Pilot Rally | Catskill | Historic Automobile Endurance Runs

SAVE THE DATE

5th Annual

Catskill Conquest Rally

Saturday, September 25th, 2021

120339819_2720769994830766_1196840524451

"It’s absolutely the most fun you can have in a car, with your clothes on.

Compliments to you and here’s looking forward to next year !"

- Chuck Schoendorf,

1952 Cunningham C3

From Devil Wagons to Mud Larks

In 1903 the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers sponsored an 800-mile endurance run from Weehawken, NJ to Pittsburgh, PA. Thirty-four competing automobiles departed on October 7, 1903 and traveled up the Hudson Valley and then through the Catskill Mountains. Reaching Delhi on the second day in a driving rain, they continued on through Franklin and then to Binghamton and beyond.

Edith Riker was the only woman to ride in the 1903 Auto Run, she thought it was thrilling!
(Bridgeport Public Library)

Return trip from Pittsburgh, note the snow. October, 1903.
(Bridgeport Public Library)

(Bridgeport Public Library)

(Detroit Public Library)

1903 automobiles, parked in village of Pine Hill, N.Y.
(Detroit Public Library)

Stearns, owner of FB Stearns Co., was a fast and aggressive driver who had several mishaps. His car cost $3,000, and weighed 3,184 lbs.
(Detroit Public Library)

(Northeast Automobile Museum, Norwich N.Y.)

Illustration by Robert Selkowitz.

Illustration by Robert Selkowitz.

Illustration by Robert Selkowitz.

Illustration by Robert Selkowitz.

Illustration by Robert Selkowitz.

Robert Selkowitz at Hershey, Penn. atop a 1903 Northern.

(Northeast Automobile Museum, Norwich N.Y.)

Horseless Carriage Club member's personal Olds.

(Delaware County Historical Assoc.)

Edith Riker was the only woman to ride in the 1903 Auto Run, she thought it was thrilling!
(Bridgeport Public Library)

Return trip from Pittsburgh, note the snow. October, 1903.
(Bridgeport Public Library)

(Bridgeport Public Library)

(Detroit Public Library)

1903 automobiles, parked in village of Pine Hill, N.Y.
(Detroit Public Library)

Stearns, owner of FB Stearns Co., was a fast and aggressive driver who had several mishaps. His car cost $3,000, and weighed 3,184 lbs.
(Detroit Public Library)

(Northeast Automobile Museum, Norwich N.Y.)

Illustration by Robert Selkowitz.

Robert Selkowitz at Hershey, Penn. atop a 1903 Northern.

(Northeast Automobile Museum, Norwich N.Y.)

Horseless Carriage Club member's personal Olds.

(Delaware County Historical Assoc.)

Full History

Historic Route

Tour Loops & Maps

Our 2017 Catskill Conquest Pilot Rally included 20 entrants ranging from a 1913 Maxwell 40 to a 2015 Tesla Model S 85. We visited 7 host communities along a 90 mile section of the historic 1903 Endurance Run route.

The 2018 Catskill Conquest Pilot Rally followed the historic route starting from the Maurice D. Hinchey Catskill Interpretive Center in Mt. Tremper and ran 75 miles to Unadilla on Saturday, September 22nd, 2018. The rally included 30 entrants, such as a 1933 Franklin Olympic (seen below).

The 3rd Annual Catskill Conquest Rally on September 21st, 2019 included 21 cars ranging from a 1932 Packard 900 Roadster to a 2018 Mercedes Benz. We followed the historic route from Mount Tremper to Unadilla.

Photos of the 3rd Annual Catskill Conquest Rally of 2019.