History

It all started when...

A moonlit Saturday night in Hill, New Hampshire, late September 1975: a young couple and their faithful dog are sitting by the fire resting after a day of chasing rabbits, frisbees and tennis balls in the fields and swimming in the river. Suddenly the dog’s head pops up; he hears a car. A minute later a rather large black female Newfoundland bounds onto the porch, followed by a young couple who knock on the door.

"Is this the Boeing place?" they ask, and because it is, they are welcomed inside by the people as the dogs get to know each other on the porch.

The travelers, Pete and Sue Erkkinen, explain that they have been on the road all day laying out a Rallye route, just for fun, and are seeking an ending place and a third leg. They have rallyed in North Carolina and decided it was so much fun they’d try it here in their native New England.

Cricket and Lynne Boeing have also rallyed before, and are happy to help. Crick has spent many summers in the area, knows some really nice roads, and has in mind a place to end. They spend Sunday together, laying out Leg 3 and scoping out the finish site.

The First Annual Lost Cause Auto Rallye (FALCAR) was held the following weekend. We started at Bolton Orchards, on Rt 117 in Bolton, MA.

There were 12 competing teams. Sue Erkkinen surprised everyone by making tee shirts for the occasion and giving out prizes. We camped in a field in Old Hill Village, which was and still is owned by the federal government, as it lies in the flood plain of the Franklin Falls Dam, on the Pemigewasset River, one of two main tributaries of the Merrimack (along with the Winnipesaukee). On your Rand McNally it’s called the Franklin Falls Reservoir, and it looks bigger than Newfound Lake, but most of the time it’s a very pleasant valley with a 200 yard wide river running through it.

The Second Annual Lost Cause Auto Rallye (SALCAR) ended in Wakefield, NH, in a field behind Charlie Smith’s house. There were twenty competing teams that year. The third leg actually went into Maine, making it a three state route. Tee shirts were hand screened, and the winners received four inch Revere bowls.

The Third Annual Lost Cause Auto Rallye (TALCAR) went back to Old Hill Village, but during the festivities Saturday night the State Police came and advised us we weren’t supposed to be camping there.

It was the Fourth Annual Lost Cause Auto Rallye at which the name was permanently changed to TALCAR with a Roman Numeral (T IV). This was the first year of using Boy Scout camps. We wound up at Camp Carver in Plymouth, MA.

T V was the first to have rain. It was pouring at the start, but by the end of the day the sun was shining at Camp Quinapoxet in Rindge, NH, where we wound up.

Each year TALCAR had grown a little, until T VII, when we took a quantum leap. That year we had an uncontrollable 65 competing teams, and since then we have tried to limit participation to less than 50, just for logistics reasons. By vote of the Executive Committee the mailing list was closed. Now only the reigning Champions may invite someone who is not on the list.

At T VIII we were fortunate enough to secure the use of the Winston Cup venue Thompson Speedway, in Thompson, CT, and each competing team was allotted a 20 minute "Free Zone" during the second leg in which they could actually take a lap around the track. No one was killed. This was also the first Rallye to finish in Connecticut.

T X was notable for the extreme cold Saturday night. The Rallye was held the first weekend in October, again at Camp Quinapoxet, and the temperature dropped to 16 degrees. You could hear the cars starting up all night long, as one by one people slowly gave up and went home. Only a few stayed the night, but we were rewarded with a stunningly beautiful day on Sunday.

T XI was the first to end in Rhode Island, at the Stepping Stone Ranch, a Country & Western music venue. Unfortunately the weekend concert was cancelled because Hurricane Gloria came through the night before and there was no electricity. Some of the Rallyers had to move downed trees from the road as they went, and a State Policeman actually pulled one of the teams over to find out what they were doing, and reminded them that they were in a Disaster Area!

T XII saw the advent of the Private Campground. We ended at the Shir-Roy campground in Mason, NH, where TALCAR XXIV also ended. Private campgrounds offer excellent facilities for a group like ours.

TALCAR has used private campgrounds ever since, and we have visited all six New England states. We are always interested in any ideas about places to go, as long as they’re in New England!