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- 14 April 2002
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<p align="center"><a target="_blank" href="http://www.ourfamilyinteractive.com/PhotoAlbums/2005/2005_08_18_ConcorsoItaliano/Index.html"><font size="2">Concorso Italiano 2005 (Part 1)</font></a><font size="2"> | <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ourfamilyinteractive.com/PhotoAlbums/2005/2005_08_18_ConcorsoItaliano/Index0002.html">(Part 2)</a> | <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ourfamilyinteractive.com/PhotoAlbums/2005/2005_08_18_ConcorsoItaliano/Index0003.html">(Part 3)</a> | </font><a target="_blank" href="http://www.ourfamilyinteractive.com/PhotoAlbums/2005/2005_08_18_ConcorsoItaliano/Index0004.html"><font size="2">(Part 4)</font></a></p><p align="center"><a target="_blank" href="http://www.ourfamilyinteractive.com/PhotoAlbums/2005/2005_08_20_Monterrey_Historics/Index.html"><font size="2">Monterey Historic Races (Part 1)</font></a><font size="2"> | <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ourfamilyinteractive.com/PhotoAlbums/2005/2005_08_20_Monterrey_Historics/Index0002.html">(Part 2)</a> | <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ourfamilyinteractive.com/PhotoAlbums/2005/2005_08_20_Monterrey_Historics/Index0003.html">(Part 3)</a> | </font><a target="_blank" href="http://www.ourfamilyinteractive.com/PhotoAlbums/2005/2005_08_20_Monterrey_Historics/Index0004.html"><font size="2">(Part 4)</font></a></p>
I went to Concorso Italiano with 2 friends of mine - Richard and Shawn - both of which I knew in grade school. We stayed at a Days Inn in Monterey for a whopping $300 / night, paid dearly for food and drink, and were gouged on ticket prices. You know what - it was the bargain of a lifetime!
We had the brand new Chevy HHR as a rental and it was the first one any of us had ever seen. We actually had a crowd around the car and one guy chased us down on the 17 mile drive to see it up close! It was Champaign in color and was probably the coolest car you could rent for less then $30/day! I picked Rich and Shawn up at San Jose airport and we went to Monterey and down to Fisherman's Warf. Monterey is a quite town that got a lot louder with priceless Ferraris racing up and down the streets. We ate at a bar (forgetful meal) and had some beers, played pool, and dreamed of some day owning some of the cars parked on the street!
Friday was cold and cloudy as we headed out for breakfast. We used the new navigation system we just bought and it saved us countless hours of being lost. Worth every penny and perfect for these types of trips! We saw a 1927 Bentley outside of Starbucks and got to talking to the owner. It was an awesome car and had many interesting features that the owner was happy to show off. He was obviously a man of considerable wealth (had a new Rolls and many other toys as well) but in this environment - was probably one of the lower income owners!
We headed over to Black Hawk country club where the Concorso event was and our eyes nearly popped out of our heads! What a feast for the senses! Every conceivable fantasy European car was there in numbers at the show (in which Lamborghini was the sponsor this year). Highlights were seeing several 250 GTOs, a 575 Superamerica, an Enzo, the new 430, a S7, and many many other fantastic cars.
We also saw Sterling Moss, Jackie Stewart, the test driver for Lamborghini, and several other dignitaries. It was really too much. The clouds hid the fact that we were all burning our skin (as usual) and we caught up with some NSX owners who where parked in the Coral area. It was a real treat to meet ChopsJazz, his wife, and a couple other NSX owners. Unfortunately - many of them were off enjoying the show too!
After we had reached sensory overload - we went back to the hotel for a nap then headed over to where they were holding the RM Auction. Inside the ballroom were many expensive toys for the average millionaire! Everything from new cars, to jewelry, to home theater, to vacations. You really could see how the other 1/2 lived! They had a fence you could stand behind to watch the auction or you could go inside and watch on TV. We spent the remainder of the night trying to talk each other into bidding on some outrageous car. Too much fun. Everyone was very nice, very trusting, and extremely generous to share their treasures with all of us. Saturday was off to the Historic Races where many of these cars will go to show us what they were really built to do!
Saturday was again - cold and foggy. We went to the same strip where we had gone to the auction and ended up having a buffet breakfast at the hotel where the auction was at. We then were off to the Monterey Historic races and our first time at Laguna Seca Raceway. What a day! We couldn't believe the sites, sounds, and even smells! It was a feast for the car fans and one of the best car days I can remember!
We saw countless Ferrari's, Alphas, Mercedes, Bugatti's, and many other pre and post war classics totaling millions upon millions of dollars. This time we applied plenty of sun screen as we walked first through the paddock area and tried to take it all in. Seeing historically correct period cars with unbelievable racing history just doesn't get any better.
We then climbed a big dirt hill to go over to the highest point of the track where we could watch cars screaming through the corkscrew. What a blast! It was a site to behold and something I wont ever forget. There were pre war, post war, can am, and nearly every other type of race car imaginable. Truly amazing. We walked along the entire outside of the track and stopped often to take in the sites from a different angle and vantage point.
We finally headed down to the paddock area again to see some of the many other types of car displays, do some car gift shopping, and check out some of the newer cars being built. We especially enjoyed the Super performance booth were they had a Noble, a Cobra, the Peter Brock car that looks a little like a Ferrari 250, and the soon to be GT40 replica. Very nice! We ended out day in the Grandstands where it was so loud that I had to cover my ears. By this time the walking, the sun, and the sound had gotten the best of us and it was time to head back. We took another short nap and headed down to the same area for dinner and the auctions. What a fantastic weekend and can't wait to do it again next year with the wives!
I went to Concorso Italiano with 2 friends of mine - Richard and Shawn - both of which I knew in grade school. We stayed at a Days Inn in Monterey for a whopping $300 / night, paid dearly for food and drink, and were gouged on ticket prices. You know what - it was the bargain of a lifetime!
We had the brand new Chevy HHR as a rental and it was the first one any of us had ever seen. We actually had a crowd around the car and one guy chased us down on the 17 mile drive to see it up close! It was Champaign in color and was probably the coolest car you could rent for less then $30/day! I picked Rich and Shawn up at San Jose airport and we went to Monterey and down to Fisherman's Warf. Monterey is a quite town that got a lot louder with priceless Ferraris racing up and down the streets. We ate at a bar (forgetful meal) and had some beers, played pool, and dreamed of some day owning some of the cars parked on the street!
Friday was cold and cloudy as we headed out for breakfast. We used the new navigation system we just bought and it saved us countless hours of being lost. Worth every penny and perfect for these types of trips! We saw a 1927 Bentley outside of Starbucks and got to talking to the owner. It was an awesome car and had many interesting features that the owner was happy to show off. He was obviously a man of considerable wealth (had a new Rolls and many other toys as well) but in this environment - was probably one of the lower income owners!
We headed over to Black Hawk country club where the Concorso event was and our eyes nearly popped out of our heads! What a feast for the senses! Every conceivable fantasy European car was there in numbers at the show (in which Lamborghini was the sponsor this year). Highlights were seeing several 250 GTOs, a 575 Superamerica, an Enzo, the new 430, a S7, and many many other fantastic cars.
We also saw Sterling Moss, Jackie Stewart, the test driver for Lamborghini, and several other dignitaries. It was really too much. The clouds hid the fact that we were all burning our skin (as usual) and we caught up with some NSX owners who where parked in the Coral area. It was a real treat to meet ChopsJazz, his wife, and a couple other NSX owners. Unfortunately - many of them were off enjoying the show too!
After we had reached sensory overload - we went back to the hotel for a nap then headed over to where they were holding the RM Auction. Inside the ballroom were many expensive toys for the average millionaire! Everything from new cars, to jewelry, to home theater, to vacations. You really could see how the other 1/2 lived! They had a fence you could stand behind to watch the auction or you could go inside and watch on TV. We spent the remainder of the night trying to talk each other into bidding on some outrageous car. Too much fun. Everyone was very nice, very trusting, and extremely generous to share their treasures with all of us. Saturday was off to the Historic Races where many of these cars will go to show us what they were really built to do!
Saturday was again - cold and foggy. We went to the same strip where we had gone to the auction and ended up having a buffet breakfast at the hotel where the auction was at. We then were off to the Monterey Historic races and our first time at Laguna Seca Raceway. What a day! We couldn't believe the sites, sounds, and even smells! It was a feast for the car fans and one of the best car days I can remember!
We saw countless Ferrari's, Alphas, Mercedes, Bugatti's, and many other pre and post war classics totaling millions upon millions of dollars. This time we applied plenty of sun screen as we walked first through the paddock area and tried to take it all in. Seeing historically correct period cars with unbelievable racing history just doesn't get any better.
We then climbed a big dirt hill to go over to the highest point of the track where we could watch cars screaming through the corkscrew. What a blast! It was a site to behold and something I wont ever forget. There were pre war, post war, can am, and nearly every other type of race car imaginable. Truly amazing. We walked along the entire outside of the track and stopped often to take in the sites from a different angle and vantage point.
We finally headed down to the paddock area again to see some of the many other types of car displays, do some car gift shopping, and check out some of the newer cars being built. We especially enjoyed the Super performance booth were they had a Noble, a Cobra, the Peter Brock car that looks a little like a Ferrari 250, and the soon to be GT40 replica. Very nice! We ended out day in the Grandstands where it was so loud that I had to cover my ears. By this time the walking, the sun, and the sound had gotten the best of us and it was time to head back. We took another short nap and headed down to the same area for dinner and the auctions. What a fantastic weekend and can't wait to do it again next year with the wives!
