Amelia Island Concours d Elegance Amelia Island, Florida March 17-18, 2017 The cars of Al Unser on display at the Amelia Island Concours d Elegance. 48 May 2017 Victory Lane
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1985 Penske-March 85C driven by Al Unser to a CART championship in 1985. story by Ed Moody photos by Martin Spetz For Bill Warner, Founder and Chairman of the Amelia Island Concours d Elegance it must have come with a great amount of personal satisfaction to have his efforts be nominated as the only American event in the running for the prestigious Octane Magazine best motoring event of the year award. Amelia was up against some strong International competition from the Concours of Elegance, Windsor Castle (England), Chantilly Arts and Elegance (Paris), Concorso d Eleganza Ville D Este (Italy), Regent Street Motor Show (London) and the Rome Motor Festival (Denmark) so the nomination was satisfying enough, but to be chosen as the best Concours of 2016 is fantastic achievement for the dedicated group of volunteers and show staff that each year organize the Amelia Island Concours as a fund raiser for local charities. In just 21 short years the Amelia Island Concours d Elegance event has gained a rich following worldwide and set a new standard in Concours event planning. The traditional elements of a Concours are the core foundation of the Florida show. Warner bought the ex-bob Tullius/Paul Newman 1971 Group 44 Triumph TR6 and began to vintage race himself. Warner has been involved in sports car racing since 1971 as a trackside photographer for Road and Track Magazine. He was only a teenager when he first started working for a local import car dealership in Jacksonville. Cars have always played an important role in his life. Warner s love of motorsport is what has set the Amelia Island Concours 1966 Triumph TR4A IRS. 1966 McLaren M1B at Gooding & Co. Auction. 50 May 2017 Victory Lane Al Unser s 1977 Camaro Z28 IROC.
1961 Porsche RS-61L. 1950 Ferrari 166 MM/195S. apart from all the other events. Most Concours only pay a token homage to racing but at Amelia it is front and center. Through his many contacts in the sport over his working and racing career he makes certain that prominent former race car drivers are featured as Honoree. About 20-25 of the Amelia event is motorsport oriented with honorees such as Sir Stirling Moss, Phil Hill, Carroll Shelby, Bobby Unser, Richard Petty, John Surtees featured with a cross section of the cars that made them famous. And rather than be hidden from the attendees the honoree walks about mingling with the crowd, shaking hands, getting their picture taken and signing autographs. Many of the previous honorees return each year to participate in seminars the days before the main show. These seminars form an integral part of the weekend experience held in a Ritz Ballroom that seats just over 1,200 are filled to capacity to hear the talk. High profile panelists inform and keep the crowd entertained with stories about their racing careers www.victorylane.com 1966 Shelby Cobra CSX 3159. 1971 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Berlinetta Competizione Conversion at RM Sotheby s Auction. and the characters who are a major part of the sport. One seminar this year focused on people that have contributed to the racing success of Japanese auto manufacturers in America. Panelist included Peter Brock, Tommy Kendall, John Morton, Sam Posey and Chip Robinson. Sunday s talk was about Legends of the Leaping Cat, Jaguar racing drivers seminar. Panelists included Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame inductee Bill Adam, Hurley Haywood, David Hobbs, Brian Redman and Bob Tullius. This year, the Concours featured a look at the career of four time Indy 500 winner Al Unser. Unser was only the second of three men (A.J. Foyt, Rick Mears) to accomplish that feat. Not only could you expect to see his winning Indy cars but also Pikes Peak racers, modified roadsters, sprint cars and midgets that were all on display in a special Al Unser area. Unser was on hand during the day to meet and greet with fans. The concept of making racing an integral part of the concours Victory Lane May 2017 51
is unique to Amelia. Expect to see about 15-20% of the field being race oriented, with the rest of the show some of the most unique automobiles in the world. Now as head of the 2017 Amelia Concours Bill Warner and the show came with its share of challenges. They say that into every life a little rain must fall. True, but the weatherman was not talking a little rain, he was talking a Nor easter. A storm of such massive proportions that could drop over 2 feet of snow from the Maritimes to Washington. For Florida it was going to start as heavy rain on the Sunday and by the first of the week temps in Amelia could be in the mid 70s.. Warner was faced with a difficult decision, but one he could not take a chance on getting wrong. The show would move to the Saturday to avoid the possibility of having a weather disaster on the Sunday. That put the show on the same day and time as the RM Auction, Heacock cars and coffee which had to be moved to another fairway as it always attracts a large crowd and the Jaguar seminar that had to move to the Sunday. Word was getting around fast. I was waiting for the media room to open when people told me the show date had moved. For me it was an easy change of plans but those building the structures on the show field now had 24 fewer hours to put it all together. Judges were on their way, along with tens of thousands of spectators, and many of the cars were in transporters rolling down the interstate towards Amelia Island. All needed to be contacted with the change of date. Local media, web sites, radio and TV all did 1958 Vanwall; 1959 Maserati Tipo 60/61 P.J. Colt Johnny Lightning Special Indy Cars. #2 was driven by Al Unser to victory at the 1970 Indianapolis 500. 1962 Shirdlu BMW H-Modified. 52 May 2017 Victory Lane 1955 Jaguar XKD.
1965 Prince R380. Porsche 356B S90. 1952 Ford Golden Rod. 1956 Wright Special. www.victorylane.com their part as the event has become the major weekend at Amelia Island Everyone understood the reasoning and from the many volunteers to the Ritz Carlton staff who had their work schedules upset everyone made the effort to make the change work. And work it did. Saturday morning the sun was just peaking beyond the horizon as I walked on the field. All the volunteers were scurrying around parking cars and everyone had a big grin on their face. It was going to be a perfect Florida day in The Sunshine State. Over the years, the show has had some funky themes that show not only the imagination and creativity of the organizers but assemble some very rare automobiles. One year they brought a series of cars that were on the cover of Hot Rod Magazine. The Little Deuce Coupe, Tommy Ivo s 4 engine drag car. Last year a collection of automotive trophies were positioned beside the winning car that was awarded the trophy. This year movie cars included a Corvette driven by Elvis and the Aston Martin DB5 that James Bond drove in Goldfinger. The fashion show used the 007 Aston Martin to showcase a model dressed in head to toe gold. The former King Edward VIII 1941 Cadillac showcased the fashion that his wife, fashion conscious Wallis Simpson, may have worn while exiled in New York in 1941. Cars lined up to be presented in front of the judges and receive their award but when the trumpeters enter the field anticipation is high as who would win one of two best in show awards. The Best in Show Concours de Sport award went to a 1939 Alfa Romeo 8C2900b Lungo Spider with coachwork by Carozzeria Touring of Milan. Part of the Dano Davis collection, this car is one of just seven long-wheelbase cars built on the 2.9-litre chassis. The car spent its early years in Brazil. Best in Show Concours d Elegance was awarded to a 1935 Duesenberg Model SJ-582 owned by Terrance Adderley. Coachwork is by the A.J.Walker Company. The supercharged straight eight is one of just five made and spent its early year in Wisconsin. That evening as I slowly motored along A1A to my hotel in Jacksonville the sun was just setting on the beautiful east coast of Florida I couldn t help looking at sand dunes and trails begging to be explored and the setting sun glistening off the rigging of a well-used shrimp boat. The event was another huge success and I can t wait for next year to spend more time exploring the Amelia area. For me Amelia is one of an emerging treasure in Florida and mid-march is the perfect time to spend at Amelia escaping the northern climate. For Bill Warner and his team, I will bet they have already started making plans for 2018. Victory Lane May 2017 53