Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. Have you heard of it? West coast sunsets gleaming off of perfectly polished paint. Beautifully dressed attendance. Debris free tires. Shining lug nuts. It’s all at Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, the finest automobile show in the United States. A handful of the greatest and purest automobiles in the world are carefully curated and gathered on Pebble Beach’s soft green grass. For one week in August the best public golf course in the US hosts an event of such status and luxury, the Kentucky Derby wishes it could attend.
The gravitational pull of the Concours d’Elegance is so massive that, like a star, a solar system of car shows has spun up around it. If the real deal is too much foie gras for you, one of the furthest planets in the system is the Concours d’LeMons. Here, a veritable greatest hits of Craigslist classics are showcased in a variety of conditions ranging from head turner to busted. With trophies like “Driving on a Prayer” and “Best Back Seat” it goes without saying that the d’LeMons’ lack of exclusivity and 6 gears of fun may repel certain sections of the auto enthusiast demographic. Go race your own sub $500 beater in the 24 hours of LeMons!
The Qual, in this solar system, Jupiter, is another instance of refined, super cool dream cars of all types and eras. Bikes, Porches, weird custom frankensteins, and more Lambo’s than a 26 year old youtube star could shake a stick at, all polished and pampered. Tickets to The Qual have been sold out since forever ago. There is a ticket lottery in January that none of us signed up for. Good luck scalping at the event!
The week of festivities, show pieces, artwork on wheels, meticulously cared for, to beaters on a dirt track. From Carmel-by-the-sea to Seaside and everywhere in between 2021 promises to be a big year back and the 70th anniversary for the Concours d’Elegance! Everything a car lover can enjoy will be found here. And fortunately, enough drink tents for a non enthusiast to enjoy it all as well. Get your smoking jacket out and your loafers polished. Monterey is only a few weeks away!
