RESULTS: 2O1O NEW ENGLAND 1OOO

May 16-21, 2O1O

18th ANNIVERSARY!

What a special year for our 18th annual New England 1OOO! Charles Nearburg and Karen Miller brought a Series I Ferrari GTO Charles purchased just this past winter for a world record price, while Peter and Kathy Sachs brought their even rarer Series II GTO that Peter has vintage raced for literally decades.

Count ‘em, two Ferrari GTOs on our 1OOO mile rally! As another rallyist said, “It was an honor just to be driving on the same roads!”

Understandably, the GTOs garnered the lion’s share of the attention. At any hour during the evening, there would be a crowd in front of the hotel standing quietly around one GTO or the other, just absorbing. And every morning, there’d be a different crowd, waiting to hear the unmistakable roar of those race-prepped V-12s as they accelerated down the sweeping driveway. Nothing sounds like a Ferrari V-12 at full song. Wonderful, simply wonderful!

But the GTOs were just a fraction of the appeal. We also enjoyed four Porsche 911 Carrera RSs belonging to David Fischer, Joe Hayes, Henry Michie and Rich Taylor, each one slightly different in detail. Hans Abrahams brought his beautiful Fly Yellow Alfa Romeo GTV, along with his even more beautiful fiancé, Samantha Lawson.

Aston Martin stalwart Tom Smith brought the latest addition to his collection. Newly restored, Tom’s 1952 DB-2 was one of the cars Rich Taylor judged at Amelia Island Concours in March, but also a veteran of half-a-dozen New England 1000 rallies in the hands of former owner Bud Brickman. Joe Pellegrino and Michael Brady brought more modern Astons.

For years, Maurizio Ciocca has been driving on our events with his friend Michael Lerch. Two years ago, Maurizio bought a 1958 Corvette for the sole purpose of bringing it on our rallies. He and restorer John Jeninga completed it literally days before the event, but the Corvette performed perfectly and earned them our Vintage Spirit Award.

That award could easily have gone to 92-year-old Alden Sherman who abandoned his usual Bugattis in favor of a Ferrari 330 GT. Clifton and Justine Fink brought their 330 GTC, as well, while Steve and Laura Maier had one of their late model Ferraris. David and Deborah Dersch drove their familiar Maserati Spyder, top down, the better to show off Deborah’s famous hat collection.

Chris Nast II and Chris Nast III drove a gorgeous 300SL roadster, one of many Mercedes in their collection, but surprisingly, the only Mercedes in the group this year. There were lots of Porsches, in addition to the Carrera RS class, including the bright red 356 Speedster of George Gates and Chuck Kaplanek and the Carreras of Solomon Asser, Steve Sabatini and Paul Gagliardi.

Michael Lerch brought his familiar full-race Triumph TR-3, while young Michael Romeo and Lindsay Becker drove their awesome new Nissan GT-R. Fairfield Concours d’Elegance organizer Bill Scheffler and his daughter Liz brought a newly acquired 1968 Camaro convertible, only to have the rear axle bearings go away on the drive to the start. We supplied him with a new Porsche Boxster, which he liked so much he purchased during the rally and drove home!

Between Trapp Family Lodge and Mount Washington Resort, we enjoyed great historic hotels, as well as great restaurants, great scenery, great roads and great camaraderie. There was one partial day of rain, but otherwise the sun shone throughout. We visited the spectacular car collections of Bob Bahre, John Moir and Chuck Schwager, plus Chris and Heidi Charlton’s Classic Car Garage. Many of us even saw moose and bears, up close and personal!

Joe/Sharon Hayes, Michael/Jonathan Lerch, Steve/Laura Maier and Tom/Collin Smith zeroed the rally. Our long-time sponsor Porsche Cars North America supplied back-up Boxsters, Caymans, 911 Carreras, Panameras and Cayennes, which everyone sampled at some point during the week. Porsche contributed to our charities, as well.

At our Victory Banquet, Charles Nearburg was the speaker, describing what it’s like to set a new record at Bonneville at 403 mph in his streamliner. Called Spirit of Rett, Charles runs his car to raise awareness of pediatric cancer, which claimed his son Rett at age 21, after a 10-year battle. As you might hope, our primary charity from New England 1000 this year was the Nearburg Foundation for Pediatric Cancer Research. Vintage Rallies has now contributed well over $1-million to charity as a result of our events.

We think Vintage Rallies are a win-win-win. We have fun with like-minded car enthusiasts, we get to drive our own cars on fabulous roads through spectacular scenery with back-up from Porsche and brilliant mechanics Peter and Steve Markowski from RPM Vermont as well as Exotic Car Transport’s Tom Meunier. We get to examine icons like the Nearburg and Sachs GTOs, plus visit private car collections that aren’t open to the public. Even the hotels and restaurants are world-class. And the whole thing is done for charity. What more could anyone want?

RESULTS: 2OO9 NEW ENGLAND 1OOO

May 17-22, 2OO9

17th ANNIVERSARY!

We followed a very different route this year, celebrating the 400th Anniversary of Henry Hudson’s sail up the river which now bears his name. We enjoyed spectacular scenery and weather, from Mohonk to Sacandaga Lake to Mount Ascutney. It was a very special week!

Between Mohonk Mountain House and The Equinox, we enjoyed great historic hotels, as well as great cars, great roads and great people. Historic homes like the Vanderbilt Mansion, Olana and Broad Meadows, not to mention the classic car collections of Skip Barber and Jim Taylor, were among our popular stopping spots.

David/Paula Fischer, Chuck/Beth Kaplanek, Steve/Laura Mailer and Steve Harris—driving and navigating by himself!—zeroed the rally, while the Gussacks, Makofskes and Vizzinis each received only one point.

Miles Collier earned our Vintage Spirit Award, presented by Sports Car Market. Once again, our primary charity was the Vermont National Guard Family Readiness Center.

RESULTS: 2OO7 NEW ENGLAND 1OOO

May 2O-25, 2OO7

Once again, Rich and Jean Taylor, aided by their hard-working crew and Porsche Cars North America’s sponsorship, put together a wonderful week of precision driving, good company, delicious food and luxury accommodations for 8O hardy vintage rallyists and their vintage cars. If that were not enough, the 15th anniversary running of the New England 1OOO included 3 hill climbs and an autocross (though that was iced out at the last minute)!

Since 1993, Vintage Rallies, Inc. has organized several 1,OOO mile vintage rallies a year in various parts of the U.S. and Canada. One of the distinguishing features of the Taylors’ rallies is that a portion of the proceeds is given to charity, nearly $1,OOO,OOO over the past 15 years! This tremendous record of “giving back” engenders a warm and serious spirit to the week’s automotive activities. Add to this the rally itself, the night time “après rally” and the competent safety net should things go wrong, this event is synonymous with the perfect way to enjoy driving your vintage car over long distances.

To participate, all you need is an interesting 1975 or earlier vintage sports car or modern exotic, a passion for driving and a week off from work. This is not a race, it is a “precision driving event” so leave the crash helmets at home unless you wish to participate in the optional timed hill climbs or other “off road” events. While rally clocks are neat to look at, common digital timers and atomic watches are all that are needed to win! You will find yourselves in good company with always interesting, always entertaining car enthusiasts, some of whom drive to win (“zero out” in rally-speak), while others drive to enjoy their cars, the scenery and the camaraderie as much as the driving challenge.

One delightful feature of the 15th running of the New England 1OOO was the family nature of the teams: while the majority of teams were husband/wife/significant other pairings, there were quite a number of father/son, father/daughter teams as well as a mother/son team with most sharing driving/navigating duties. To top it off, there were a few teams of best buddies and fellow enthusiasts, including one pair dubbed “The Odd Couple,” and one fiancé/fiancée team with friend as co-navigator! The entrants came from the four corners of the USA, with one team from Mexico and another from Canada; they were from all walks of life and business pursuits, sharing a love of life and, of course, fine cars and driving.

Oh, yes! And then there were the cars! The oldest car of the group was a 1935 Riley Imp, a veteran of many rallies, driven and navigated by Sarah Rheault and son, Chrisso. The Rheaults were enjoying a spirited run on the first day which was sadly cut short when the Riley consumed a connecting rod bearing on the long pull up the Kancamagus Highway. They quickly transitioned to a bright red Porsche Boxster and continued the week’s activities.

Speaking of Porsches, they were certainly well represented this year! (Could their numbers have been due to the draw of the sponsor or perhaps Porsche’s affinity for winding New England roads?) Peter and Karen Efros returned for their 14th year, driving their 356A Coupe, one of a number of 356 series Porsches. Another notable example was the 1956 GS Carrera brought from Canada by Gerd Schwarzkopf and Pierre Cloutier, a well driven entry indeed that also contributed the nostalgic aroma of Castrol R to the rally route. Ron and Carol Novrit drove their beautiful blue 356 B Cabriolet to a perfect score. The 911s were represented by Keith Carroll and young daughter, Lauren Anne, in their 911 S and Michael Wilson’s Turbo hill climb car to name a few. Rounding out the Porsche group was a 914-6 entered by David Fischer and wife, Paula.

The Mercedes group included two 3OOSL Roadsters, competitively driven by Rip and Court Cross and Jimmy and Lisa Dobbs. English cars included the customary field of Jaguars, old and new, an Aston Martin and a well turned out Daimler SP25O. Lotus was well represented by a delightful 1962 Elite, pulled from the archives of the Collier Collection Museum, entered by Miles Collier and navigated by Scott George and a Europa Series One, driven by John Burton and Carolyn Corda. Other small bore cars included a 1971 Mini entered by the David and Debbie Allison and a lovely Alfa Romeo Guilia Spider Veloce driven by Mitch Katz and navigated by daughter, Meg.

The Italian contingent also included a number of Maserati and Lamborghini entries and Ferraris ranging from a wonderful 1967 33O GTE driven by Jane Sherman with her father, Alden, as navigator; Jim Vincent’s F43O and Jerry Morici’s 1957 Testa Rossa recreation and the Muldoon’s Pinin Farina Cabriolet from Guadalajara, Mexico. American muscle was provided by Richard Reina and Steve Hansen, in their totally original 1968 Mustang GT California Special and, by contrast, Tom and Lisa Goddard in their modified 197O Mustang Boss 3O2.

Monday, May 21: 227 miles (Woodstock, VT to Whitefield, NH)

In chilly morning air, the first cars left the Woodstock Inn at 8 o’clock, rallying north and east through some spectacular Vermont countryside before crossing the Connecticut River and up to North Woodstock, NH for the end of the first stage. After a brief rest, we rallied over the Kinsman Notch into the Franconia Valley and from there up to Cannon Mountain where a gymkhana, lunch and a tram ride to the top were planned for us.

Cannon has long been known among skiers as the “Ice Mountain” and on this day in May it lived up to its reputation. The parking lot was covered with a thin sheet of ice thus canceling the autocross; on the trip to the top of the mountain in the aerial tramway we saw the mountain coated in rime (white ice formed when the water droplets in fog freeze)!

After a hearty lunch in the ski lodge, the rally left for a transit stage over the world famous Kancamagus Highway, a 34 mile mountain pass through the White Mountain National Forest to the Mount Washington Valley. As we left Cannon, the weather was warming and the afternoon soon became pleasant, balmy and dry. We were treated to exhilarating drive over the twisty Kancamangus, just reopened for the summer, and on to a delightful visit to John and Heather Moir’s “Ca’a Bahn”.

John has assembled a fascinating collection of vintage cars, one each for every letter of the alphabet as well as many other cars. Of particular note, though, was his mouth-watering collection of 14 concours winning AC’s. The afternoon stage took us from the Moir’s back yard to our lodging at the Mountainview Grand, a resort hotel in Whitefield, NH with a 18O degree view of Mt. Washington and the Presidential Mountain Range beyond its pristine golf course.

Tuesday, May 22: 225.8 miles (Whitefield, NH to Paris, ME and back)

Tuesday dawned bright and brisk. Despite the chill, we lined up early for our 8 o’clock start and rally over to Paris Hill, Maine where we were all treated to a tour of Bob Behre’s magnificent collection of classic automobiles. Bob’s collection of Duesenbergs, Packards and Cadillacs left us weak at the knees, but my personal favorite was an Indy roadster, tucked away in the basement.

From Paris, we rallied along Hurricane Mountain Road, a twisty, undulating, narrow mountain pass to Mount Washington. There, two groups formed; the cruisers and the racers! The race to the top was convincingly won by Michael Wilson in his 911 Turbo. He and his car are significant hill climb competitors in the New England area and his experience paid off in a spectacular run.

Those not having the horsepower or the computer-aided controls had equally impressive runs at slightly slower speeds. Sadly, the hill climb claimed the very competitive Europa of Barton/Corda when a $4 part gave way, resulting in a total loss of oil and a seized engine. From Mt. Washington, we transited through the unique notches back to the Mountainview Grand.

With the late afternoon sun setting behind the hotel, many participants gathered on the front porch to take in the views of the cars, with the backdrop of the Presidential Range beyond. Dinner followed in the hotel’s large ballroom, a delicious New England seafood feast, accompanied by much swapping of stories of the day’s activities.

Wednesday, May 24: 283.4 miles (Whitefield, NH to Lenox, MA)

With clear skies, true summer temperatures finally arrived! Now at mid-rally, Rich Taylor laid out an endurance course for us, both in mileage and in twisty roads and obscured directions. All this was intended to sort the wheat from the chaff and it certainly seemed to have that effect. In addition, various gremlins were beginning to appear in a number of cars keeping Eben Marcowski and his mechanics from RPM very busy!

We rallied south over some of the most exciting sports car roads in the northern New England area to Weston, Vermont and the Vermont Country Store. After a leisurely lunch, we transited south on little used, marvelous back roads to the Cranwell Resort in Lenox, Massachusetts. The transit, a lengthy test of driver and navigator endurance, was un-timed to allow us all time to appreciate the magnificent countryside. Dinner at the Cranwell was another sumptuous feast and congenial gathering.

Thursday, May 24: 193.7 miles (Lenox, MA through NY to Woodstock, VT)

From the Cranwell, we rallied in two stages to Hemmings Motor News in Bennington, Vermont, following a circuitous path over mountain roads through the Berkshires and into the New York countryside. Under blazing blue skies, Hemmings put on an impromptu car show and photo opportunity for all while we rested up and toured their museum.

From there, we headed north to The Wilburton Inn in Manchester, Vermont with a short stop at Mount Equinox where anyone wishing to could take a trip up the 4.6 mile mountain road to the summit. After an al fresco lunch on the Inn’s stone terrace, we rallied across Vermont to Mount Ascutney where we had the choice of racing or cruising up the 3.7 mile Mount Ascutney Road. Once again, the mountain meister, Michael Wilson, easily won the competitive event. From there, a short transit stage brought us back to the Woodstock Inn and the gala Victory Banquet.

Three teams finished the rally tied for first place with no penalty points: Miles Collier and Scott George, Ron and Carol Novrit, and Henry and Kathy Michie. Court and Rip Cross deserve mention too for finishing with only one penalty point!

The Vintage Spirit award went to the very deserving team of Toby Anderson and his wife, Candace, who turned navigation duties over to their daughter, Mally, at the rally mid-point. Despite several minor mechanical failures, the Anderson’s Porsche 356 was very competitive. Through it all, the Andersons’ can-do attitude prevailed to ensure that the 356 lasted the week.

A spirited auction rounded out the evening and the event ended on a high note with the donation of $2O,OOO to the Vermont National Guard Family Readiness Center, which assists families of Guard members during training or mobilization as well as returning veterans. Another $5,5OO was donated to the Vermont State Police Scholarship Fund and other worthy groups.

In addition to fond farewells, participants could be heard making plans with one another for the next year’s New England 1OOO as the evening’s festivities wound down!

Racers in the Rally

Why do those so used to driving at speed find enjoyment in a much more relaxed and refined automotive event? The fact is that amongst the participants in this year’s rally there were a number of former racers and currently active vintage racers.

To David Allison, who is frequently found hot-lapping VIR in his vintage formula Ford, the rally represents an opportunity for he and wife, Debbie, to “enjoy time together” in their 1971 Mini; something that’s not possible in a single-seater! A veteran of nine New England rallies and two elsewhere, they should know and, indeed, can re-count the magical moments they have had traversing spectacular roads together.

Other current or former racers on the rally included veteran Jerry Morici; Gerd Schwarzkopf from Canada; Miles Collier of the Collier collection; long time racer and car collector Jimmy Dobbs and his wife, Lisa; John Burton and fiancée, Carolyn Corda, in John’s Lotus Europa; Keith Carroll and his daughter, Lauren Anne; ex FB crew chief, Tom Goddard, and wife, Lisa, in their Boss 3O2 and, of course, rally organizer Rich Taylor, driving his Maserati 35OOGT this year.

All report that the rally experience offers the time to enjoy their fine automobiles in a relaxed setting with their spouse, significant other, friend, or, in this year’s case, parent or child. When not driving, there was an opportunity to learn the history of the cars on the event, cars in general or just plain swap old racing stories.

All this happens in a setting of luxury accommodations and a “safety net” enabling everyone to relax and enjoy their cars with the knowledge that, should some gudgeon pin finally give out, there are experienced mechanics and loaner Porsches not far behind to help out.

Life with vintage cars can’t get much better than that, even for those used to enjoying their cars at speed!

RESULTS: 2OO5 NEW ENGLAND 1OOO



May 22-27, 2OO5

They came from as far away as England, California and Florida, seventy vintage rallyists and their navigators for the 13th annual New England 1000, sponsored by Porsche Cars North America.

Among the neatest cars in the group were Helen Fraser's exquisite 1952 Ferrari 212 PF Coupe, Craig Rosenfeld's 1957 Lancia Aurelia Spyder, Chuck Schwager's 1957 Mercedes 300SL and the race-prepped 1958 Porsche 356 Coupes of Peter Efros and Vic Rivera.

Among the many other vintage rally cars were two Mini Coopers, two Austin Healeys, two Jaguar XKs, two XKEs, three Ferrari Dinos, three Porsche RS Carreras and a rare 1968 Mustang California Special.

By far the most unusual machines were Mickey Graham's newly-restored 1959 Porsche RSK racer and Richard Scott's 1955 Chrysler Ghia, a one-off Hemi-powered Chrysler showcar that's not just rare and valuable, but spectacularly restored.

Porsche Cars North America is the new sponsor for all Vintage Rallies, Inc. events, so not only were there Cayennes for the corner workers to drive, but two Porsche Boxsters, a Carrera and a Carrera Cabriolet for rallyists to borrow if their old car broke down.

Peter Markowski from RPM Vermont and Tom Meunier from Exotic Car Transport followed the group with two 45 foot transporters. They were in charge of keeping everything running and handing out new Porsches when necessary.

The New England 1000 is different every year, with new routes, new hotels, new places to visit and new things to see. For the first time, we started from the Black Point Inn, an 1878 hotel on the ocean that's one of the prestigious Historic Hotels of America. Painter Winslow Homer’s picturesque home and studio are a short walk away, so many of the rallyists took advantage of a private visit to Homer’s studio arranged by the rally organizers on Sunday afternoon.

Unfortunately, a mammoth low-pressure area stationed itself off the coast of Maine on Sunday evening, threatening rain, 60 mph winds and temperatures in the forties. On the usual New England 1000, there are a variety of mechanical ills for the mechanics to deal with as the week progresses. Not so this time. The cool air and comparatively low speeds kept the cars mechanically happy. The most common ailment was non-working windshield wipers! The joke of the week was that we should have had Rain-X for the event sponsor this year.

The whole idea of this year's trip was to showcase various spots along the spectacular Maine seacoast, without getting stuck in coastal traffic. So the route made loops, swinging back and forth between inland Maine and the coast.

On Monday morning, we zipped from Black Point Inn up the shore of Sebago Lake to the first checkpoint, then over a wandering and very scenic route all the way to the fascinating Maine Maritime Museum in Bath. A short transit brought the group to a wonderful lunch at Robinhood Meeting House, a gourmet restaurant housed in an 1855 church.

In the afternoon, we looped inland, then back to Fort William Henry, built in 1692 to protect this northern-most English settlement. A short transit brought us to Pemaquid Point Light, where we parked our trusty 1973 Porsche Carrera RS and ran around on the rocks. Between the rain and crashing surf, we were thoroughly soaked by the time we got back to the car, but we were both laughing.

A short drive along the ocean brought us to The Samoset and hot showers. The Samoset is a modern hotel on Penobscot Bay between Camden and Rockland, set in the middle of a seafront golf course. It was a wild and stormy night; the wind off the ocean picked up the three chaise lounges on our private porch and stacked them against the wall, then ripped our room's storm door right off its hinges. It was the Maine coast at its most spectacular.

Owls Head Transportation Museum is just 5 miles from The Samoset. Vintage Rallies, Inc. is a long-time corporate member, and contributed to a special fund organized by John Whitney Payson that allows us to hold a gymkhana on the huge Owls Head airport runway.

Unbelievably, the rain and wind stopped, the tarmac dried and we were able to hold the first ever Owls Head Gymkhana precisely as scheduled. Toby Anderson in his E-type Jaguar put up the most spectacularly out-of-control run, David Allison's Mini and John Burton's Lotus were amazing quick for their size, but Joe Hayes in his 1974 Porsche Carrera RS simply blew the rest of us away.

From Owls Head we headed inland to Swan Lake, then back to the coastal port of Castine for lunch at a charming hillside bed and breakfast called The Manor Inn. Sitting by a fire in the big Victorian living room and eating muffins was not a bad way to warm up. Castine is an enchanting Maine town with a picturesque harbor, the Maine Maritime Academy and lovely Colonial homes.

After lunch, we rallied back to Camden via Bluejacket Boats, a world-famous ship model center. We were supposed to take a two-hour sail on a pair of classic Maine schooners, but the captains agreed that even though the rain had abated, heading out to sea into gale-force winds was probably not the best idea.

A quick look around the shops in Camden, a quick stop at the bar in The Samoset and an old-fashioned, more-than-you-can-eat lobster bake made up for missing the boat ride.

The next morning was dry but cold. We headed north and east to Greenville, on the shore of spectacular Moosehead Lake. High above the town is mountaintop Greenville Airport. Local car collector and vintage rallyist Lou Hilton had arranged for us to hold the Lou Hilton Autocross on the spacious airport runways. Joe Hayes once again blew away the competition with his Carrera RS, though the organizers gave Jack Hawkins a special award for his on-the-edge drive in his 1959 Healey.

After lunch at Kelly’s Landing on the shore of Moosehead Lake, a classic Maine waterfront huntin’ and fishin’ lodge, we headed for Jordan Grand, a mountaintop ski resort outside Bethel, Maine. The hotel driveway would make a spectacular hillclimb!

The plan was to start the last day's drive with a gymkhana on the huge paved parking lots of the Jordan Grand. Unfortunately, the mountaintop was literally inside a cloud, which made the pavement much too wet. Skipping the gymkhana, we rallied over one of the best roads in New England, New Hampshire 113, to John Moir’s fascinating car collection.

Many years ago, John's wife said something like, "Isn't that cute, you have an A.C., a Bugatti, a Cord, a Duesenberg...I wonder if you could collect the whole alphabet?" Well, yes. John's barn now holds a collection that goes through the alphabet more than twice, from multiple A.C.s through a Japanese minicar called a Zip-Zip. His great regret is that the town of Xenia, OH won't sell him the sole surviving Xenia car. He even offered to buy the whole local museum where it's displayed!

From John’s, we zip-zipped to lunch at the grand Victorian waterfront Colony Hotel in Kennebunkport. Lunch on the glass-enclosed porch was another over-the-top affair, with spectacular views, a lavish lobster buffet and desserts to die for.

After lunch, we rallied along the rocky coast past the summer home of former President George and Barbara Bush, eventually ending up in Scarborough at Maine Indoor Karting, a state-of-the-art go-kart track owned by long-time vintage rallyist Rick Snow. Talk about a great ending to a fun week! Everybody got onto the track; drivers, navigators, corner workers. What a blast!

Back at Black Point Inn, it was clear that our group had bonded. The Victory Banquet was a laugh riot. There were all sorts of cute and funny prizes, as well as the more serious awards. Joe Hayes won the track events, though David Allison ran away and hid from everyone at the go-kart races. Bob Cushman and Barry Flynn, driving a 1974 Triumph TR-6, were the overall rally winners, just ahead of Chuck and Beth Kaplanek in their 1964 Corvette Sting Ray Roadster.

Richard Scott and Richard Procter, known as The Richards, won the Vintage Spirit Award for their grace under pressure hustling through the rain in the priceless Chrysler Ghia. All in all, it was a memorable week.

As Carol Novrit said after spending four days in the passenger seat of an Austin Healey, "We were cold, we were wet, we were overfed...and we had a wonderful time! See you next year!"

RESULTS: 2OO4 NEW ENGLAND 1OOO

May 23-28, 2OO4

This year's New England 1000 was special. As usual, there were unique and memorable cars, a thousand miles of great roads, spectacular scenery and top-flight hotels and restaurants. Far more important, three dozen unusually enthusiastic teams came together into a sort of extended family group that laughed and chattered and partied their way through the week.

Our event started Sunday afternoon with an informal concours d'elegance at the spectacular Mountain View Grand Resort in Whitefield, New Hampshire. This is a newly-restored 1865 "grand hotel" surrounded by a golf course opened in 19OO and restored in 1999. Other amenities include a heated Olympic pool, tennis, fitness center, horseback riding and the usual high-end resort touches. Sunday night, we had dinner in the Victorian hotel restaurant overlooking the White Mountains.

We began with a buffet breakfast at Mountain View Grand, then went driving south and west through the mountains of New Hampshire and Vermont. The scenery is as spectacular as the roads. Our destination was Mount Ascutney State Park, where we closed the road and conducted a hillclimb up Mount Ascutney. Lunch was at the picturesque Kedron Valley Inn in nearby South Woodstock.

After lunch, we rallied across Vermont to Basin Harbor Club where we stayed two nights. Basin Harbor Club, on the eastern shore of Lake Champlain, is one of the most famous, as well as most beautiful, resorts in New England. It’s an old favorite of ours.

Each couple had their own cottage nestled in Basin Harbor’s extensive grounds to view the sun setting over Lake Champlain. Dinner was in Basin Harbor Club’s Main Dining Room, which also overlooks the lake.

Tuesday, we began with a buffet breakfast at Basin Harbor Club. After breakfast, we twisted and turned our way down the west side of Vermont. Our destination was Mount Equinox, site of the famous Mount Equinox Hill Climb.

After racing up Mount Equinox, we headed to nearby Manchester, VT for lunch at the gourmet Wilburton Inn. Wilburton Inn is owned by one of the most interesting families in America, that includes playwright Wendy Wasserstein and investment banker "Bid'em Up Bruce" Wasserstein.

After a pit-stop in historic Manchester for some navigator’s revenge at the outlet shops, we weaved our way on wonderful Vermont mountain roads back to Basin Harbor Club. Cocktails were at RPM, the fascinating vintage car restoration shop run by our official mechanics, Peter and Steve Markowski. Dinner was at a nearby gourmet restaurant, Roland's Place, housed in a classic Vermont farmhouse.

Wednesday morning, we headed east across northern Vermont and New Hampshire into the mountains of Maine. Lunch was at historic Bethel Inn in Bethel, Maine. After lunch, we had more wonderful driving on fabulous roads through the Maine mountains. In the late afternoon, we visited the Stanley Museum in Kingfield, Maine, for tea, cookies and a ride in one of their Steam Cars.

After a picturesque transit stage along the “haunts of coot and hern,” we headed to Grand Summit, a well-known Maine ski resort. Grand Summit offers all the usual resort amenities, including a pool, health club and golf course, but some unusual things found only in the Maine mountains...like a moose viewing area!

The next day, we visited Bob Bahre's fabulous classic car collection in Paris Hill, Maine before driving over fantastic mountain roads back to the Mountain View Grand. At the end of a wonderful drive, we returned to Mountain View Grand and our Victory Banquet. FRIDAY, MAY 28 A leisurely gourmet breakfast at Mountain View Grand, and the New England 1OOO was over till next year...except for new friends and great memories!

RESULTS: 2OOO NEW ENGLAND 1OOO

May 21-26, 2OOO

There were more cars this year—65 entries selected from 85 couples who wanted to attend—and more Mercedes, too. An entire rally class was made up of drum-brake 3OOSLs, another class of disc brake 3OOSLs, another class of 28OSE and 28OSE 3.5 coupes and cabriolets.

In addition to the Mercedes fleet, there were also nine vintage Ferraris, seven Jaguars, five Porsches, four Aston Martins, and an incredibly diverse collection of rare beasts ranging from a 1927 Bentley 4.5 Supercharged Le Mans to a 1965 Austin Mini Cooper, from a 1962 AC Greyhound to a 1967 Toyota 2OOO GT convertible, from a 1958 BMW 5O7 roadster to a 1968 Shelby Mustang.

The crowd favorite was Lyndon Johnson's 1967 Lincoln stretch limousine, complete with presidential seals on the doors, Bill Clinton mask for the navigator and a life-size Monica doll on her knees in the back seat.

The five-day, 1OOO-mile format of the New England 1OOO is the same each year, but the route, the hotels, the meals and the sights are different each time. This year, we started from The Cranwell Resort, a 19O3 estate outside Lenox, MA that's been completely restored and turned into a luxury hotel.

Sunday afternoon, our first visit was just down the road to Brian Donovan's vintage racing shop, which, among four dozen machines, holds such esoterica as a D-type Jaguar, an aluminum-bodied XK-12O racer and Bob Tullius's IMSA Champion XJS V-12.

A Massachusetts clothing company called Wearguard makes the regalia that each participant receives from the organizers. They sent two photography crews and an art director to photograph our group with our cars, all wearing Wearguard jackets, for their next catalog. After that excitement, it was time for dinner and the Famous Navigators School.

Monday morning consisted of time-speed-distance rally stages through the Berkshire hills to a local race track. The drag strip was still too damp from an overnight rain, but the gymkhana course was quick and dry. FTD was well-known racer John Weinberger in a 1957 Ferrari 2-liter Testa Rossa, called a 196.

Surprisingly, the Lincoln limousine was not the slowest car, even though both front hubcaps went rolling into the fences on the first sharp turns and the inside rear wheel lifted off the ground on every corner.

From Lebanon Valley, it was off to Hemmings Motor News for lunch at their unique office/car museum. The afternoon route took us up Mount Equinox to admire the view—unfortunately obscured by fog at the summit—through the outlet center of Manchester, VT, to Calvin Coolidge's home in Plymouth Meeting and all the way to Laurance Rockefeller's Woodstock Inn in Woodstock, VT. Dinner was at Bentley's, in downtown Woodstock.

The next day, we headed north to Graniteville, VT, home of both the Rock of Ages granite quarry and Thunder Road race track, owned by TV race reporter Ken Squier. After touring the largest granite quarry in the world, it was time for the track. A small paved oval with an infield road course, Thunder Road is tight and tricky. Pascal Gademer, driving an E-type V-12, had FTD.

After lunch at a local restaurant, we followed TSD stages over a precipitous but spectacular mountain pass near Roxbury, VT, then through some of the most beautiful scenery in New England, ending up on the shore of Lake Champlain at the Champlain Maritime Museum. This is a museum of small boats, the neatest being a replica of a gunboat that Benedict Arnold sailed against the British invasion from Canada during the Revolutionary War.

A 1O minute drive brought us back to the present. The official mechanics, Peter, Stephen and Eban Markowski, plus their pal Ryan Close, run an exotic car restoration shop called RPM in Vergennes, VT. When we visited, their current major production was a ground-up restoration of a Ferrari 166 Touring-bodied coupe, but there were at least another three dozen Ferraris, Mercedes, Alfas and other exotics awaiting minor ministrations.

A short drive back to the lake, and we checked into Basin Harbor Club. Owned for over a century by generations of the same family, Basin Harbor has a hundred separate small Victorian houses on 7OO acres, most of them hugging the shore of Lake Champlain. Dinner was in the dining room of the main hotel, overlooking the lake.

Wednesday brought us across Vermont, climbing over three different mountain ranges on our way to a New England lobster bake in Woodstock, NH. The Bentley Driver's Club had arranged to meet us in the municipal parking lot in Woodstock, ready for an informal concours. A persistent drizzle meant we had to wear our jackets and hats for standing around in the parking lot, but the the rain didn't seem to keep anyone indoors. It did, however, cancel the afternoon track event at White Mountain Motorsport Park.

Instead, we headed up and over the Kancamagus Highway and Bear Notch to our overnight at the famous Mount Washington Hotel at Bretton Woods. Looking like the set from The Shining, recently restored at a cost of over $1OO-million and home of the 1944 Bretton Woods economic conference, the Mount Washington gives new meaning to the term Grand Hotel.

Thursday was a serious rally day, from Mount Washington, NH to the restored town of Grafton, VT for lunch, then all the way back to Lenox, MA and The Cranwell for our Victory Banquet. This was nearly 3OO miles, on incredibly winding roads with great elevation changes.

After four days of rallying, there was an unprecedented three-way tie for first overall, between Steve and Carolyn Bacen in a 1958 Ferrari 25OGT Pininfarina Speciale, Alex Leventhal/Ivan Svenson in a 1969 Ferrari 365GT, and Henry and Kathy Michie in a 1963 Ferrari 25OGT Lusso. Winner of the combined track events was Forbes Anderson, in a Porsche 356 Speedster, who barely edged out Frank Filangeri and Pascal Gademer in their Jaguar XKEs.

By far the most prestigious prize at the New England 1OOO is the Vintage Spirit Award, given to the person who best personifies the "grace under pressure" nature of the event. This year's winner was Wendy Edmonds of Naples, FL, who navigated for her husband Dean in his topless 1927 Bentley 4.5 Supercharged Le Mans, unfazed by rain, cold or fog. The oldest car in the event, the Bentley ran like a clock and accumulated just 62 penalty points.

Wendy's prize was a life-size gerber daisy cast in solid silver, valued at $5OOO and donated by Boston artist Stephens Dunne.

Speaking of donations, thanks to Mercedes-Benz USA and gifts by individual donors, the New England 1OOO gave nearly $3O,OOO to local charities this year, bringing Vintage Rallies total over $4OO,OOO since 1993. Mick Pallardy also donated two dozen Mercedes teddy bears to the police department in Lincoln, NH to use in calming child trauma victims.

Speaking of gifts, everyone received clothing of course, plus black travel bags donated by enthusiastic rallyists Peter and Karen Efros, of Rumson, NJ. Mercedes-Benz USA had a teddy bear for every navigator, plus lots of books, ties, scarves and other gifts. Steve and Carolyn Bacen won the annual Automotive Tie and Scarf Contest. The rally prizes this year were unique, to say the least, chunks of granite from Rock of Ages engraved "N.E. 2OOO"!

RESULTS: 1999 NEW ENGLAND 1OOO

May 16-21, 1999

Everyone agrees the 1999 New England 1OOO was our "best event yet." We started and finished at the fabulous Sagamore Resort on Lake George, NY with overnights at Cranwell Resort in Lenox, MA, Mirror Lake Inn in Lake Placid, NY and Basin Harbor Club on the Vermont shore of Lake Champlain. Lunch stops were at The Old Tavern in Grafton, VT, Longfellow's in Saratoga Springs, NY, Lincoln Inn in Essex, VT and Bentley's in Woodstock, VT. The four-day route covered 1O38.65 miles, and except for a fierce rain storm on Wednesday afternoon, the weather was hot and sunny throughout.

In addition to rallying over incredible roads, we visited the National Museum of Horse Racing in Saratoga, rode to the top of the 27-story Olympic ski jump at Lake Placid and ogled the assembled exotics at Peter Markowski's Ferrari shop in Vergennes, VT. We raced through a gymkhana and time trial at Lebanon Valley Speedway near Albany, NY and a hillclimb up Mount Ascutney near the Vermont-New Hampshire border. We took two different ferries across Lake Champlain and got rides on Lake George in a 1926 Chris-Craft owned by museum curator Henry Smith. Plus, of course, we donated over $25,OOO to New England charities, including Camp Sunshine, the Gary Gaboury Fund and Mr. Smith's Lake George Antique Boat and Auto Museum.

In addition to the trophies handed out for the rally classes, Joseph and Theresa DeLucia won the prestigious Vintage Spirit Award for their sunburned drive in a topless 1934 MG racing car. Their prizes were matching Mercedes-Benz wristwatches. Bill Hoyt also won an elegant Mercedes watch for his imaginative entry in the annual Automotive Tie and Scarf contest. John McCaw received the Judge's Choice Award for the immaculate 1959 Ferrari Testa Rossa he displayed at the pre-rally concours and drove for two of the four days, alternating with his Ferrari 275 GTB/4 NART Spyder and one-off Ford GT-4O roadster.




The fastest combined scores in the three speed events were Ed Mettleman/Joe Beatrice in a Porsche 914/6, John Burton/Helene Wickett in a Lotus Europa, Evan Silvi/Jule Silvi in a Porsche 914/6 GTR 2.7 and Charles Goolsbee/Chuck Goolsbee in a Jaguar XKE. All four teams earned jugs of Vermont maple syrup as a reward for their "sweet running" cars.

There were great gifts and prizes this year. In addition to our usual crystal bowls, class winners received copies of a limited-edition Bruno Sacco design history from Mercedes-Benz. Second place in each class received a one-year subscription to Sports Car Market. Every rally participant also received commemorative soft luggage from Peter and Karen Efros, a tie or scarf and a history of Mercedes racing from Mercedes-Benz, a bag of car care goodies from Meguiar's and a copy of The Ferrari in the Barn from Sharon Mountain Press. Mercedes 3OOSL teams - there were 1O 3OOSLs in the group - all received special Gullwing shirts from Mercedes-Benz USA. That's in addition to New England 1OOO ski jackets, hats and sweatshirts distributed before the start.