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Concours d'Elegance has grown
in 20 years to become one of the premier automotive
events in Southern California. Founded by a British-born
gent with a passion for cars and for helping the
community, Bart P. McGrath started Concours d'Elegance
when he realized a need to fund the Children's Wing of
the library where Concours has been held for
approximately 2 decades. It's very first event began in
1986 and was staged on the beautifully lawns of
Huntington Central Park in Huntington Beach, California,
on the slopes of the hill and valley below
Huntington Beach Public Library
and Cultural Center.
Hundreds of classic and collector car owners enter this
annual competition, one of the favorite events on the West
Coast because of its car categories and location three miles
from the beach. Many automobile collectors dress in costume
appropriate to the time frame for their cars. The public is
invited for an admission fee (usually around $10) to look at
the beautiful automobiles and talk with the owners. Classic
car owners may participate by contacting Concours d'Elegance
and filling out an application along with fee. Call the
phone number of visit the website listed here. Held usually
in June at Huntington Central Library, 7111 Talbert Avenue,
Huntington Beach, California 92647. Call: (714)
375-5023. www.hbconcours.org
When McGrath's asked automobile aficionados if they
would like to participate in a competition car show in
Huntington Beach, the positive reception for the idea was
overwhelming. The field entrants would include best
domestic, British, European, Asian and vintage to current
automobiles and motorcycles. Vintage and racing bicycles and
motorcycles were added later as Concours d'Elegance grew.
McGrath's success in putting on one of the best car
events on the West Coast, perhaps, was in design. He decided
to veer from the traditional approach of allowing only the
elite marques. He envisioned an all inclusive event that
would feature automobile collector cars loved and cherished
and also very popular with the public. His event included
all a most car manufacturers products and highlights a
specific type of car each year. His formula proved
successful as the event has grown throughout time with
hundreds of classic and collector cars attending.
Judging is not performed under the traditional
guidelines of Concours titled events, either. In traditional
Concours style shows, class entries include automobiles
driven less than 1,000 miles per year and a street class for
cars driven on a regular basis.
Featured cars have included many new marques. Since
1989, the event has produced themes and subtitled the event
many years, calling it "The Year of...". Here is a quick run
down of the featured cars by year: 2004 - Porsche, 2003 -
Corvette, 2002 - Ford Thunderbirds, 2001 - The Cobra, 2000 -
MG, 1997 - Mercedes Benz, 1990 - Corvette, 1989 - Porsche.
Also featured throughout the years have been Jaguar,
Rolls-Royce, Harley-Davidson motorcycles and more.
The event is operated by non-paid volunteers to raise
money for library operations. $15,000 - 20,000 is raised in
a single day and has provided books, supplies and upgrades
to the children's section of the Huntington Beach Public
Library, helping keep it's status as one of the best
children's libraries on the West Coast.
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