My Dad Dick Knudson

My Dad Dick Knudson
By Leesa Hudak

Dad was one of a kind. He was a loving father, husband and grandfather. He was a faithful and loyal friend. He was a wonderful teacher and leader. He was passionate about so many things. Most people saw the obvious; love of family, love of God and country, and love of MGs But there was so much more.

Dad served in the Navy and was able to see much of the world. The Navy was his ticket to college, however, he enjoyed his time in the service by skiing in Cortina and Lebanon, strolling through the streets of Venice and markets of Algiers, and going to see Billie Holiday with his shipmates. He would often tell us tales of listening for submarines in the Sonar Shack or try to teach us Morse code.

Dad started teaching in rural Maine, but managed to find ways to continue to travel throughout his teaching career. While on a Fulbright Scholarship in the Netherlands he bought his first MG. It was a 1948 TC, and I can remember the whole family going for rides in it with my brother and me in the back. Register events were magical, and Dad really enjoyed the people that attended. Dad was so involved with MGs that when my bother’s kindergarten teacher asked him what his father did for a living he told her, “He’s a mechanic.”

Dad lived life to the fullest. Yes, he was passionate about many things. He had many interests, but he also took great pleasure in the small things…a good book, college basketball, whoopie pies, fried clams, and the Red Sox finally winning a World Series during his lifetime. MM

Dick Knudson was a lifelong car enthusiast, especially devoted to the MG sports car. In 1964 he was instrumental in organizing the first MGT Registry in the US and enjoyed the camaraderie of its members his entire life. Not only was Dick a seeker of knowledge, but of adventure, too. In 1988 he participated in the Kimber Alaska Challenge and drove his TC from Syracuse, New York, to Alaska and across the Arctic Circle. And in 1999, he and his wife Ann drove the TC on a three-week circuit of the UK, from Land’s End in England to John O’Groats in Scotland. During his lifetime, Dick wrote over 30 books and hundreds of articles about cars and other topics of study and interest to him. As a gesture of thanks for the influence, support and enthusiasm he brought to the hobby, in 2017 Dick was inducted into the British Sports Car Hall of Fame. The impact that Dick had on the MG marque will resonate for decades to come. A few months before he passed away, Dick Knudson submitted to Moss Motors the article on the following pages. It is our honor to share it with you. ~Ed