Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, 2015 Road Race

Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, 2015 Road Race Photos and Stories.

Concours d'Elegance, Car Show, 2015-08-16, Pebble Beach Lodge, Pebble Beach, California, US

Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, 2015 Road Race

Pebble Beach Road Races 1950-1956 and 2015

It has been suggested the first Automobile Race was initiated when 2 of the first cars made, found them selves side by side on a road. Automobile Road racing on public roads was started and went on for many years until the cars became so powerful and fast that drives and spectators were being killed in frightfully increasing numbers. But men still needed to race and purposeful race tracks were built to remove the speeding vehicles off the public roads.

One such famous West Coast event on the Sports Car Club of America calendar held on public roads was the Pebble Beach Road Races run through the Del Monte Forest on what is now part of the famed "17 Mile Drive" in the years 1950 -1956. The 1950 route consisted of both paved two-lane roads and sections of dirt track. During the 1956 race a Ferrari driver named Ernie McAfee fatally slammed into a tree spelling the end to this type of 'open road' competition and the start of the now world famous Laguna Seca Raceway at Monterey, California.

The mid of August in the Monterey Bay Area is all about cars and their history. As the first Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance was held on the final green of the Pebble Beach golf course in support to the road races, the great and overly generous supporters and organizers of the current Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, setup a recreation of the 1950-1951 Del Monte Forest course and invited 7 of the actual Ferrari race cars that competed in the 1950-1956 Pebble Beach Road Races for an reenactment of this historical event.

Of an interesting note; During this same weekend, the Laguna Seca Raceway was hosting "The Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion" where historic race cars still battle at speed as they did back in their competitive days.

Given responsible heads and overseeing insurance companies the 2015 reenactment was mostly a photo taking opportunity and a 3 lap low speed 'tour' of a representative track which included portions of the original 1950's course and a dirt section, just like the 'old days' .

The most impressionable part of this early morning gathering was Phil Hill's widow and son. Phil Hill won the first Pebble Beach Road Race, in 1950, driving a Jaguar XK120 and was a big supporter and participant of the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. Mrs. Hill recounted Phil's last day on this earth to the gathering at the starting point of this recreation, recounting how Phil had become ill, but still manage to tour parts of the original Pebble Beach Road Race course with her driving for him. Mrs. Hill said that Phil, even in his seriously weakened state, kept saying that the route which they were on did not feel quite right, that is until Mrs. Hill picked up the pace. Then Phil said "now that is like it was." Phil passed away that night. He was scheduled to be a judge at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, Sunday, the next day.

On a personal note; I was photographing the Concours winning cars that Sunday and standing just in front of the table where Phil usually sat. I commented to a fellow photographer that it was strange that Phil was not in his usual seat.