Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance 2010

Last Sunday was the 2010 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.  What a spectacle: gorgeous cars, a gorgeous setting, and opulence in every direction.  The show takes place on the 18th hole at Pebble Beach, which just last June hosted the 2010 US Open golf tournament.  The cars stretch all the way along this ocean front hole from the green in front of the Lodge to the 18th tee.  It was worth getting there early as we got to see some cars still arriving and before the crowd got completely overwhelming.   

It was a long day of incredible things to see and moments to witness, but here are a few highlights: 

•  It was the 60^th Anniversary of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance itself, and they had a collection of previous Best in Show winners on display.
•  There was recognition of the 50^th anniversary of the Ferrari 250 GT SWB Berlinetta, and there were eight of them entered in the Concours.
•  Jaguar was celebrating their 75^th anniversary by staging a reunion 12 of the 16 existing XK SS cars.  This group was setup in front of the 17^th green, and was a stunning site to behold.  There were other rare Jaguars including the first E-type prototype that made its debut at the Paris motor show
• Alfa Romeo was celebrating their 100^th anniversary with a collection of beautiful 8C models, and several cars from the Alfa Romeo museum in Italy.
• There was a collection of vintage Indy 500 cars, and Bonneville Salt Flats land-speed record cars and bikes, including Bruce Munro’s bike – the story of which was told in the movie “The World’s Fastest Indian”.
• The preservation class was my favorite – these cars were presented in unrestored original condition.  Seeing 50+ year old road and race cars with original paint, interior, etc. was really incredible. 
• Jay Leno – a Pebble Beach fixture, and MC – was on the fairway shooting video about some of the cars.  We saw him while he happened to be talking about the car that would later win Best in Show.
• Outside the lodge, on the practice putting green, was a collection of new and prototype cars on display including the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport (in stunning blue carbon fiber), the Lexus LFA, a Mercedes SLS AMG GT3 race car, the Lotus Exos (a new F1-based customer program they’ve started) the McLaren MP4-12, the Porsche 918 Sypder (hybrid prototype) and more.  It was quite a collection indeed.  Bugatti were taking prospective customers for rides in the Veyron Grand Sport convertible, and at one point I was standing next to four different Veyron!

One thing that seemed to get lost for me in the anticipation of the event was that this is not just a show, it’s a competition of the highest order.  Cars that win awards at the Pebble Beach Concours add yet another line to what is usually a very rich provenance.  It can have dramatic impacts on the car’s value.  You could tell that the owners were anxious early on – especially as we watched some cars being judged – and then ultimately relieved to have the event be over, regardless of if they had taken an award.  The award winners looked jubilant. 

We watched the award ceremonies on the lawn in front of the Lodge in what was clearly a party atmosphere, with many folks enjoying a full champagne picnic. We had a lovely spot where we could watch the cars up close as they left the award podium to drive back to their spot on the fairway.  My favorite part of the day was after all of the awards had been presented, we stayed to watch the cars leave the show.  It was a great chance to see the winners up close, including walking up to the Best in Show car while it was still on the podium, and to see some cars get staged for portraits on the water’s edge.

If you'd like to see professional coverage of the whole weekend, I recommend Autoblog who did a very complete coverage, and have some great photos.

Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion 2010

A celebration of Dan Gurney and the Bugatti marque are on tap for the 2010 historic races at Laguna Seca. It was a welcome change to see a different massive collection of cars today that all had a common goal of beating the competition. This was also my first visit to this legendary track, and it didn't disappoint. The experience at this type of race is really amazing. A general admission ticket gives you full access to the grandstands and the paddock. The cars, drivers and crew are all approachable, and as long as you respect their space, they are generous with answers to questions.

The highlight for me has to be the ten minute chat I had with Jens Schulenberg. Jens was standing next to the covered Bugatti Veyron Super Sport. I approached him to ask if it was the car that recently set the production car speed record (262mph). He confirmed that it was, and then I asked when it would be uncovered. He seemed to know a lot about the plan, and had a slick Bugatti logo jacket, so I naively asked if he had driven it. That's when he came out as one of Bugatti's development drivers. While he didn't do the world record run, he did take this car to 250mph. He also told me he has driven over 60k Veyron development miles. That may be one of the best jobs in the world.

It was also great fun to see Patrick Dempsey climb out of his Mazda after his first race of the day, and after a nasty spin on lap 1. I saw Dan Gurney cheerfully signing autographs, and I've finally witnessed the famed corkscrew turn, and did it during a race that featured Sir Stirling Moss.

There were rare and interesting race cars of all varieties every time you turned your head in the paddock including several grand prix cars of various vintages. While I'm looking forward to the Pebble Beach Concourse tomorrow, I do feel a smidge of regret I won't make it back to Laguna Seca for more racing.

Concorso Italiano 2010

It's a bit hard to explain how a group of several hundred Italian cars spread over multiple fairways at a golf course between Monterey and Salinas could feel intimate, but that's the best way to describe Concorso Italiano. Walk up to dozens of ultra rare cars, talk with the owners, listen to them describe how they acquired the car, raced the car, or dreamt about the car when they were a kid.  Meet the restorer and hear about how they got the car prepped for the show and transported here (rumor was one of the F40s drove from New York).  Hang out among a few dozen of your favorite model car.  Pretty well every Italian was here in numbers today: 16 F40s, 2 F50s, 3 8Cs, 2 Enzos, 4 Superamericas, dozens of all the Lambos, more "common" Ferraris than you can imagine, and so many incredible vintage Alfas (the featured marque this year).  All of them displayed so you could get close and enjoy the details.  Simply a wonderful event that left me both overwhelmed and feeling surprisingly connected to the incredible cars I saw.

Pebble Beach Tour d'Elegance 2010

What else do you do with your super-expensive, one-of-a-kind vintage car? Take it for a drive in the fog down Pacific Coast Highway, then park it on the streets of Carmel to let a couple thousand folks walk all around it while you have lunch with your like-minded friends. That sums up the Pebble Beach Tour d'Elegance. And good for them. These cars are meant to be driven, and they look just as gorgeous with a few bugs in the grill. Having driven the same stretch of PCH myself yesterday, I can't imagine a more perfect way to enjoy these cars.

They drove sixty-odd miles this morning and the fog burned off while the 170+ cars lined five blocks of Ocean Ave. in Carmel while they stopped for lunch. It was incredible to see them roll in and out of town - especially considering the age and value of these cars. The sights and sounds were a joy to experience, from the 1902 Mercedes (the same one I saw depart from Seattle) to a chorus of Ferrari V12s. My favorite was the Pierce Arrow with original camp trailer in tow.

Road Trip to Monterey - part 1

After a long but uneventful drive on Sunday, I made my first stop just 20 miles north of the Golden Gate Bridge. The drive was certainly long at almost 900 miles over 13 hours, but the MINI is comfortable, in part thanks to the tires I put on in June. I kept pressing on, and before I knew it, SFO was achievable before dark.

I've been to San Francisco several times, but don't recall ever going up into the highlands on the north side of the bridge. A fine plan, except for the marine layer. It was fun to sit watching the fog roll in, but I only barely saw the top of the bridge. I could hardly see the city at all except during brief stop in Sausalito for breakfast to start day 2.

I meandered down the coast most of the day. I had thought I'd stay in Santa Cruz, but the chaos of the boardwalk left me wandering farther south. It worked out great, as I found a cute inn a short walk from the village center of Capitola. The paper in the living room was perfectly placed as I discovered Kuumbwa Jazz (a 35 year old non-profit jazz theater) who had Taylor Eigsti playing. It was an incredible show, and I met a local car guy at intermission who had some useful tips for the upcoming weekend.

On day three I made it to Monterey, and checked in for two nights into a room with a bay view where I can watch, listen, and be watched by the local marine wildlife.

I've also learned I need to pace myself. While exploring Carmel, Monterey and Pacific Grove today, I've already seen dozens of head-turning vintage cars and some of the biggest, shiniest car-hauling semi trucks I've ever seen. I realized that if I try to capture everything, I'll likely go nuts and won't enjoy myself. For example, you'll see in the photos that I spotted some rare autos just parked or rolling in Carmel - outside the Carmel Classic Car Show that I also happened upon coincidentally. Later I pulled up to check in to the hotel to find the valet drooling over the three Lamborghinis that had just arrived. It's going to be a fascinating week, but between the crowds (which I'm told are huge) and the sheer volume of cars and things to see, there is a reasonable chance of sensory overload if I'm not careful. The "big" event isn't till Sunday after all.

Tomorrow I hope to spend a quiet day exploring the coast south of Carmel.

Pebble Beach Motoring Classic 2010 - departure

This morning I stopped by Carillon Point at the Woodmark Hotel to see the cars taking part in the Pebble Beach Motoring Classic. This is a nine day almost 1500 mile road trip from Kirkland to Monterey leading up to the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. The cars are all "elligible" for the Concours, but it wasn't clear if any of these cars were 2010 entrants. One owner told me his car was a past entrant, and that they do rallies like this often. Nice.

The cars were all spectacular, and the owners seemed anxious to get motoring. There was much arranging of gear, adjusting of hats, and I saw the driver of the dark-red Bugatti putting on his racing shoes. He also had a copy of the Gooding auction brochure (http://www.goodingco.com/auction/), so I suspect he may be studying up on his options for what next year's touring car may be.

It's one thing to see incredible, rare cars like this. It's another thing to see them with bugs in the grill, chips in the paint, warmed up and ready to drive. I have a lot of respect for the folks doing this, and hope they have a great trip south.

Tommorow it begins

I’ve been planning the ultimate car-geek road-trip since early this year, and while it doesn’t start till next weekend, the festivities start tomorrow.  Let me start with brief itinerary and list of the events I’m planning to see, and then I’ll explain why the festivities start tomorrow.

·         Sunday, Aug 8 – depart for Monterey

·         Friday, Aug 13 – Concorso Italiano

·         Saturday, Aug 14 – Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion

·         Sunday, Aug 15 – Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance

·         Monday, Aug 16 – Blackhawk Museum post-Pebble Beach Open House

·         Tuesday, Aug 17 – begin a slow drive home

The festivities for Pebble Beach weekend start tomorrow because I happen to live very close to the starting point for the Pebble Beach Motoring Classic.  This event is a drive from Kirkland, WA to Pebble Beach for 30 past or present Pebble Beach entrants.  Tomorrow I’ll watch their departure, which will be a great chance to get in the spirit for my own drive to Pebble Beach.  While I won’t take 1,500 miles or nine days to get to the Monterey area, I do intend to take the slow, scenic route to get home.  If you have any suggestions, I’m all ears!   

Kirkland Classic Car Show 2010

Today I finally made it to my first Kirkland Classic Car show. It seems like I'm always out of town or something for this event. It was a fun event with all sorts of nice local cars out on display. It's also neat to see downtown Kirkland closed to through traffic for the day so the cars can park right on the streets. It somehow makes Kirkland seem a little more like a small town than normal. This show was primarily about restored classics with modern flare, as opposed to the Kirkland Concourse in September where the show cars are all about being as true to original as possible. This meant lots of cool paint jobs (flames!) and some amazing interiors. we saw ostrich and alligator!

There were plenty of cool stories too including a restored '76 Oldsmobile wagon that has been in the same family since new, a cool old military SUV rescued from years of neglect, and a cool woody wagon that even had provenance about the canoe on its roof. Here's a selection of photos from the event.

"This is a nightmare"

Indeed. We can see the oil. What we can't see yet is the accountability.

SSC Ultimate Aero