Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance – 2024 Report
Last Sunday, September 15, 2024, the Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance celebrated its 10th anniversary on the picturesque Georgian Bay shoreline, showcasing a dazzling array of classic and vintage automobiles. This annual event, held at the renowned Cobble Beach Golf Resort and Community, is a highlight for car enthusiasts and luxury aficionados alike.
The Concours featured a diverse collection of vehicles, from iconic muscle cars to elegant European sedans. Each car was meticulously restored and presented in pristine condition, reflecting the passion and dedication of their owners. The event’s judges carefully evaluated the vehicles based on factors such as originality, condition, and historical significance.
It was the culmination of 3 days of automotive celebrations that began with a participants’ road tour to Meaford on Friday, and a welcome reception Friday evening at the Tom Thomson Art Gallery in Owen Sound where we were reminded by Aidan Ware, Director & Chief Curator of the museum quoting noted American Automotive Designer Christopher Bangle that; “Cars are not a suit of clothes; cars are an avatar. Cars are an expansion of yourself: they take your thoughts, your ideas, your emotions, and they multiply it… cars are a sculpture, every car you see out there is sculpted by hand… and it’s done by men and women who believe in their craft. And they put that same kind of tension into the sculpting of a car that you do in a great sculpture that you would go and look at in a museum.”
To draw awareness on the Owen Sound area a Cars ‘n Coffee was held downtown on Saturday morning. Concurrent to it and to contrast the Concours d’Elegance, two blocks away Hagerty staged a Concours d’Lemons. 2CV’s drew admiration at each; Leszek Krawczyk showed his highly customized “Golden Duck” 2CV at Cars ‘n Coffee and George Dyke gave the Canadian Premiere of Whimsy — the 2CV Artcar at Concours d’Lemons. Both were admired and Whimsy won the Hagerty’s Award in the French “Unmitigated Gaul” category.
Whimsy made such an impression that the Chairman Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance, Rob McLeese, an appreciative Citroën fan, invited George to display Whimsy at the Concours on Sunday — not to be judged (obviously) but to interest young and art-minded attendees as well as add stark contrast to the brand new Ferrari SF90 Stradale (the first Ferrari plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle), that was going to be parked a few feet away.
Reaction the Whimsy was one of amazement at Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance. Young and old scoured the car to find detail after detail painted by the four artists in Maine in the early 90s. At least a dozen people came up to George and asked him what Whimsy’s display number was because they wanted to vote for it as show favourite!
Whimsy wasn’t the only Citroën at Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance. Citroënvie member Larry Lewis was invited to show his recently restored 1949 Traction 11BL in Class 5 — European Production pre 1980.
General Motors displayed 3 Firebird concepts of the late 1950e with The Hagerty Youth Judges Award given to the GM Firebird III concept car that featured turbine power and nine fins.
Beyond the cars, the Concours offered a variety of activities and attractions for attendees. Visitors mingled with other car enthusiasts and unlike many other Concours d’Elegance, were able to get up close to the vehicles and speak with their owners.
View a full picture gallery of the cars displayed here: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjBJC5R
John Carlson was once again the Chief Judge of Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance, and at the Judge’s briefing Sunday morning a few moments were taken to pay tribute to Dean Renwick, the founder of Professional Association of Vehicle Evaluators, (P.A.V.E.), who had judged every past Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance but unfortunately passed away on June 3rd during stint surgery at Mississauga Hospital.
As far as the awards for the class winning automobiles, Ed Lucas from Detroit returned as Master of Ceremonies and to announce the following:
Best of Show
• 1947 Bentley MKVI Figoni et Falaschi Coupe, John Shaloub, Saint Louis, MO
Outstanding Pre-War
• 1932 Marmon Sixteen, Gallery 260, Brent Merrill, Toronto
Outstanding Post-War
• 1957 Ferrari 250 GT LWB Berlinetta, Fred Fischer, Wildwood, MO
Class 1 — Horseless Carriage pre-1916
1. 1909 Ford Model T Touring, Hugo Vermeulen, Oshawa
2. 1903 Ford A, Dennis Huron, Port Perry
3. 1915 Cadillac Series 51, Robert Thompson, Port Elgin
Class 2 — Pre-War American Production 1916 to 1942
1. 1935 Ford 48 Tudor Standard Sedan, Thomas Harper, Bedford, VA
2. 1932 Ford Series 18 4-door phaeton V8, Wayne Sheppard, Belleville
3. 1939 Ford Standard Coupe, Bruce Wallace, Lincoln
Class 3 — CCCA American Full-Classic 1915 to 1948
1. 1932 Marmon Sixteen, Gallery 260, Brent Merrill, Toronto
2. 1928 Auburn 8-88 Speedster, Greg Ornazian, Rochester Hills, MI
3. 1931 Cadilac V-16 Convertible Coupe Series 452, Brent and Connie Erickson, Thamesville
Class 4 — CCCA European Full-Classic 1915 to 1948
1. 1947 Bentley MKVI Figoni et Falaschi Coupe, John Shaloub, Saint Louis, MO
2. 1924 Delage GL Skiff Torpedo by Labourdette, Ted and Mary Stahl, Chesterfield, MI
3. 1935 Swallow Coachbuilding Company (Jaguar) SS1 Coupe, Eduardo Zavala, St. Petersburg, FL
Class 5 — European Production pre 1980
1. 1969 Alfa Romeo 1750 GTV, Rossano Trevisan, Oakville
2. 1927 Austin 7 Saloon Type R Top Hat, John Musson, Coldwater
3. 1971 Saab 96, Matt Stimpson, Peterborough
Class 6 — European Sports pre 1980
1. 1951 Jaguar XK120, Robert G. Kearns, Toronto
2. 1958 Ferrari 250 Gran Turismo Ellena, Legendary Motorcar Collection 0, Halton Hills
3. 1967 Ferrari 330GTC, Bob Little, Windsor
Class 7 — Classic C2 Corvette 1963-1967
1. 1965 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray Roadster, Peter Braam, Shedden
2. 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray Fuelie, Hugh Welsford, Burlington
3. 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray Z06 Big Tanker, William Wallace, Milton
Class 8 — Glamour Cars of the Space Age (50’s & 60’s American)
1. 1959 Cadillac Eldorado, Vernon Smith, Swift Current
2. 1957 Ford Thunderbird E-Code, Brent and Connie Erickson, Thamesville
3. 1954 Kaiser-Darrin 161 Roadster, Hal Weiss, Toronto
Class 9 — American Post War Performance Pre-1974
1. 1970 Plymouth Cuda AAR, Sandro Brocca, King City
2. 1971 Dodge Charger R/T, Glen Burrows, Hamilton
3. 1969 Plymouth Hemi Roadrunner Hardtop, Brian & Kathleen Eden, Arthur
Class 10 — Iconic Japanese Sports Car pre 1980’s
1. 1970 Datsun 240Z series 1, Laverne Burkhart, Kitchener
2. 1968 Mazda Cosmo, Fawaz Ahmed, Richmond Hill
Class 11 — Iconic Japanese Sports Car 1981-2000
1. 1985 Toyota Celica Supra, Dan Griffiths, London
2. 1990 Mazda MX-5 Miata, Dylan Sharpe, Hamilton
3. 1991 Acura NSX, Oblivion Motors, Milton
Class 12 — Custom Resto-Mods pre 1975
1. 1938 Lincoln Zephyr, David Jolly, Norval
2. 1957 Chevrolet 210, Alan Boughton, Caledon
3. 1967 Ford Mustang Fastback “Resto-mod”, Travis Agresti, Holland Landing
Class 13 — Modern Supercars and Exotics 2000 – Present
1. 2019 Aston Martin Db11 AMR Signature Halo Edition, Joe Maira, Clarence Center, NY
2. 2015 Mercedes-Benz SLS Final Edition, Ryan van Barneveld, Waterdown
3. 2024 Lamborghini Huracán Sterrato, Ryan van Barneveld, Waterdown
Class 14 — Preservation Post War
1. 1967 Ford Mustang GT, Natasha Carroll, Baden, PA
2. 1970 Ford Mustang Boss 302, Chase VanDyne, Holland, MI
Class 15 — Classic Station Wagon Pre 1980
1. 1958 Buick Century Caballero Wagon, Steve Plunkett, London
2. 1969 Pontiac Safari Wagon, Steve Plunkett, London
3. 1954 Mercury Monterrey Woody Wagon, Fred Thorn, Owen Sound
Class 16 — Japanese Vintage Motorcycles Pre 1990
1. 1969 Honda CB750, John DeMaria, Bethany
2. 1984 Suzuki GSX 750 SE Katana Canadian Ltd edition 004-200, Marco Belperio, Schomberg
3. 1969 Honda Z50A-K1 MiniTrail, Ron Stupart, Newmarket
Class 17 — Classic Ford Mustang pre 1974
1. 1967 Ford Shelby GT500, Andrew Schuller, Granton
2. 1966 Ford Shelby GT350H, William Halkiw, Toronto
3. 1969 Ford Mustang Boss 302, Bob Nicol, Owen Sound
Class 18 — Vintage Race Cars Pre 1976
1. 1957 Ferrari 250 GT LWB Berlinetta, Fred Fischer, Wildwood, MO
2. 1952 Allard JR, Norm Moffat, Huntsville
3. 1964 Porsche 904 GTS, Legendary Motorcar Collection, Halton Hills
Recognition of Hagerty Youth Judging Winner
GM Firebird III, GM Heritage Collection, Grand Blanc, MI
Chairman’s Award
1937 Cord 812 Sportsman Convertible Supercharged, Al Webster, Gormley
Chief Judge’s Choice
1952 Allard JR, Norm Moffat, Huntsville
National Association of Automobile Clubs of Canada Rolling Sculpture Award
1947 Bentley MKVI Figoni et Falaschi Coupe, John Shaloub, Saint Louis, MO
National Association of Automobile Clubs of Canada Historical Singificance
1970 Ford Mustang Boss 302, Chase VanDyne, Holland, MI
AACA- Spirit of the Hobby Award
1968 Ford Shelby Mustang GT500KR, Peter Wojtowicz, Bargesville, IN
Concours Debut Award
1958 Continental Mark III Convertible, Anthony Polito, Lindsay
Margaret Dunning Spirit of Driving Award
1914 Ford Model T Touring – Seamus Hnat – Chesterfield, MI
Bruce Grey Simcoe Award
1962 Amphicar 770, Fred Pierce, Etobicoke
Most Elegant Pre-war
1929 Lincoln Model L Tonneau-Cowl Sport Phaeton by Locke, Bill Wybenga, Picton
Most Elegant Post-war
2007 Wiesmann GT – MF4, Tony Burgess, North York
McLaughlin Legacy Award
1929 Cadillac Dual Cowl Sport Phaeton, Geoff Weller, Lake City, MI
Tom Thomson Art Gallery Timeless Design
1923 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost Pall Mall Tourer by Merrimac, Roger Melton, Bloomfield Hills, MI
Ingenuity Award
1916 Anderson Electric Car Company Detroit Electric Model 60/98S, Jack Beatty, Grosse Pointe Farms, MI
Poetry in Motion
1959 Chevrolet Corvette “Vivacious”, Viv Agresti, Holland Landing
People’s Choice
1959 Cadillac Eldorado, Vernon Smith, Swift Current
Rob McLeese’ s boundless energy was evident throughout the weekend! If he wasn’t scooting about in a golf car, or sorting out last-minute details on his cell phone, he could be seen chatting with participants and gleefully ensuring that everyone was having a wonderful time.
Rob and the entire McLeese family are passionate about the Cobble Beach weekend. As much as they appreciate classic cars, they have devoted their time and resources each year to raise funds for local charities. This year they announced that funds generated through the Cars & Coffee event and 50/50 draw will support a new Ultrasound Unit in the Brightshores Health System Owen Sound Foundation is the community hospital serving Owen Sound. Proceeds from the Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance will help build the new home of Sunnybrook’s Garry Hurvitz Brain Sciences Centre, the only facility in Canada where world-class researchers and clinicians will work together to revolutionize treatment of the three most common brain disorders — dementia, stroke, and mood and anxiety disorders. Over the past 10 years of the Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance they have raised over $1,000,000 for its charities! This year Rob was presented with a special and unexpected award for his effort!
If you missed this year’s Concours, be sure to mark your calendar for next year’s event happening on September 12 – 14. The Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance is a must-see for anyone who appreciates the beauty and history of classic cars.