Presidio of San Francisco Concours 2010

Report and photos by Dennis Gray

The Presidio of San Francisco Concours d’Elegance was held Sunday, July 18th, 2010 in San Francisco, California. The second annual Concours was staged on the grounds of the Presidio, a former military base turned national park that overlooks the Golden Gate Bridge and San Francisco Bay.

The Presidio of San Francisco Concours 2010 celebrated the Marque of Rolls-Royce Motorcars, as well as “Movies and the Motorcar.” Event organizers Brian and Michele Moore artfully combined the history of the motorcar with the backdrop of the fabled San Francisco Presidio, one of California’s significant landmarks. The event showcased not only one-hundred years of motorcars, but also offered a fashion show, gourmet food and wine tasting.

The Presidio had been a fortified location since 1776 when the Spanish made it the military center of their expansion in the area. It passed to Mexico, which in turn passed it to the United States in 1847. While the Presidio became a national park in 1994, one vehicle on display had enough firepower to make one wonder if it was a military base once again. This unique 1925 Rolls Royce Phantom I was originally built to order by King George V as a gift for an Indian Maharajah. It was outfitted as a hunting vehicle, complete with an arsenal of authentic small bore shooting pieces, a 1.25 inch cannon and a fascinating 50-caliber Bira mechanical machine gun mounted on a rolling caisson towed behind. The proud owners of the unique Phantom I were dressed in period.

Other notable entries in the Presidio of San Francisco Concours 2010 included a 1931 Brewster-bodied Rolls Royce Phantom II, Bruce Canepa’s 1983 Le Mans-pole winning Lancia-Ferrari Group C race car, 1955 Bentley R-Type “Bob Gooda” Special, 1956 Maserati A6G 2000 Zagato Spyder, 1938 Talbot Lago T120 Roadster and “The Yellow Rolls-Royce” from the movie of the same name.

San Francisco Presidio Concours d’Elegance 2010 – Picture Gallery (click for larger image and description)

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[Source: Presidio SF Concours; photo credit: Dennis Gray]