The Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion poster art by Bill Patterson features the inaugural win on November 10, 1957 by Pete Lovely in his Ferrari 500 Testa Rossa. Lining up on the starting grid in third position behind Carroll Shelby in a Maserati 300S and John von Neumann in a Ferrari 625 TRC, Lovely’s rather underpowered 500 TR wasn’t expected to give a the more powerful cars a run. But Lovely drove a masterful race and passed von Neumann in Turn 9 on the last lap to edge out victory and take the checkered flag from the polka dotted shirt flagger. Image Credit: MRLS (2017)
Join motor culture icon Christine Reed in her personal homage to this great car and driver.
... notes from The EDJE
TAGS: Christine Reed, Pete Lovely, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, 1957, Ferrari, on display, Bill Patterson, The EDJE
The Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion poster art by Bill Patterson features the inaugural win on November 10, 1957 by Pete Lovely in his Ferrari 500 Testa Rossa. Lining up on the starting grid in third position behind Carroll Shelby in a Maserati 300S and John von Neumann in a Ferrari 625 TRC, Lovely’s rather under-powered 500 TR wasn’t expected to give a the more powerful cars a run. But Lovely drove a masterful race and passed von Neumann in Turn 9 on the last lap to edge out victory and take the checkered flag from the polka dotted shirt flagman. Image Credit: MRLS (2017)
Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca Celebrates 60 Years With Patterson Art Poster
Bill Patterson has been a fixture around the paddocks of Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca ... especially during Monterey Car Week when the "historics" show up to show off in front of a knowledgeable and admiring crowd lined around the track in mid-August of almost every year since 1957.
Action sports artist extraordinaire - Bill Patterson. Image Credit: Bill Patterson Art
The folks who manage the activities of this venerable racing environment have known of the talent that displays itself through the eye, mind, and hands of the owner of Bill Patterson Art for many years and have had him commissioned before.
Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca CEO/general manager Gill Campbell (on right) and the race track’s official artist, Bill Patterson, were on hand for the reveal which took place in front a crowd of race enthusiasts and motorsports journalists at the Toyota Grand Prix Of Long Beach. This painting became the poster for the 2012 Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion. Image Credit: MRLS (2012)
The official 2017 Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion poster with original artwork from Bill Patterson Art is available now.
The design harkens back to the first event held at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in 1957 by including the 1956 Ferrari Testa Rossa driven by Pete Lovely.
TAGS:Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Bill Paterson, 60 Years, 2017, Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, Historics, Monterey Car Week, 1956 Ferrari Testa Rossa, Pete Lovely, The EDJE
Movie Night at The Petersen Automotive Museum brought out a record crowd since it started this movie night practice as per the Sr. Executive Director of the museum, Terry Karges. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2016)
Racing Through The Forest - Where A Place And Time Came Together At The Petersen
On Friday, November 4th, 2016, The Petersen Automotive Museum hosted a movie night featuring the Southern California Premiere and pre-release screening of the documentary style Racing Through The Forest. From 1950 through 1956 The "Del Monte Trophy" road race was held on the twisty, leafy, and very narrow town roads in Pebble Beach, California, and serves as the main series of personal testimonies in Racing Through The Forest.
Bill Pollack, Dean Kirkland, & Rick Knoop sign DVD and Blu-ray movie formats for folks who attended Movie Night at The Petersen Automotive Museum. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2016)
The event was attended by over 330 motor culture enthusiasts, the largest such movie event hosted by the recently renovated Petersen Automotive Museum as per Terry Karges, Sr. Executive Director of the museum.
Over 330 dedicated motor culture enthusiasts get ready to capture a place and time at The Petersen Museum. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2016)
Racing Through The Forest captures the beginning of the modern post World War II era of sport car racing in Northern California where men (and a woman or two) began to focus on the enjoyment of living their lives in freedom with newly discovered automobiles from their experiences in Europe that could be imported, were somewhat inexpensive, smaller, lighter, and were very fun to drive in competition.
The movie Racing Through The Forest began as the idea of 24 Hours Of Le Mans and Daytona winning sports car driver Rick Knoop, who became a race car driver the honest way ... by being born into a racing family who's history includes this very important time and place through the life experiences of Rick's father, Fred 'Frosty' Knoop.
Knowing that the lives of those who participated in this era - that has now spawned, over a half a century later, what has become known as this 'rite of summer' week long series of events, Monterey Car Week - were at the sunset, Rick set about interviewing drivers and historians in order to be able to hold on to this very important formative period of time in road racing motor culture.
Monterey Car Week events, that happen annually in the middle of the month of August, feature the world infamous Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance and historic era car races at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, and include specialised high-profile automobile auctions, began it's storied history captured artfully in the woven frames of Racing Through The Forest with the experiences and testimonies of those who lived it.
Featured reflections (over 50) and participation by people that are highlighted in Racing Through The Forest, many who have since gone on to everlasting peace - Frosty Knoop, Bill Pollack, Ernie McAfee, Mick Martson, Jim Hall, Rex McAfee, Phil Remington, Carroll Shelby, Chuck Tatum, Phil Hill, Tam McPartland, Gordy Glyer, Bill Kerrigan, Walter Kieckhefer, Gary Laughlin, Tony Settember, Patti Settember, Liz Coppel, Dr. Dick Thompson, Bob Wenz, Lou Brero, Jr., John Buddonbaum, Stu Carpenter, Bob Casey, Joseph Cavaglieri, Chris Cord, Don Dickey, William Edgar, Hammond Edgar, Art Evans, Gary Horstkorta, Simon Jensen, Allen Bishop, Derek Hill, Peter Miles, Bob Koons, Terry Larson, Bill Marriott, Don Martine, Timothy P McGrane, Sir Stirling Moss, Mary Shaw, Peter Miles, Todd Morigi, Lou Pavesi, Elad Shraga, Larry Soletti, Bruce Qvale, Phil Remington, Bob Whitmer, Joe Breeze, Rick Knoop, and Peter Brock to name a few.
For Sale ... and would make perfect Christmas 'stocking stuffers' for any motor culture nut in anyone's family. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2016)
Movie Night at The Petersen Automotive Museum featuring the Southern California Premiere and pre-release screening of the documentary style Racing Through The Forest for the better part of 75 minutes proved to be an environment where "A Place" and "A Time" actually came together.
TAGS:Racing Through The Forest, The Petersen Automotive Museum, Southern California Premiere, pre-release screening, documentary, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Laguna Seca, Fort Ord, 17 Mile Drive, Del Monte Trophy, Del Monte Forest, Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, K and K Productions, Rick Knoop, Dean Kirkland
Mazda Motorsports "Conductor" (John Doonan) stands behind the prized Le Mans class 1989 Mazda 767B which appeared in Class C in the Mazda Pavilion at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca's Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion during Monterey Car Week August 15-21, 2016. Image Credit: Edmund jenks (2016)
Mazda's Symphony Performance At The Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion
What happens when one takes three of Mazda's iconic 4-rotor IMSA prototypes and one of its 4-rotor IMSA GTO Le Mans Class C cars, and give John Doonan, the brand's motorsports manager, a conductor's baton?
A warm-up of epic proportions ensues.
During preparations warm-up at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca's Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, the first-ever 16-Rotor symphony was performed on a foggy morning when the 1990 Mazda 787, 1992 Mazda RX7-92P, 1991 Mazda RX-7, and the 1989 Mazda 767-B all lined up in front of their special paddock/pavilion facing John Doonan at a large music stand (presumably with the full score, which contains the musical notation for all the instruments and/or voices) with baton in hand waiting for the initial downbeat instruction.
For four action-packed days, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca hosted the finest collection of historic automobiles, gathered together for the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion. As the constant heartbeat of the Monterey Classic Car Week extravaganza, the Reunion brought 550 vintage vehicles to life in their natural racing environment. Rolex shares the event’s appreciation of motor racing history and authenticity, which underscores why the leading brand of the Swiss watch industry has been Title Sponsor of the event since 2010.
Every morning the eerie fog hanging over the undulating raceway on the Monterey Peninsula cleared to reveal a hive of activity on the infield; owners, drivers and curators enthusiastically tinkering in the garages and pit lane. As the Californian sunshine began beating down on the asphalt and the sound of engines reverberated around the hillside, the cars captivated onlookers as they battled out on track, speeding down the renowned and challenging Corkscrew turn, tackling blind crests and tricky apexes, all the way to the checkered flag.
The Reunion brought together 15 classes of cars from every era of motor racing history. Each year the event also features a brand, a specific model, a type of vehicle, or even an accomplished racing driver. The featured marque for 2016 was BMW as the German manufacturer celebrated its centenary. An impressive 64 BMWs entered the Reunion, from the 1937 BMW 328 to a 2001 BMW M3 GTR, all adding to this distinctive rolling motoring museum. [ht: Racer & MRLS]
Pebble Beach and the Monterey Peninsula in California thrive each August as the center of the motoring universe.
The area hosts the convergence of two major events, the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance and the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, offering an unbeatable combination of beauty and technology. The Concours pays homage to the past with prized collector cars displayed on the famed 18th fairway of Pebble Beach Golf Links, while making history with the latest new car debuts.
A tradition of poster art has grown up around the promotion of this grand event and this year's official posters grab the essence of Automotive Week through three releases - from the hands and minds of Ken Eberts, Barry Rowe, and Tim Layzell - that show off this icon of motor culture series of events with strength and grace.
In 1965, as a young designer fresh out of Art Center College of Design, Ken Eberts went to work for Ford Motor Company, helping to design cars like the Ford Econoline, the Ford Falcon, and the Ford Galaxie. But it was the Ford GT40 that Ken dreamed of styling.
“At the time I was a 21-year-old beginning designer,” said Eberts. “Virtually every young designer I knew thought the ultimate assignment was to design a sports car. The icing on the cake was that this Ford was to challenge Ferrari at the 24 Heures du Mans.”
That dream was unfulfilled in 1968 when Ken left Ford to focus on fine art, eventually founding the prestigious Automotive Fine Arts Society (AFAS). But this spring, nearly five decades later,
Ken finally got his chance to paint the famous sports car when he was asked by Edsel Ford and commissioned by Concours Chairman Sandra Button to create the main event poster for the 2016 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance—which features the Ford GT40s that finished 1-2-3 at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1966.
“While I didn’t actually work on the design of that American icon at Ford, I am honored to be doing this painting of the three Le Mans winning GT40s now,” said Eberts, who has produced approximately 1,300 automotive fine art paintings in his lifetime.
Barry Rowe, another member of the AFAS, has created the poster for the 2016 Pebble Beach Tour d’Elegance presented by Rolex. The Tour poster features the BMW 507 once owned by the King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley.
“In my teens I collected car brochures, and I remember drawing the 507, with its beautiful modern lines, in my sketchbook,” said Rowe. “It’s amazing that I have now painted a poster featuring the BMW 507 on the Pebble Beach Tour!”
The 2016 Pebble Beach RetroAuto poster was painted by respected artist Tim Layzell, whose creations have also gained worldwide recognition. This poster features the elegant stylings of Chapron-bodied Delahayes of the Classic era.
“I paint this style in block color so there is no shading, to give a clean poster finish,” said Layzell. “These Delahayes have such beautiful lines and also such stunning color schemes, which work well with my style. Hopefully I've captured the elegance of it!”
Other automotive events held around the area cater to a variety of interests, whether it is sophisticated German technology that is being featured through the BMW mark at the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion races held at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca - the delightful minis at "The Little Car Show +" in Downtown Pacific Grove on Wednesday 8/17/2016 at 12:00 pm - 5:00 pm - sleek Italian coachwork as exemplified by the Jim Busby "One Of" standout Ferrari 400i GTC which will be a centerpiece at the 25th Anniversary McCall’s Motorworks Revival Monterey Airport party, Wednesday 8/17/16 - 5:00 pm - 10:00 pm and two days later, featured at The Quail: A Motorsports Gathering, Friday 8/19/16 - 10:00 am - 4:00 pm, or The Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance featuring the Ford GT40 that will take place on August 21, 2016.
For a full listing of Automotive Week/Monterey Car Week motor culture events to attend, please find them here and have fun.
Pebble Beach Automotive Week/Monterey Car Week truly has something to offer every motor culture enthusiast.
... notes from The EDJE
TAGS: Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance®, Pebble Beach Tour d'Elegance®, Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Pebble Beach RetroAuto™, Pebble Beach Classic Car Forum™, Pebble Beach® Auctions presented by Gooding & Company, Pebble Beach®, Pebble Beach Golf Links®, Racing Through The Forest, The Quail: A Motorsports Gathering, The Little Car Show +, McCall’s Motorworks Revival Monterey Airport, The EDJE
