BARONE'S C&CM

Last August, I had the great pleasure to meet Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance Chief Judge Emeritus Ed Gilbertson. Ed has been involved in the classic car and motorcycle hobby for over 40 years, and still serves on the very prestigious Pebble Beach Concours Selection Committee. He also serves as the Chief Judge Emeritus for the Palm Beach Cavallino Classic and the Ferrari Club of America, as well as having been the Chief Judge for the Legend of the Motorcycle International Concours. To say he knows his stuff is an understatement. When Ed began judging the Ferrari Club of America Concours in 1985, he found the judging criteria inconsistent from meet to meet. That led to the adoption of scoring sheets and the 100-point system, a formal standard he continues to champion as Chairman of his group the International Chief Judge Advisory Group ( icjag.org ). For those not familiar with concours protocol, the judging duties are usually split between Chief Judges and Class Judges. Th...

I’m just back from a whirlwind trip to Amelia Island, Florida, for the 2019 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance, meeting with friends and collector car industry leaders in what has become the premier concours east of the Mississippi. A weeklong schedule of parties and seminars culminated in a warm and sunny show-day event, and I couldn’t resist snapping some photographs of some of my favorite cars on the lawn of the Ritz-Carlton. Take a look and see if you agree with my choices! Don and Carol Murray brought this gorgeous 1956 Ferrari 250GT Speciale from Laguna Beach, California. One of four prototypes built, this example was first owned by a Mr. Nassi; a director for Fiat and member of the Agnelli family. Built as a “wolf in sheep’s clothing,” this demure Ferrari features a competition-style engine tuned to TDF specifications and was raced at the Nurburgring in the late 1950’s and 1960’s. Lionel and Karen Bessudo brought this 1953 Jaguar XK120 FHC all the way f...