founder & Administrator, Hunt Valley Horsepower