The 100th anniversary of Maserati will be among the marques celebrated at the 2014 edition of the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este, to be held 23–25 May at the Grand Hotel Villa d’Este and neighboring Villa Erba on Lake Como in Cernobbio, Italy.
The Italian sports car brand’s landmark will be celebrated with a special competition class in the BMW Group Italia Trophy beauty contest and the Coppa d’Oro Villa d’Este prize decided by public referendum. Among the entrants in this class is a 1956 Maserati 450 S, the second of only nine examples of this model ever made.
In addition to Maserati, the 85th edition of the event on Lake Como will also mark the 110th anniversary of Rolls-Royce with a special exhibition in the rotunda at Villa Erba. Another competition class at the Concours d’Elegance Villa d’Este 2014 will be dedicated to the umbrella theme for this year’s event, the glitz and glamour of the Roaring Twenties. The visual magnificence so central to the Hollywood dramatisations of the 1925 novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald sets the scene for the support programme covering the three days of the event. On the Friday evening, for example, the Villa Erba parkland will be transformed into an open-air cinema. Entry is free for visitors to enjoy the latest remake of the movie The Great Gatsby – starring Leonardo DiCaprio in the title role – on a big screen. The gala dinner attended by guests of honour at Villa Visconti and the vehicle parades on the Saturday and Sunday will also reflect the film. “The Great Gatsby” class of the historic car competition will feature examples from the Roaring Twenties, including a model from the Duesenberg brand, all of which will be vying for the favour of the jury and public alike.
2014 will mark the fourth year of the Concorso di Motociclette beauty contest on two wheels. And like the models in the car competitions, the line-up of historic motorcycles will also be immersed in the spirit of the Roaring Twenties. Among the models dating back to the era that forms the backdrop for The Great Gatsby are two four-cylinder models from US brands ACE and Henderson. Also on the list of entrants is a BMW R 32 bearing the serial number 26, the oldest known example of its type, with which the history of BMW Motorrad began 91 years ago.
A total of 35 classic motorcycles have registered for this year’s competition and the Concorso. On the Saturday of the event, the convoy of machines will be accompanied by a local police escort on its way from the Villa Flori hotel in Como to Cernobbio. This year, for the first time, the bikes will pause briefly at the showplace for the Historic Car Parade at Villa d’Este before heading on to the adjacent parkland of Villa Erba. There, the motorcycles will line up in front of the jury, who on Sunday will crown the winning entrants in five classes.
For additional information, visit www.concorsodeleganzavilladeste.com.
[Source: Concorso Villa d’Este]
