How to go
What: Concours d’Elegance Preview Party
Where: Carillon Historical Park, 1000 Carillon Blvd., Dayton
When: 6:30-10:30 p.m. Saturday
Cost: $85 per person, $75 Dayton History members and car participants
More info: 937-293-2841, www.daytonhistory.org or www.daytonconcours.com
How to go
What: Concours d’Elegance
Where: Carillon Historical Park, 1000 Carillon Blvd., Dayton
When: 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday
Cost: $10 adults in advance, $15 day of show, $5 children 3-17 and free to Dayton History members and children under 3
More info: 937-293-2841, www.daytonhistory.org or www.daytonconcours.com
Carillon Historical Park will be like an automotive lover’s dream manifested when Concours d’Elegance returns on Sunday. The upscale car show, which runs from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., features classic automobiles, antiques, race cars, hot rods, trucks, motorcycles and more.
“We’re celebrating the 100th anniversary of Maserati, so we have a number of very unique Maseratis coming,” said show chairman Skip Peterson, a former Dayton Daily News photographer. “We’re honoring the 50th anniversary of the Mustang, so we’ve got a lot of those. We also have the first Mustang to pace in the Indy 500 in May 1964. It was driven by Edsel Ford and that was the introduction of the Mustang. The car wasn’t available to the public at that time, and it’s coming from the Speedway Museum.
“We also have special classes for the Pontiac GTO, which is also 50 years old,” Peterson said. “We have quite a selection of those. We’re also featuring Woodies, which is the station wagon with the wood sides. We’ve got quite a few of those, and then there’s a whole bunch of other cars, too.”
This year, Concours d’Elegance will showcase entries from nine states and, for the first time, a car from Canada.
“We have about 230 entries all together,” Peterson said. “We have almost 200 cars, and then we’ve got some very unique antique motorcycles and a class of classic scooters from the ’50s and early ’60s. We had the scooters for the first time last year, and it was a huge success.”
Like previous years, Carillon will also host the Concours d’Elegance Preview Party from 6:30 to 10:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 13. This year’s theme is Cars and Colts, which is a nod to the 50th anniversary of the Ford Mustang.
“We’re thinking colts, thoroughbreds, Kentucky and whiskey, so we’re featuring a bourbon bar this year,” Peterson said. “Our bartender will be a local bourbon expert. I don’t know what bourbons they’ll be pouring, but they’ll all be unique. We’ll also have a silent auction with artwork from our 12 nationally recognized automotive artists. Prints will be available too.
“We’ll have a DJ for the preview party and heavy hors d’oeuvres from Brock Masterson’s,” Peterson said. “We’ll have a number of Concours cars on display on Saturday night, too, so people can wander among them while eating and drinking. It’s not a sit-down deal. It’s casual. You’re wandering around in slacks, a sports shirt and a sport coat if you feel like it. It’s a really nice, relaxed event. You’re going to mingle with people and have a good time.”
About the Author