Greenwich Concours 2009 - Anyone going?

I'll be there both days.

 

im going too car will be on the lawn for sun, cant wait see you there

 

I'll be there on Sunday... I'm very excited to have a car on the field this year!

Hopefully, next year I'll have a Ferrari instead.

-JRW

 

I submit my paperwork tomorrow to enter my 328, then wait for the answer from them.

 

My car was entered and accepted. It will be my first time so I can't offer any help... honestly, I'm looking for advice myself!

-JRW

 

I have showed my 400i twice and it is an easy process. Just show up on the early side and they are well organized in showing you to your ring. Once you are there you really are pretty free to do whatever you like. Most people like to be with their car for the judging but that is not mandatory. The judging is not too heavy duty with the emphasis more on the style and appearance of the car rather than whether you have a detailed and q-tipped engine bay or underside.

You get a nice goody bag, lunch and a video of you driving your car past the reviewing stand in the afternoon. All in all, a very pleasant experience. I thought it was pretty low key for a concours, but then again I didn't care whether or not it won an award (it didn't).

Get there early if you want to take pictures as the crowds later in the day make it more difficult to get a clear shot. Prime time for crowds is probably 11-3.

The parking lot is practically another show in itself and is well worth a tour while you are there.

 

I have been several times and it is a nice show. It rained two years I was there and still there were very significant cars. Parking lot always had some interesting stuff. I was going to show my Jag when I first got it, but decided against it - I did have the pleasure of speaking with both hosts (Bruce and Genia Wennerstrom) and introduced myself at the show. Might go this year.

 

I usually go, will probably go this year.

 

Dont waste your time or your money. That show gets worse and worse every year.

 

Elaborate?

 

The same cars show up year after year(how many times do I need to see Malcom Prey's Delahaye). The last few years, less unusual cars have shown up(like the 250 TDF that was there a few years back), and more bland cars seem to appear(like a 75 cadillac eldorado) not to mention several poorly restored cars (there was an MG last year that looked like it was painted with a paint brush) not what I would expect at a concours-IMHO, and not worth blowing $20 bucks on.

 

dissenting opinions?

 

Everyone has their opinion, I guess. I know that a car cannot come back for at least three years after being shown. Maybe Malcolm gets a pass on that.

Over the past few years the Concours has had some bad luck with weather and the effect was noticeable with a lot of empty spots in the rings on the rainier and muddier days. Still, I was always impressed with the cars that did show up, even in the rain.

Bruce and Genia do a great job in attracting a good range of cars and making them accessible to the public. Plus the proceeds go to Americares, so your $20 entry fee goes to a good cause. It costs nothing to exhibit a car, so send in your application and liven up the show!

Last year the weather was good and I was very impressed with many of the cars there. Of course you are going to see a bunch of Mercedes and BMWs but there are always a good array of one offs and rare cars there to see. Last year the first Italian ring had several one off and special bodied Alfas and Maseratis that are rarely seen.

So I disagree. I didn't find any of these cars "ho hum" last year:
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This is a great show. I've only been once, but it can't be the same cars every year because they limit each car to showing once every 3 years (otherwise I would be there this year). Also, unlike most local shows, participants must submit photos before they are accepted, so mostly the cars are top notch. I did see a couple cars that were in slightly poor condition, but that is the extreme exception.

How much you will enjoy it depends what you're looking for. There aren't a ton of Ferraris -- the year I was there there were about 14, but 2 Californias, a 275GTB, and very nice cars. I love Ferraris, but I like variety even more and they have a very broad selection of cars. If you only want to see multi-million dollar cars, then you may be disappointed they have the attainable mixed in with the unobtainable (to me that makes it much more interesting). If you're looking for a large number of interesting cars in a great setting, this is a very good show to attend.

 

Well, I'm excited. I will be one of those there with a BMW ... but I do plan to sell it for an Fcar in the near future!

-JRW

 

I'll me there on Sunday bright and early. My SV will be in the SuperCar Corral on Sunday. I'm looking forward to it since its my first time.

 

Ill be there, pretty siked for it!!

 

went yesterday and am going again today.

The american stuff was pretty good, some very cool cars. I'm looking forward to what today brings.

 

Wow, today was insane at the Concours! There was:
Bugatti Veyron (Red/black)
LP640 (Orange)
F40 (Red)
2 Countach (Red, and gray)
3 F430 Scuderia (One red, one black, and one white)
Lamborghini Miura SV (Yellow) <<Insane!!
Diablo SV (Dark red)
Carrera GT spotted around (Gray)
Ferrari 250 GT California Sider (Red, 1 of 50)
2 C 63 AMG Black Series (Red and black)
A SL 63 AMG Black Series (Silver)
Tons of Z8's, R8's, GTR's, 430's, 360's, AM's, Ford GT's, Tesla's, 355's, Rolls, Bentley's, Maserati's, some Lamborghini G's.........

 

Was there a red series 1 cabriolet, unrestored, in the parking lot??? Covered headlight, wrap around bumper car??

Pictures?

Thank you in advance

 

I saw that car and it has a nice patina, I wonder how it is mechanically. It apparently is local in the Greenwich area as a photo of it parked on the Avenue was posted a while back. The parking lot is a combination of a second show outside the park and probably one of the best used car sales lots on the planet. Lots of fun!

The show itself had some nice cars as usual. Lots of luminaries walking around: Brock Yates, Dick Fritz, Wayne Carini, John Fitch and others. John Peterson was there with his very nice series 1 400i 5 speed. Had a great chat with him since we had both been in the same ring with our 400is 10 years ago. His wife's memory was incredible, recalling my twin daughters about 5 years old at the time, it was very hot, how we took them down by the water to get some cooling breezes. She remembered more about our day than I did!

Anyway, a very, very nice show, as always.

For the first time that I can remember there were two Bitters in the show, both owned by the same person. Show organizers Bruce and Genia Wennerstrom own a pair of Bitters as well, they look as though they stole their styling from the 400 series Ferraris. Seems as though the only way to experience Bitter is to own them in pairs!