Museo Stradale brings together the world's finest motorcars and presents them in a uniform collection, supplemented by careful research and first-hand experience. We do enjoy ourselves in spite of being quite serious about the fun we're having, and we hope to bring you more information about the events we've visited as we develop the site. For now, we'll quickly run down a few of our favorite venues among the many we've enjoyed.
Radnor Hunt Concours d'Elegance: If any event can be, Radnor Hunt is our home turf. Speaking as a photographer, if I
had been on my game back in 2006, when we first visited, then from this show alone I'd surely have an incredible selection of cars on offer here. As it is, a few years
at this event served as good practice. The show remains among the most photogenic, thanks in particular to the unique terraced
display grounds at this rural equestrian center. For that matter, the grounds are beautiful, with expansive vistas of rolling horse pastures and
a proper, yet friendly, main-line Pennsylvania manor. Further, Radnor does motorcycles, and they do them very well. I'd even submit that in 2008,
the quality of the bikes eclipsed the quality of their four-wheel counterparts—but this remains anomalous. In case you're wondering, you
won't find any photographs from that year's show here, as we attended in a purely recreational capacity. However, we look forward to great things
from this event. Even though it isn't so well know, Radnor Hunt is truly first-rate.
Official Website: Radnor Hunt Concours d'Elegance
Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance: The big one, with global interest, happens out on the Monterey Peninsula every August. There's
plenty to hem and haw about concerning Pebble Beach, but the bottom line is that the selection of cars is incredible. We'll be working through stock from
the 2009 show for some time, (considering this particular iteration was diverse even by Pebble standards), and ultimately will conclude our coverage with
fewer finished examples than we'd ideally like. As for the hem and haw, Pebble Beach is typically graced with fog, mist, marine layer, low-lying cloud, and
most other versions of optical impediment. It is also crowded, not only in terms of the people who attend, but in the arrangement of cars. More than 200 classics
on one golf link is a lot, and this year they insisted on a motorcycle display, to boot. But, for every one car that is lost to photographic logistics, there
are five others that make the grade. This makes you happy unless, to be a fool, you expect perfection just for attending the great Pebble Beach Concours
d'Elegance. Well, it is incredible, and remains so as long as one does not leave reality at the gate.
Official Website: Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance
Monterey Historic Races: More fun than any static show, the Monterey historics offer the best of all worlds: There's beautiful
competition machinery ripe for photographing while at rest in the paddock, frequent mechanical exposition as people prep and tune the cars to run,
and fast, loud racing on a wonderful track. For us, this is the highlight of the Monterey Car Week; things happen at Laguna Seca. Beauty is taken off
its pedestal and thrashed around a bit. In the process, that beauty is not disregarded, but instead takes on other forms—those of the aural
and kinesthetic sort. In the future, we look forward to spending more time at the races, rather than at the concours.
Official Website: Monterey Historic Races
St. Michael's Concours d'Elegance: Perhaps the antithesis of historic racing, St. Michael's is itself a product of today's
concours d'elegance phenomenon. Specifically, this show welcomes prior class winners and best of show winners from other nationally recognized
events. The show is small—about 50 cars, all from the classic era or earlier—but this means it isn't very complicated. St. Michael's can
be a feast for those who know what they're after, or just a pleasant day for those who don't. The show includes a selection of vintage
boats at dock in waters directly adjacent to the cars, with long views of the Chesapeake serving as a backdrop.
Official Website: St. Michael's Concours d'Elegance
