"Concours d'Elegance"

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Barry Wolk
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"Concours d'Elegance"

Post by Barry Wolk »

action wrote:

So what's a Concours Event?

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Action

The term Concours d'Elegance was coined in Paris in the 1920s. It was an outdoor event where the finest automotive body builders would show their stylish wares to the wealthy public.

In those days wealthy people would select a chassis from Roll-Royce,
Packard, Lincoln and others and send it to a custom body shop like Derham, Fisher, Hess & Eisenhardt and others to be finished off to their
specifications.

The Concours also drew other vendors of fine furs, cheeses, wines and other apparel. All off the automotive displays had women as an accoutrement to each car dressed to match the vehicle. Kind of reminds me of a modern dayAuto Show. I know it's sexist, but it's effective.

Todays Concours are far less stuffy and cater to a much wider audience. The better Concours still offer some of the same lifestyle vendors like cigars (which I hate) and most shows have at least one high end sponsor.

Today's events are all fundraisers. My wife and I were asked to join the
Executive Board of a new Concours in St. Joseph, MI. It was a small show
last year with only 38 cars in attendance. Our goal is 75 cars for next
year. Our duties also include recruiting high-end unusual cars that you
wouldn't normally see in one place. This is a free show so it isn't going
to raise a lot of funds. Sponsors fill in the gaps.

This show benefits the Krasl Art Center in St. Joseph. These shows are all
fundraisers for a variety of causes. They are all 501-C3 tax entities and,
as such, provide a tax benefit for both the participant and the spectator.

The real money is raised at the black-tie events the night before the show.
The tickets to this event are $250 each at Meadow Brook. These events
usually draw from the local high-society and raise some serious dough. This is a chance to rub elbows with the rich and famous without being either. The dinners always have a guest speaker, usually race car drivers, that should stick to driving. They are usually quite boring. Although Sir Sterling Moss was a hoot. These tickets are tax deductable less the value of the dinner.

There are often caravans of classic cars and tours of historic sites. I got
to ride with Hurley Haygood, Porsche test driver, at about 140 MPH. One of
the tours was like a treasure hunt except a typo said 24 miles when it
should have said 2.4 miles. We were lost for hours. The Mercedes we were
following had GPS but he never turned it on. Doh! Part of this tour was a
"blind autocross". The driver is blindfolded and the passenger navigates.
Don't do this with your spouse.

The exibitor gets a pretty nice tax break too. Remember, without the car
they have no show. Without the owner, there is no car. All expenses related to transportation for both you and the car are tax deductable. My CPA says it's stretching it a bit to cover my wife's transportation but heck, we do share the hotel room. Food is also deductable less what you would normally have spent to feed yourself.

It's a very expensive hobby. As Jay Leno said, "Pebble Beach is where
billionaires and millionaires compete an a level playing field." The last
show we did was in Hilton Head, SC. The transportation costs was $2,800 but we did get the ultimate service from Dream Car Connections. Rick picked the car up in Michigan on Wednesday afternoon. We left Friday morning. Our flight landed 40 miles from the show in Savannah, GA. Rick picked us up at the airport with our car in tow. He drove us to the host hotel and unloaded right in front of it. He left to return on Monday, load the car and drive us back to the airport in GA for our return flight. We had our car back, safe and sound, the next evening.

Airfare, meals, hotel, black-tie tickets, all totaled we spent about $6,000
on that trip. All to win an $8 trophy. Yes, I know, we are a strange breed.
Ahh, but about $5,000 is tax deductable. Assuming a 40% tax rate I saved
about $2,000 on my tax bill and had a very nice vacation to boot. In my mind I did well and did good at the same time. There is nothing stuffy about today's Concours. Rich or poor there is a commonality in automobiles that doesn't seem to exist in other collectables.

The judging at a Concours is different from Lincoln, CCCA and AACA events. It is strictly a beauty contest with the winners being the most pleasing to look at. Authenticity and condition are lesser factors in judging. A rough Bugatti will win over a perfect Packard every time. Class winners are grouped in a Winner's Circle and the "Best of Show" is chosen from the class winners.

One of the things I like most is the awards parade. We sat on the hill at Meadow Brook for 24 years before we became competitors. It is a very different feeling sitting behind the wheel as the crowd cheers you on. It is most rewarding.

Image
'56 Mark II convertible, '51 Royal Spartanette, '56 Chris Craft Continental
'68 Lincoln Continental Limo, '77 Town Car, '55 356 Porsche Continental cabrio,
'69 Mark III convertible,'88 BMW 750iL, '88 BMW 325iX, '97 BMW Z-3, '98 ML-320

My newest car is 15 years old!
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Barry Wolk
TLFer for Life
Posts: 10877
Joined: Sun Nov 24, 2002 1:01 am
Location: Farmington Hills, Michigan
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Post by Barry Wolk »

This is a link to the Hilton Head Island Concours winners list. I think you'll find the cars quite interesting. Look at the cars from other years too. A real visual treat.

http://www.hhiconcours.com/winners/2005/winners.html
'56 Mark II convertible, '51 Royal Spartanette, '56 Chris Craft Continental
'68 Lincoln Continental Limo, '77 Town Car, '55 356 Porsche Continental cabrio,
'69 Mark III convertible,'88 BMW 750iL, '88 BMW 325iX, '97 BMW Z-3, '98 ML-320

My newest car is 15 years old!
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