Brandes Elitch and Vanhoolandt at The Quail

It started in the early fifties with sports car racing along public roads in the enclave called Pebble Beach. Someone had the idea to host a car show, primarily for new cars then, at the nearby golf club. The road racing component moved to a purpose built facility in Carmel Valley called Laguna Seca Racetrack, and the car show evolved arguably into the most famous venue for antique and classic cars in the country. For many years, you would go to the track on Saturday and the Concours d’Elegance on Sunday. But that started to change about twenty years ago, when Francis Mandarano moved his Italian car show (today called Concorso Italiano) to Quail Lodge, an upscale golf club and resort in Carmel Valley, just over the hill from the racetrack. I attended this show for the whole time it was there, and it was excellent. But perhaps it was a bit too successful, and it possibly outgrew the venue. It moved to another location, where it continues to prosper (more on that next week). Twelve years ago, in its place at the Quail Lodge, a fellow named Gordon McCall created an entirely new event, called, “The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering.” From the inception, this was designed to be a unique event. Today, it bills itself as “the most exclusive event during Monterey Car Week, providing guests with the ability to spend the day in a garden party-like setting…an opportunity to celebrate the ultimate in automotive design and engineering in an intimate gathering of fellow enthusiasts, collectors, and friends.”

This may seem like hyperbole, but in fact, it is quite true. Let me explain.

Someone told me that they counted 35 different events during the week, and that could be true. If you race vintage cars, you might spend the whole week at the track and never see anything else, and be quite happy. If you collected Italian cars, you might attend Concorso Italiano on Saturday and have no need to see anything else. Some people just attend the auctions. In short, there is something for everyone and there is not enough time to see everything. This is in part because the roads are small two lane affairs with multiple traffic lights, and there is so much traffic that gridlock ensues pretty quickly. If you left Quail Lodge at 5 pm on Friday and tried to get to Pebble Beach, that short drive might take two hours. By that time, you would be in no mood to do anything.

And therein lies the reason for the success of The Quail. Only a few thousand tickets are printed, and they are allocated to people who have pre-registered via a computer generated “lottery” each February. This year, a ticket cost $550. These two things ensure a sort of natural selection as regards the attendees. The other crucial factor is the parking. Because of the limited attendance, there is plenty of parking, and it is not painful to get to and from the parking area, in direct contrast to other activities during the week. In fact, after twenty plus years of attending the Pebble Beach Concours, I finally gave up, because the parking issues were just too overwhelming. And it wasn’t just the parking, it was the crowds – throngs of people anywhere and everywhere, making it difficult to actually get close to a particular car or even take a picture – unless you are Hugues Vanhoolandt who somehow manages to part the crowds with his camera.

These concerns do not exist at The Quail. There are about the same number of cars as at Pebble Beach, perhaps 200, and the actual number of acreage might be fairly similar, but The Quail feels quite open, and there is never any crowding.

In the past, the Pebble Beach Concours was widely regarded as the ne plus ultra of such events. The organizers endeavored to keep it so by an unwritten rule that if you restored your car, you needed to show it first there, because if you showed it elsewhere first, you would not be accepted in the future. When you have ten applicants for every slot, you can do this. But today there are multiple other shows on par with this, all over the country, and every show has some fantastic presentations.
And The Quail is all about the presentation. Yes, the cars being shown are quite spectacular, but you would expect that. It is the totality of the presentation that makes it work, in things expected and unexpected.

Nick Mason, left, and Neal Schon looked relaxed as they expertly conducted the 'fireside chat'.

For example, I did not expect a “fireside chat” at a car show with two of the most famous rock and roll musicians: Nick Mason of Pink Floyd, and Neal Schon of Journey and Santana, nor did I expect it to be so interesting. I only attended because my son David Elitch is a rock drummer and I wanted to get their autographs on the program for him. But of course Nick Mason is one of the most famous car collectors on the planet, with a collection of racing cars that might be unparalleled. My two favorite questions were: “What is your favorite racing car?” (Answer: The Maserati Birdcage) and “How many cars do you have?” (Answer: Too many but not enough). I was also surprised at what an excellent speaker he was! I didn’t know who Neal Schon was, but it turns out that when he was 15 years old, he was simultaneously recruited by Eric Clapton and the Santana band (he chose the latter). In 41 years in the business, he has sold 80 million albums, 19 top 40 singles, and 25 gold and platinum albums! His song “Don’t Stop Believin’” is the most downloaded song of the 20th century! I predict a reprise of this interview next year.

The Duray Maserati 3500GT, driven from LA for the occasion.

Maserati was the featured marque, and there were a dozen 3500s present this weekend in Monterey, including two at The Quail. One was shown by my friend Joe Duray, who drove it up from L.A. I can say that I was present on the day thirty years ago when he found it in a little lock-up in Vallejo, and I have observed him patiently and thoroughly restoring this car to its original state over this time – a case of the right car going to the right person.

Carter Emerson's prototype 3500GT.

Next to him was the Carter Emerson’s prototype 3500 built in 1958, and shown at the 1958 Paris Motor Show. This car previously spent 29 years in the Alfredo Brener Maserati museum. It has several unique touches that were not carried over to the production cars. Next to him was one of the original road cars, a 1949 A6 1500 GT, owned by Dr. Peter Fodor.

Dr. Peter Fodor's A6 1500 Maserati.

This is chassis 078, one of the earliest cars, and in 2003 the third owner commissioned a restoration by Bluccino, in Ravenna, Italy. The restoration was completed in 2011. I particularly appreciated the 1966 Quattroporte Series I owned by Paul Levy with only 32k miles. This is a charming car that is becoming very difficult to find, particularly in this state.

Maserati's once unloved Quattroportes are now finding favor and fortune.

Another surprise was seeing the 1970 Chrysler Hemi Barracuda shown by Michael Connell, accompanied by the original pilote, Henri Chemin, Director of Chrysler France Racing, who was behind the wheel 44 years ago! It won 3 season circuit championships and over 50 race victories! This is such a great story that I will devote a whole separate column to this subject. It was a thrill to hear the whole thing in person from Henri, something that I knew nothing about before this show. This was one of the highlights of the whole weekend for me, and not something I would have expected here.

An unexpected entry but one with a fascinating French history.

Not to dwell on Plymouths, but another car that shocked me was included in the Petersen Museum group of 4 cars, all spectacular (Cisitalia 202 coupe, Jaguar XKSS, and Ruxton). This was the 1954 Explorer, bodied by Ghia. I had only seen pictures of this car in books, where it appeared to be too tall and too heavy and somewhat ungainly. In person, it is totally different, looking much more elegant and very stylish. Ghia’s work could be somewhat uneven in the fifties, but they nailed it on this one.

One of the many Ghia efforts of the mid-fifties, this one right on the mark with excellent lines and proportions.

The Best of Show (chosen by all entrants) was awarded to a 1938 Talbot Lago 150C SS teardrop roadster, bodied by Figoni and Falaschi, owned by Tom Price. What is interesting about this car, aside from its looks, is that after the war, the body was removed and it was re-bodied as a GP car! The original body has been recreated and installed, while the owner still has the 1947 race body!

Even though it goes from 10 am to 4 pm, you have to move with a purpose to see everything. As a result, I missed the other two fireside chats, one with Sir Jackie Stewart, who needs no introduction here, and the other with Lorenzo Ramaciotti, the Group Head of Design for the FIAT group, and previous CEO of Pininfarina. Because there are no crowds, it is possible to get up close to see these interviews, which makes a big difference. If I had to do it over again, I would have attended both of these, but the day goes by so quickly that before you know it, it’s over. As it was, I barely had time to look at the new car exhibitions, or visit the vendors, or spend much time in the food tents. I was quite fortunate to be accompanied by our VeloceToday photographer, Hugues Vanhoolandt. I asked Hugues how many pictures he might take at the show today, and when he replied “Around 1500,” I put my camera away.

And I must say something about the food. Normally at a car show, the food is a negative, not a positive. Here, things are different. The different presentations included the Riviera Brasserie, Bourbon Street, Carmel Valley Farmer’s Market, La Dolce Vita, a “Rock and Roll” food offering, and the Tandoori Bazar. I can’t believe it, but I only visited one, because I foolishly wanted to see the cars! Did I mention that there were also stations for fine champagne, beer, wine, oysters, dessert, and caviar? I think there was even a cigar station. I missed all of those because I was, well, looking at the cars. What was I thinking?

It you have ever exhibited at a trade show for your company, you have some idea of the logistical effort behind this presentation. I suspect that it takes a whole year to put this together, and a large and dedicated staff. Congratulations to Gordon McCall and the organizing committee for another successful show.