When there is an opportunity to spend a long weekend surrounded by interesting automobiles and be able to sleep in your own bed, you have to take it. Such an opportunity presented itself on the weekend of October 15-17, 2021, with the second Chattanooga Motorcar Festival. The first festival was in 2019, but it was the same weekend as the Sports Car Club of America’s national championships – the Runoffs. I did not sleep in my own bed that weekend. 2020 saw the pandemic cause the cancellation of that year’s event, but it allowed quite a bit of thought to go into the planning for this year’s event. The first festival included a display of cars belonging to various local car clubs, a rally, time trial, and concours d’elegance. The car clubs were welcomed again this year, and there was another rally and a concours, but there was also a race and a two-day auction by Mecum. 2020 was a much expanded festival that would benefit CHI Memorial Hospital’s Stroke and Neuroscience Center.
Additional time to plan meant that the organizers, Brian and Ken DeFoor, were able to attract celebrities, design a race track, create a rally, coordinate with Mecum, and arrange for streets to be closed in the part of town known as West Village. Celebrities included Corky Coker, former owner of Coker Tires, as Grand Marshall; Brian Redman as Grand Ambassador to the Festival; Ken Gross as Concours Director and Event Advisor; and Judy Stropus to attempt to manage us media hacks. Other famous folks who attended the Festival included Justin Bell, Wayne Carini, Tom Cotter (who raced his Cunningham), Lynn St. James, Alain de Cadenet, Ray Evernham, Tanner Foust, David Hobbs, Keith Martin, and Scott Speed. I suspect a lot of autographs were signed during the three days of the Festival.
Car Clubs
Local car clubs were invited to display their members’ cars on both Friday and Saturday. Streets in the West Village were closed off from early in the morning until 3:00pm both days. Some of the clubs represented marques and others were multi-marque. Single marque clubs included those for Alfa Romeos, Jaguars, Corvairs, Porsches, and BMWs. The local Southern British Car Club displayed a variety of British cars belonging to their members. Everyone who displayed a car was given a three-day pass to all the Festival events. Comments from those who attended were very positive.
Mecum Chattanooga Collector Car Auction
For two days, 543 cars went across the block with 457 sold for a sales rate of 84%. The top seller was a 2021 Mercedes-Benz G550 Brabus Edition that sold for $302,500. The top ten selling cars in the auction were:
- 2021 Mercedes-Benz G550 Brabus Edition (Lot S118.1) at $302,500
- 1958 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible (Lot S124) at $264,000
- 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Split Window Coupe (Lot S139) at $214,500
- 1968 Shelby GT500KR Convertible (Lot S180) at $176,000
- 1959 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible (Lot S51.1) at $170,500
- 1970 Plymouth Cuda (Lot S120.1) at $165,000
- 1965 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible (Lot S101.1) at $159,500
- 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air (Lot S128) at $148,500
- 1967 Chevrolet Camaro RS (Lot S119) at $143,000
- 2021 Ford Bronco First Edition (Lot S74.1) at $137,500
Pace Grand Prix at the Bend
The 2019 Festival included a time trial on a portion of Riverfront Parkway that was closed to traffic. It was driver and car against the clock. There was a true race track for 2020. It was named for Jim Pace, a well-known racer from Mississippi who had been intimately involved in planning the Festival until he caught and died from Covid-19. The pandemic caused the 2020 event to be cancelled, allowing an additional year for planning and resulting in a street course of about two miles in length. Sixty-eight cars were entered for the races and ranged from Brass Era cars to nearly new racecars. There were eight race groups:
- Brass and Tin Top to 1920
- Sports and Racing Cars 1920-1964
- Sports/GT Cars ‘50s and ‘60s Under 2500cc
- Open Wheel Formula Cars/Treaded Tire Cars
- FIA – Endurance Cars under 3500cc
- FIA – Endurance Cars ’90-‘21
- Exhibition Cars
- Sports/GT Racing Cars ‘50s and ‘60s over 2500cc
Each group got to qualify individually and compete in a qualifying race on Friday. There was a second qualifying race on Saturday, then each race group, except Group 1, participated in a timed, wheel-to-wheel race that lasted as few as six laps for the slower group and up to eleven laps for the fastest group. Winners in the Saturday afternoon race were:
- Group 2 – Robert Boden 1957 Devin Ryan Special
- Group 3 – Denny Wilson 1962 Lotus Super 7
- Group 4 – Gary Johnson 1984 Reynard RF-84
- Group 5 – Jack Lewis 1976 Porsche 911 RS
- Group 6 – Curt Swearingin 2021 Porsche GT3 Cup
- Group 7 – Efrén Ormaza 1994 Spec Racer Ford
- Group 8 – Race Red Flagged – No Result
West Village Road Rallye
Each day, competitors ran a timed rally through parts of Chattanooga and the surrounding countryside. It was a challenge for the navigators to stay on course and on time with all the beautiful scenery distracting them. Two teams who were not too distracted won the rallies. On Friday, Robert and Casey Albertson took the rally win in their Lamborghini Gallardo. Ashley and Riley O’Donald had the best score on Saturday in their 2020 Mazda MX5 RF.
Gathering of the Greats
There was an incredible assortment of important Ferraris outside the Westin Hotel during the Festival. It was called the Gathering of the Greats – Ferrari Edition, and it included a 1948 Ferrari 166 Spider Corsa, a 1954 Ferrari 250 Monza, a 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4S NART Spider, and a 1985 288 GTO. For car enthusiasts it was a landmark event. Many photos were taken, and jaws were seen dropping in the crowd.
Concours d’Elegance – Rendezvous of the Greats
The cars from the local car clubs were replaced in the West Village by cars entered in the Concours. The entries in the twenty-two classes ranged from very nice but not uncommon cars to show cars and prototypes. It was an incredible assortment of automotive beauty. There were Brass Era cars, pre- and post-war American and European cars, hot rods and customs, motorcycles, muscle cars, super cars, Radwood cars, competition cars, and even a Tucker. Awards went to the best cars in each class, and to a number of particularly nice automobiles. There was also a Chairman’s Award to Ken Gross for organizing such an excellent concours. Best of all, though, were the People’s Choice Award and the Hagerty Youth Awards, since they acknowledge the cars that really caught the attention of the attendees. The list of winners includes:
Ferrari Class: Road Cars
1. Ferrari 340 America – Owned by Kevin Cogan
2. 1948 Ferrari 166 Corsa – Owned by Collier/Revs Institute
Ferrari Class: Competition Cars
1. 1967 Ferrari NART Spyder – Owned by Rare Wheels
2. 1952 Ferrari 342 America – Owned by Dennis Garrity
Class 1: Brass and Tin Pre-1916
1. 1909 Sears J – Owned by Van Thurston
Class 2: Prewar Special Interest
1. 1942 Chrysler Royal – Owned by Mark & Hilary Becker
2. 1934 DeSoto Air Flow – Owned by John Wagner
Class 2A: Prewar American Classic
1. 1936 Packard 12 – Owned by Jack Smith
2. 1934 Packard 12 – Owned by Jack Smith
Class 3: Prewar European Classic
1. 1932 Rolls Royce 20/25 – Owned by Forrest McLane
2. 1930 Aston Martin International – Owned by Phil & Rick Rader
Class 4: Authentic Hot Rods and Customs
1. 1932 Ford Roadster – Owned by John Gillespie
2. 1932 Ford B Sedan – Owned by Bob Johnson
Class 5: Vintage and Custom Motorcycles
1. 1942 Indian 442 – Owned by John Landstrom
2. 1969 BMW R60 US – Owned by Norman Buck
Class 6: Postwar American Special Interest
1. 1957 Duel Ghia – Owned by David Salzman
2. 1988 Maverick Sportster – Owned by Tom Chandler
Class 7: Postwar American Sports
1. 1956 Chevrolet Corvette – Owned by Irwin Kroiz
2. 1966 Chevrolet Corvette – Owned by Kevin Mackay
Class 8: Postwar European Special Interest
1. 1969 Mercedes 280 SL – Owned by Randy & Brenda Bibb
2. 1974 Rolls Royce Silver Shadow – Owned by Guy Lewis
Class 9: Postwar European Sports Early
1. 1966 Fiat 1500 – Owned by Terry Herr
Class 10: Postwar European Sports Late
1. 1972 Alfa Romeo Montreal – Owned by Dale Whitney
2. 1973 BMW CSL 3.0 – Owned by Scott Hughes
Class 11: Postwar British Sports Cars Early
1. 1956 Austin Healey 100M – Owned by Peter Davis
2. 1954 Swallow Doretti – Owned by Tom Stronger
Class 12: Postwar British Sports Cars Late
1. 1962 Lotus Elite – Owned by Ron Mitchell
2. 1962 Sunbeam Harrington Le Mans – Owned by Reg Hahn
Class 13: American Muscle
1. 1970 AMC Javelin SST – Owned by Fritz Helmuth
2. 1970 GSX – Owned by Timothy Garland
Class 14: Tucker (No Winner)
Class 15: Jaguar XK and MK
1. 1954 XK120SEDHC – Owned by Robert Farris
2. 1950 XK120SS – Owned by John Gillespie
Class 16: Jaguar E-Type
1. 1961 Jaguar E-Type – Owned by James Strickland
2. 1961 Jaguar E-Type – Owned by Robert Farris
Class 17: Modern Supercar: Display Only (Exhibition Only)
Class 18: Radwood 1980-2004
1. 1981 VW Scirocco S – Owned by Ted Uiterwyk
2. 1989 Ford Mustang Cobra R – Owned by Ben O’Brien
Special Award – Sports Car Market
1. 1948 Simca Gordini Model F2 – Owned by Ray Morgan
Class 20: Porsche Class 356
1. 1964 Porsche 904 – Owned by Ingram Collection
2. 1959 Porsche 356A GS – Owned by Ingram Collection
Class 21: Porsche 911 and 914 Class
1. 1965 Porsche 911 – Owned by Charles Moore
2. 1971 Porsche 911S – Owned by James Yost
People’s Choice
1. 1950 Buick Special – Jeff Hardin
Timeless Elegance 1. 1936 Packard 12 – Owned by Jack Boyd Smith
Best of Show 1. 1967 Ferrari NART Spyder – Owned by Rare Wheels Collection
Chairman’s Award 1. Ken Gross
Hagerty Youth Awards
1. 1938 Jaguar SS-100 – Owned by Wayne Carini
2. 1972 BMW 3.0 CS – Owned by Gary Beck
3. 1962 Sunbeam Harrington Le Mans – Owned by Reginald Hahn
It was quite a weekend. Hopefully, 2022 will be even better.
