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Concours showcases the rare and the beautiful
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Today's events:
• Complimentary test drives from this year's automotive sponsors, among them BMW, Infiniti and Mercedes Benz, will be available throughout the day
• Concours d'Elegancejudging from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.
• Guided tours of car classes from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m.
• Awards ceremony and parade of carsfrom 2 to 4 p.m., featuring the first car ever built.
• Award announcements, including best in show and Best Pre WWII vehicle, at 4 p.m.
Saturday's Jamboreee Winners
• Best of Show: 1967 Ferrari GTC-330 owned by Reinhold Preik of Amelia Island.
• People's Choice: 1958 Porsche 356-A Speedster owned by Ray Morgan of Atlanta.
• Chairman's Award: 1950 Chrysler Town & Country "Woody Wagon" owned by Aiken Ryan of Callawassie Island.
HILTON HEAD - The Canadian owners of a one-of-a-kind 1938 International D15 towing truck and it's companion 1936 Curtiss Aerocar travel trailer patiently coaxed the vehicles through a 1,075-mile trek that included mountains and rock slides to take part in their first ever showing Saturday at the eighth annual Concours d'Elegance & Motoring Festival at Honey Horn.
During the four-day trip from Union, Ontario, owners Ken and Lana Hindley, drove - and lived - in the trailer, which comes complete with original props like a wooden, fold-out picnic table from the 1920s and a transistor radio.
The two vehicles, weighing a combined five tons, were featured as part of a new Concours "Life on the Road" exhibit. Over 30 campers and travel trailers were on display to offer attendees a glimpse of what it was like to travel as a "tin-can tourist" from the 1920s through today.
"The big attraction is to be interactive," said Carolyn Vanagel, executive director of the motoring festival. "I'm getting really good feed-back from people - from the volunteers, sponsors and participants."
Festival-goers like Stu and Judy Brenner climbed into the Aerocar trailer and its tow vehicle, a self-contained seven-seat truck that was driven by a chauffeur.
"We just had to come over and see it.It's phenomenal," said Judy Brenner of Hilton Head.
The trailer cost $5,000 in 1936 when it was purchased by a Canadian family of five, who traveled with a chauffeur and a nanny, said owner Ken Hindley. The truck was custom built to tow the camper, and an intercom connected the two units.
"We've had a lot of visitors," he said. "The Aerocar was so expensive - the same price as a house - so only rich people could afford to own one."
The 2008 motoring festival drew just under 10,000 spectators to Honey Horn.
Exact figures for this year's event aren't available yet, but Vanagel estimated that between 5,000 and 6,000 turned out Friday andSaturday.
"It grows "bigger and bigger every year," Vanagel said.
As of Saturday afternoon, Vanagel said online ticket sales are 20 percent above last year.
"The sense is that we are slightly up from last year and we've got one of the largest fields ever for the Concours, which is the signature event," she said. "It's one of the finest show fields we've had."
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