The hillclimb at Mount Ascutney yesterday (video here) was a very fun and very loud way to see cars that are beautiful in the form-follows-function way. Check out this brief gallery for a closer look at their battle scars, and don't forget to click on the images to get desktop-resolution pictures.

Last weekend's Cars and Coffee meet in Bernardston, Massachusetts (see the video here) was a great season opener, and something I'll probably be back to film next month. Until then, enjoy these shots of just a handful of the vehicles present, mostly supercars. These included an LP640, a Ferrari 458, and two brand-new additions, a McLaren MP4-12C and a 991-generation Porsche Carrera S.

Enjoy the shots, and don't forget to click for larger, 1280x720 resolution images (if you want a 1920x1080 version, let me know in the comments).

The Mercedes 220S detail (click for video) from last week was a rare opportunity to see an old car transformed through an in-depth cleaning process, and there are some more pictures to showcase the car after its cleaning. The detailing itself was done by Parente Mobile Detailing in Dorset, Vermont. Don't forget to click on the images to open a higher-resolution version (and if you want an even larger version, leave a comment about it).

So, 2011 is coming to an end (and already has, for a number of you readers), and with it ends a great year for both new cars (what with releases such as the refreshed Mustang. production versions of the Toyobaru/Subieyota, and more) and old cars. In the website's first half-year of existence, I've already produced 10 videos (released, that is), seen some amazing vehicles, and met a number of interesting people. Even as I write this, I'm preparing a special recap video to accompany the brief gallery below, and you'll probably be able to see that soon. For now, though, take a look at the gallery for some reminders of what HRL has done since June 2011.

While the Jaguar E-Type videoshoot (for the future-series, "Real Drivers") was just that, I did shoot a few pictures while around the two amazing cars. Here, for your enjoyment, is a mini-gallery of those shots. As students of Jaguar history might be able to identify, the red model is a Series I car (a 1966, in this instance), and was the recipient of a full and thorough restoration a number of years ago. The second, a 1971 Series II coupe, is also a very impressive machine, albeit one that can be driven with less weight on preservation.

Anyway, enjoy the gallery, and be sure to keep an eye out for future "Real Drivers" videos (and photos) in the future.

The Saratoga Auto Museum is one of the great wonders of New England. About seven years ago, as a young kid, I visited the museum for their supercars exhibit. It was a perfectly-timed show, bringing the then-new SLR McLaren, Murcielago, Carrera GT, and some others (perhaps the Enzo and Ford GT - my memory is a bit foggy) together in one place. That exhibit went so far as to include a genuine McLaren F1 GTR, which I even sat in.

Last weekend, I had the opportunity to visit their latest exhibit, entitled, "Porsche: 60 Years of Speed and Style in North America." Sadly, I missed the car show and opening event that took place the first weekend of October (and that’s a shame, because the one and only 918 RSR Concept Car was present), but I was able to get some nice pictures of the exhibit for the site. Check them out below:

The OktoberFAST event, often sponsored primarily by the Green Mountain chapter of the BMW Car Club of America, was an event I missed last year, when it was at the Stratton Ski Resort. This year, however, I heard about it in time and made the trip to Grafton, VT to check out the event (sponsored by the VTBMWCCA, the Automaster store, and the Old Tavern in Grafton). After a fantastic drive (Route 35 from Chester to Grafton is easily one of the best roads in Vermont, even in its current half-washed-out condition), it was great to see several extremely rare cars, and some of my favorite BMWs.

I had intended to go to the Mt. Ascutney hillclimb today in New Hampshire, but due to car difficulties decided to visit the 45th-annual Bennington VT classic car show. I made the mistake of arriving late (just in time to catch everyone leaving), but still got a few shots and some video. What I did manage to get to, though, was the nice display on Bennington's Main Street, where many of the owners went after the show proper ended for the day. Here's a gallery of both locations; tomorrow, there will be a video, so stay tuned (and hit the jump for the gallery).

To call this storm a hurricane this far north is a gross overestimation, but the damage is vivid, and the worst many of my friends and neighbors in my area have seen. Here are three pictures that I took of some of the flooding (which is an understatement, because each location in the pictures had an extremely strong current). The Vermont flooding even made it to the New York Times, and a few pockets of rain are still to come.

I'll be checking out what flooding remains tomorrow, but until then, I'll be sipping from a lukewarm water bottle (the water treatment plant is located on the "river" pictured below), and hoping that everyone who suffered damages from Hurricane Irene and its related storms can recover soon. Read more about Where I've Been: Hurricane Irene-related Flooding

The series of scheduled classic car meets sponsored by Hemmings this summer had a good run and, though I only made it to two of the shows this summer, the variety between events is impressive. Luckily, the second show was the final Cruise-In yesterday, and I went down with my camera gear to film some of the exquisite machinery on display outside Hemmings' distinctive 1960s-style Sunoco station. Check out the pictures below, and the video later today.