Hundreds of Trans-Ams and muscle cars cruised into the City of Magee last Tuesday for a pit stop on their annual Bandit Run in commemoration of the 1977 film Smokey and
The Bandit Run is a yearly event started in 2007 by Dave Hall of Restore a Muscle Car and David Hershey.
The first year was a celebration of the 30th anniversary of the movie Smokey and the Bandit. The 2007 run re-enacted the drive from Texarkana to Atlanta. The mission of the Bandit Run is to get classic cars out of the garage and onto the road.
All participants are welcomed on the run and not just owners of Trans Am’s or muscle cars. Restore a Muscle Car works with the Bandit Run group to put a new route together each year that will help get other people and cars involved and get to see different parts of the country as well. This yearly event has grown into a large, fun road trip that allows participants to meet new friends and experience new sites and experiences along the way.
On every 5th year anniversary of the movie the group makes the Run from Texarkana to Atlanta. In the years in between, they map out a trip through different parts of the country, and to date have done several Runs through the South, Midwest, East Coast, Florida, and Plains States.
And since this is the 45th Anniversary of the movie, the route is again Texarkana to Atlanta, it began on May 22 in Texarkana and ended just outside the Atlanta area in Helen, Georgia on May 28. This weeklong rolling tribute had over 120 classic Trans Ams out on the open road. Because while Burt Reynolds and Jerry Reed were the human stars in the movie, playing just as important a role was the 1977 Special Edition Black and Gold Pontiac Trans Am. Also on the Run this year was a replica Snowman’s Rig like that driven in the movie by Jerry Reed. Also a Sheriff Buford T. Justice replica cop car.
The seven-day event saw the group start in Texarkana AR and travel to Vicksburg MS. From Vicksburg the group traveled to Destin FL making a stop at Hudson’s in Magee along the way. The final leg of the Bandit Run ended in Helen Georgia where the group was met by special guest that worked on the film 45 years ago.
