FCA 2024 Annual Experience

By now you should know better than pay attention to me.

In a few weeks I am supposed to be in Chatanooga. Who knows where I'll wind up.

 

Charlotte not Charleston

 

Close, Sept. 20 to 24, what birthday was it last Tuesday? You must be getting old.

BTW, sorry I missed your trivia party John. It took forever to park our car for the display and we ran late for dinner.

 

I think that’s accurate. Speaking from my personal experience I was asked to lend cars over the last several years. Ferrari was happy to get them and I was happy to share. I was surprised but undeterred by the lack of transportation assistance which racks up when they’re using 8-10 of my cars at a single event on the other side of the country but I was happy to do it. I received passes and the hospitality stuff most locations but I will admit I was kinda pissed at the lack of passes for GP events. It was ridiculous to me they had 8 of my cars in the entrance display at COTA and wouldn’t provide passes for the race. Sure more expensive an ask than casa tickets for example, but it still seemed unreasonably cheap of them. Of course it was only made worse when McLaren offered VIP passes with full access for the weekend and I hadn’t lent them anything. Different manufacturers and different priorities I suppose. As an owner you kinda just have to ignore it and do what makes you happy with your cars, that way you’re not let down about the one-way of it all.

 

I think there should be an award for the Ferrari that travels the longest distance under its own power and wheels to get to the meet.

A real testament to not being a garage queen.

 

I second that.

It would be cool to get more fun awards like that.

While I know it would be hard to ascertain this one, it would be fun to have one for who overcame the hardest challenges to make it there.

After my car looking like this 2 days before the dinner and making it to the dinner with 7 minutes to spare with the car, it felt like we just sumitted a mountain.

I'd love to heard other stories of people who fought Murphy's Law to make it.

Or maybe the craziest car story for a car there? That would be fun to hear.
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I did not get a prize and it was not to a National Meet but in 1963 I drove my car from San Francisco to New York City in the days before the interstates, Route 66 was still two lane and the car was not blue yet!

Best regards,

Robert
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Those stories are the ones I love hearing. I was hoping to chat with you a little while I was there, but unfortunately missed a lot of the event trying to get my car back together.

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By the way, on that cross entry trip I encountered a blizzard crossing the continental divide in New Mexico and the heater didn't work...

 

That is crazy. Hearing stories like that would be a cool addition to the event.

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They used to do that.

It’s funny, I have one of those awards from attending my first FCA event (regional, not national), in NJ in 1990. When the attendees at the dinner were polled for how far they came, having come from NH I was given the award as everyone else was pretty local, even though we made the drive in a diesel Jetta.

I guess the host decided there was an element of “spirit of Ferrari” to the award in addition to absolute mileage.

 

Any scuttlebutt regarding the theme, etc.?

Seems this year's event set the bar pretty high.

 

In that case, I’ll go on record for sponsoring such an award in Charlotte if I can get it coordinated with the organizing committee. Needs to happen!

 

I don’t often go to the awards dinners, so didn’t realize they didn’t do that anymore. Thinking about it, in years past I always thought it was cool to find out how far some people would travel for an event.

Pretty sure Paul @Nospinzone would be a contender!

 

In 1979 there was no such award but there were two different attendees that would have been contenders for. The event that year was at Road America and in Fon du Lac.

The first candidate would have been Joe Rosen with his 308. In the midst of the gas crisis, with the worst being on the east coast, he drove from Long Island. How he kept finding gas stations on that route must have been a challenge.

The other person was Bob Smith coming from the Dallas area. He did the drive in a 166 with no top and through some rain storms. I knew the car from when it was in So Cal. Had a 250 motor (remember hearing it was from some Lusso) and as Ed Niles described the brakes - opening the doors to act as air brakes would be effective.

 

In 2019 I received the 2+2 Grand Touring Award for driving my 612 from Massachusetts to Arizona. This year I drove it to Wisconsin, but I don't know if they even gave that award.

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I thought the whole thing went fabulously. It was very well organized and all the volunteers could not have been more friendly and helpful. The pleasure drives were exceptionally well prepared and the documentation provided was excellent.

My wife had only one criticism and we did hear others express it as well. At the gala dinner apparently they opened the doors early. Usually the cocktail reception is held outside of the dinning room and the doors do not open until the end of the cocktail time. We came down at about 6:40 and already many of the dining tables were already occupied.

 

The 2+2 award is not given for that. The special awards (not Platino, Oro and Argento) are given for a great number of reasons and as chief class judges we argue which car/owner is most deserving. We have a list of what we call "Special factors" to be considered. One of those traits is often if a car is regularly or extensively driven. During an extended debate over the most deserving car sometimes everything we can think of is thrown in including "He drove it here all the way from.......". Sometimes the debates get a little contentious.

 

Thanks for clarifying that. I was shocked when they called my name. I don't think I even knew about the award until I recieved it. I don't remember now if I was told why I received it, but I really appreciated being awarded it. It was a great honor.

That year I received the 2+2 award, a Platino, the CBM, and the first annual Schedoni Excellence Award. After that I retired while I was still ahead!

 

Geez, talk about running the table!

 

Simone was there that year to give it to you. I took him to a friends home who has a huge collection of Ferrari stuff. He kept us laughing telling stories about their Ferrari trinkets.

 

My son still tells me he can hear the engine revving when he goes to bed.

Having an Event on the track is just so much more exciting than just parked on a lawn (Which i love of course as you get to spend time with each car). Which is why Cavallino has lost a lot of its appeal.

 

We had a trip planned to Italy the following month and Simone invited us to his facility. We met his father Mauro who unfortunately passed away a few months later. Our tour included a visit to the attic where he makes balsamic vinagar. He gifted us a bottle of 100 year old vinegar that his family made.

A funny story about the RR luggage. It was made to RR specs for the new Cullinan. When it was done it weighed 15 lbs. Simone sid he called them and told them how heavy it was. They responded not to worry about it, the butler was going to be carrying it!
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Great pictures. Very nice man. We tried to get him to Road America but he couldn't. Good picture of his attic.

 

Want to party? I've got a 308GT4 that has had its engine disassembled for years, and I live 4 hours from Charlotte. I'm planning on having it there next year as a survivor. plus it'll be 50 years old (me too).

sjd
....not that anyone cares about 308GT4s...