In all my years of selling cars at auction, I have never had a “miracle moment” where the bidding went far beyond my expectations — until our 1971 Citroën DS21 Pallas sold this past fall. When I saw the car offered on Bring a Trailer in August 2021, I was […]
Author: Keith Martin
Keith’s Blog: Start Them With an Automatic
There’s a lot of caterwauling going on about kids not being able to drive manual shift gearboxes. I think the focus should be on the skills necessary to drive at all, not what the transmission is. There will always be a manual shift car around for your kids to drive—if […]
Keith’s Blog: My Bidder’s Lanyard
I was at my local café for breakfast in Portland. The owner, an Iranian immigrant who has built a good business, stopped by. “Where’d you get that Mecum lanyard?” he asked. He was referring to the Mecum Gold lanyard attached to my iPhone. I had acquired it along with my […]
Keith’s Blog: A $100k Personalized Alfa Sprint
A 1960 Alfa Giulietta Sprint recently sold on BaT for $92,500 ($97,125 with commission). Matt Crandall (911r on Bat) of the Avant-Garde Collection texted me about the car when the bidding was in the $50k range. Matt specializes in Porsches, both stock and outlaw, but has a long history with Alfa. […]
Keith’s Blog: The Chattanooga Motorcar Festival is Magic
This was my third time attending the Chattanooga Motorcar Festival. All car events are excuses for like-minded people to come together. This is true from the simplest Cars and Coffee to the stratospheric environs of Pebble Beach. Each event has its own unique characteristics. At Chattanooga, their secret sauce is […]
“This Fool Has Now Set Off To Find His Grail”
I was recently doing my three-times-a-week stroke and cardio rehab at Oregon Health & Science University. My post-exercise resting blood pressure is down to 88 over 58. I haven’t had those numbers since I was a Juilliard dancer. Mobility and shifting are still challenges, but I persevere. To while away the […]
Keith’s Blog: Preparing the Alfas for Hibernation
I did some car swapping last Friday. Enlisting good friend Timothy Ashcroft, we took the 1971 Alfa Romeo Junior Zagato to Bill Gillham’s Hooligan Racing in Albany, OR, and brought our serviced 1965 Giuila Spider Veloce home. It’s about an hour drive each way. Timothy also owns a 1967 Jaguar […]
Keith’s Blog: Car Knitting, SCM-Style (Part Five)
Which brings us to the 2006 Lotus Elise. I think it now shows just over 21,000 miles. Based upon the recommendation of former SCM contributor Michael Duffey, I specifically wanted a 2006, with its better seat padding, LED taillights and drive by wire. I went on the hunt for it […]
The Guns of August
The confetti cannons fired as owners Lee and Penny Anderson were presented the Best of Show trophy by Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance Chairman Sandra Button. The swirling bits of colored paper marked the culmination of Monterey Car Week, the largest car-enthusiast celebration in the world. On Sunday, August 21, their […]
Keith’s Blog: Car Knitting, SCM-Style (Part Four)
No matter how I try to manage my collection, I seem to end up with eight to 10 cars. I sell three and I still have 10. It’s a mystery. Where do I park them? Luckily, three or four always seem to be in a shop somewhere. (Free storage!) I […]