Rallye Glenwood Springs

The oldest continually held car rally in nation turns 60!

Sixty years ago, auto travel from Denver to Glenwood Springs, Colorado, was not nearly the leisurely three-hour interstate jaunt that it is today. Two-lane roads, some still only partially paved and without shoulders, took motorists over multiple high mountain passes. At that time, sports car enthusiasts in the Rocky Mountain region participated in year-round events to test their driving skills and their small, lightweight, highly maneuverable cars, seeking thrills and fellowship.

Hazel Hopkins Marble in her MG-TD in 1953.

“People at that time, as they do today, were enjoying the competition, the scenery, the automobile, and camaraderie,” said MG club historian Alan Magnuson, who owns four MGs including a 1951 MG TD. “The idea is to drive on twisty mountain roads having fun in a car.”

British sports car devotees founded the MG Car Club Rocky Mountain Centre (MGCC RMC) in Denver in 1952. The car club members wanted an adventure and Glenwood Springs locals wanted tourists, so they jointly held the first Rallye Glenwood Springs in April 1953. Club president Hazel Hopkins Marble, Glenwood Springs doctor Robert Livingston, and the Glenwood Springs chamber of commerce planned and hosted that rallye.

“It was good for the hotel business, and it was good for the town. Back in those days, other than Strawberry Days, there wasn’t a lot going on in town as far as special events,” said honorary member of the MGCC RMC and Glenwood Springs community leader Hank Bosco, former owner of the Hotel Denver.

The traditional road rally is a time, speed, and distance (T-S-D) competition with drivers penalized for arriving early or late at any of the multiple check-in points along the circuitous, scenic route. According to Magnuson, those early rallies took about 12 hours. The long trip could be rather uncomfortable, since travel was in a small two-seater designed at sea level with an optional heater, a cotton top, and two plastic curtains for side windows.

Mid-1950’s Corvette, Jaguar, and MGA at the 1958 Rallye Glenwood Springs.

The day after the Rallye, downtown Glenwood Springs hosts a Concours d’Elegance car show. As can be seen in the photos, early Corvettes, Porsches, and Thunderbirds competed against British MG’s, Triumphs, Austin Healeys, Jaguars, and Mini’s for trophies.

Glenwood Springs, Colorado highways, and sports cars have significantly changed over the past 60 years and the Rallye Glenwood Springs has reflected those changes. The early 1970s were a time of considerable improvement in the roads between Denver and Glenwood Springs. The completion of most of I-70 and, a few years later, the Eisenhower Tunnel halved the time required to complete the Rallye. Years later, Interstate construction through Glenwood Canyon meant slow-downs and delays that made a timed event more difficult. The MGCC added an untimed scenic road tour, completed at the participant’s leisure, to compensate for those conditions and the Rallye was extended from a weekend to three days.

The Rallye Glenwood Springs, considered the oldest continually conducted car rally in the United States, celebrated its 60^th year from June 8 through 10, 2012. Commemorating both the 2012 London Summer Olympic Games and the Rallye’s 60^th anniversary, 2012 Rallye award winners received gold-, silver-, or bronze-colored medallions on a color-coordinated neck ribbon. For more information on the rallye, visit www.mgcc.org.

By Steve Hart