JCNA CLUB NEWS

Amelia 2013 By: Russell Glace This year as in those past, Amelia did not disappoint. I traveled with by buds and stayed on the ocean at a private condo. The weather was brisk, but nothing compared to the auction bidding. We arrived Thursday afternoon with a heavy laden schedule of automotive activities. As usual every activity leads up to, and enhances the main event, the Amelia Concour d'Elegance. This was the 18th year for this concour to benefit Community Hospice of Northeast Florida, Inc. It is also a time to gather with old friends from around the country and party. New this year was some of the other activities, such as Festival of Speed, and Amelia Knights hosted at the Omni Hotel. My time did not permit attendance, but my collogues that attended were please with both events. The major events that led up to the concour, such as the Gooding Auction and RM had outstanding offerings and successful auctions totaling almost 55 Million. Gooding & Company, (www.goodingandco.com) did 28 Million with a 97% sell through rate, and RM (rmauctions.com) did 26.8 Million with a 92% sell through.Both companies had primarily reserve cars, with a few no- reserve offerings. There were a few surprises as Lot # 25 at Gooding, a 1929 Rolls- Royce Phantom 1 Derby Speedster with an estimated range of $650,000 - $850,000 range fetched an astonishing $1.8 Million hammer price. Equally surprising at RM, Lot # 121, a 1966 Aston Martin DB6 Vantage with a range of $335,000 - $395,000 fetched a $445,000 hammer price. The surprise for me at RM was Lot # 129, a 1911 Lozier Model 51 Seven-Passenger Tourer, with an estimate of $400,000- $600,000 fetched $1 Million hammer price. Sunday was the "Main Event" where Mr. Bill Warner played host and celebrated Sam Posey, The Renaissance Man. From Formula Vee to Formula 5000 he did it all. Let's not forget that Sam is a formidable architect, withdesigns, including the signature building at Limerock, and others in the states of Connecticut, Massachusetts, Florida, California, Washington, and Hawaii. Retiring from both racing and architecture, he still enjoys the occasional innovational race, painting and writing. This year's Amelia Concour celebrated the Ford F-40 as well as Cadillac, Corvette Stingray, Lamborghini at 50, Mercedes, and Porsche 911 "special classes". Also the Motorcycles celebrated Ducati with bikes from Bologna. The weather cleared up for Sunday, as if Bill had it special ordered. Placement on the field was well thought out and delivered thrills to almost 20,000 spectators. The Trophy Presentation was lengthy as the Corporate Sponsors have seemed to grow. This years " DuPont Registry People's Choice Award" went to Mr.& Mrs. Orin Smith with his beautiful 1936 Lancia Astura, presented Mr. Mr. Tom DuPont. The "Best of Show Sport Award" went to Rocky Mountain Auto Collection with their 1968 GT40 in Gulf livery. This car won 6 of 11 races. The "Best of Show Concour" went to Helen and Jack Nethercutt in their 1936 Duesenberg, with coachwork by Rollston. The Amelia Concour d'Elegance is a must see, mark your calendars for next year's extraganza, March 11, 2014.