Perhaps we only imagined it. Maybe it was just a bad dream. Could it be that the fabled Ken-Ev
Campground, our Road America “home” for some 13 summers, has truly ceased to exist? Such was the
mindset of four Society stalwarts (Wisconsin Chapter, Caledonia, Mount Pleasant and Iola Subchapters
represented) who, this past May 17th (on the occasion of the SVRA Spring Vintage Weekend), eschewing
petty personal considerations and with only the best interests of the Society membership at heart, ventured,
once again, to our namesake village bent on a mission of investigation and discovery. After breaking the fast
and attending to other, baser biological demands at Plymouth Family Restaurant, your valiant
representatives proceeded, with no small measure of apprehension, to the traditional Ken-Ev site. Lo! It
was not imagination, nor merely a bad dream. What assailed their collective perceptions were open and
deserted fields bereft of all evidence of human habitation save the bomb-proof, concrete-block necessary
house in the lower forty. And so, the page had been well and truly turned on yet another chapter in the
glorious history of the Elkhart Lake Racing & Sipping Society.
After a moment of respectful silence, the assembled members considered their options. Those of you who
were upright and at least semi-cognizant during last year’s Conclave may recall that a similar coterie of
members, at great expenditure of personal time and treasure, in May of 2007, exhaustively combed the
Road America environs for an alternative venue. As is now well-known to the membership, their search
was successful, resulting in the establishment of a new Society quartering tradition. Accordingly, it was
deemed prudent by those present that they seek to verify that the new locus still be functional. Thus it was
that they segued on over to Rhine Plymouth Field & Stream Sportsman’s Club and found it, oh happy
day!, to be pursuing business as usual. In fact, when they approached the lone camper there ensconced and
announced that he was occupying their site, he readily agreed to move his tent if that was their wish. The
members briefly conferred and opined that, since they wouldn’t actually need the site until July, it would probably be
OK for him to temporarily stay where he was.
      But, perhaps the most significant and memorable reflection upon the 2007 Conclave is the discovery of
what has to be Road America’s best-kept secret. Why in the world had we never heard of Schwarz’s
Supper Club, in St. Anna; a mere nine-mile drive from Elkhart Lake!?   They’ve only been in business since
1959! To say that Schwarz’s provided us with memorable dining and drinking experiences is to vastly
understate the issue. Several of the membership have actually undertaken to escort their spouses, et.al., to
that bastion of consummate culinary cuisine even since the last Conclave!
Your Founder salivates in anxious anticipation of the gustatory delights to be enjoyed this year.
   On another note, rumor has it that, if all goes well, and “The Dragon Lady” acquiesces, the North Dakota
Chapter may put in a rare appearance this year. The California Chapter (Lancaster Subchapter) has
committed to other endeavors and will be gracing the fair state of Wisconsin with his presence somewhat
later in the month to attend the Experimental Aircraft Association Convention in Oshkosh. But what of the
California Chapter, San Diego Subchapter and Illinois Chapter, Bloomington Subchapter? Ah, well.
BE IT KNOWN, THEREFORE, that the 48th ANNUAL ENCAMPMENT of the
Elkhart Lake Racing & Sipping Society
shall convene at its namesake village on Friday the 18th day of July 2008 as various members straggle in. It
is anticipated that THE SACRED STANDARD shall again be borne forth by its Illinois Chapter (Park
Ridge Subchapter) trustee, and returned to its traditional turf to be implanted therein and regarded with due
reverence by the loyal and faithful assemblage. And, in accordance with custom and tradition, before the
Conclave has run its course, each member present shall cause his mark to be placed upon the Standard so
that it may continue to serve as an enduring monument to the basic tenets and fidelity of the Society.
Therefore, the invitation is herewith extended and the choice is yours. Lies will be told, gas will be passed,
and individual personality quirks will be tolerated.
In anticipation of yet another wholesome camping and racing adventure, I remain . . .
James T. Lenzke,
Founder, Primary Instigator,
parentus tritatum et maxiparentus in trius immentuous
ad infinitum et quid pro quo in perpetuum and Senior Consulting Chili Chef (ret.)