Cars and big screens have had more than their fair share of my attention this past weekend.
Friday, it was “F1 the Movie” at an IMAX theater. Sunday, it was the Pebble Beach Concours streamed live on my 60-inch Sanyo TV.
The movie was much more expensive than viewing Pebble from afar. I was mildly shocked to discover than an IMAX ticket is now $25. My child-sized popcorn (the other option looked like one of those five-gallon buckets they sell at Home Depot) was $13 and the smallest drink $4. For two of us, the tab approached $80. It makes a streaming subscription at $9.95 a month attractive.
I’m not the first to have an opinion of the F1 movie. Suffice to say I found it to be engaging and compelling, which is all I want from escapist entertainment.
The racing visuals were stunning and the soundtrack was appropriately deafening.
I was staggered by the sheer display of wealth portrayed in the movie, from the pit setups to the paddock lounges, to the costs involved in shipping the racing circus around the world.
Would I recommend it to a friend? Yes, but I would advise them to take earplugs.
Pebble Beach was a display of wealth in a different way. The owner of the Best of Show, a tulipwood-bodied 1924 Hispano-Suiza Torpedo, was quoted as saying the car took 15,000 to 16,000 hours to restore. A friend who has some familiarity with these things says that by comparison, a Mercedes-Benz Gullwing takes 3,000 to 5,000 hours.
Normal shop rates are hovering around the $200/hour rate. Let’s assume the Hispano owner gets a 50% discount, that still adds up to $1.5m to $1.6m to restore the car. That’s on top of the $9.2m paid for it when it sold at RM Sotheby’s Monterey in 2022. (Yes, I found that price in the SCM Platinum Auction Database.)
By Formula One standards that’s almost real money.
On one hand, the on-screen tension and entertainment at Pebble was more real than the thin, contrived plot of the movie. On the other hand, luckily, there were no spectacular crashes on the concours field.
All things considered, $80 for two tickets to an F1 experience and a free “visit” to Pebble Beach in the same weekend doesn’t seem like much to spend at all.
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8 responses to “Keith’s Blog: From Formula One to Pebble Beach”
I agree with your overview of the F1 movie though i’m not comfortable with using sixty one year old Brad Pitt as a formula one driver. Hey , I guess that means there’s still hope for me yet.
No movie about F1 can compare to the 1955 production of “The Racers” and it was only 122 minutes long. Plenty of racings and a romantic side too.
The PB Concours field of cars was an array of primarily Italian and British thoroughbreds, with few German Marques such as Porsche and Mercedes . I was surprised not to see a Type 550, and but 2 type 356. The crowd seemed larger then last year, but had much improved Docent help and better organized parking for everyone.
I was disappointed not to see “Pur Sang” automobiles from Argentina, but suspect the Tariff increase kept them home. The Ferrari collection of cars near the Pro shop, was a History Clinic of The Prancing Horse !
Rand
I recall seeing that Hispano-Suiza at the 1968 New York auto show. Yes, I am old.
2011 was my last year at Pebble: too expensive, too crowded, and at the concour$$$, everyone looks at you to see if you are Jay Leno or not.
I thought I was the only one that lived this way. You tube has allowed me to take on different shows and events from the comfort of my living room. It is surprising the the growth of car culture I have found there.
As far as F1, I have been watching a documentary on drivers, which has pushed my daughter and I to explore Net worth of the drivers etc. Definitely a sport for the rich. However, I took my Cars and Coffee group with me on opening weekend and most of us left wanting to see more info on Brad’s van. Which I will share has been almost impossible in finding pics or info on, however I did see one really close on my favorites list from Mecum crossing in 22, maybe it was the same.
Lastly, Grand Prix has always been my favorite especially when you look at the talent and the tech needed to bring it to life. Of course knowing that James had a fleet of L-88 corvettes brings an extra joy to my heart.
After a 15 year hiatus from Monterey I decided to take my two 30 something daughters to experience their old man’s passion. One word description would be overwhelming. The highs were the Pebble Beach tour along Hwy 1 where we parked roadside and viewed two hours of art in motion (free), and a day in the paddocks and track at Laguna Seca (almost free). The lows were Carmel car show where one resembled a sardine and enough McClarens and Lambos to scream uncle. We were about 30 minutes late for to join the beginning of the breakfast club at Pebble, but still had the opportunity to get a sense of the experience. By 11am the crowds were so oppressive it was time to cut out. But I did meet and have a 20 minute chat with Lee Cowan of CBS news/ Sunday Morning. There will be a clip on the Lemons Show airing soon. Super nice guy and Porsche owner. Yes the weekend is insanely expensive, crowded, coupled with brain overload. Would I do it again? Possibly. But there are so many offerings closer to home (Chicago), but none have the variety and depth venues as Monterey. To me that’s the attraction. It was worth every hundred dollar bill for the three of us to have those shared experiences and memories forever. After all, that’s what life should be all about.
No spectacular crashes at Pebble but two terrible fires destroyed show cars leaving last year including Sir Michael Kadoorie’s Hispano Suiza J12.
So, similar?
That shell of a car recently sold for $224,000 at Amelia, something that I looked up on the Platinum Database!
Haven’t seen F1 yet. Probably will but on streaming in the comfort of my recliner.
Went to Car Week w/ my 32 year old son (his first Car Week), and my 35 year old daughter and 32 year old niece came down from SF where they live to join us for the weekend. This was my second Car Week experience, the first being 4 years ago. I think an every-several year trip there is about right for me. It is exhausting, but in a good way.
I most enjoy the historic races at Laguna Seca (reasonable cost), the Tour d’Elegance and Lemons (both free!), and just walking/hanging around Ocean Ave in Carmel seeing most of the same cars you’d see at the other pricey events driving around or street parked (also free!). You see stuff cruising around you won’t see anywhere else. I could care less about all the auctions.
Went to the Quail event for the first time. Luckily had a free ticket from a friend who’s a Singer client and got comp’ed four tickets. It was interesting, about what I expected. The other three in our group, who are Quail veterans, raved beforehand about how good the food is there. It wasn’t that great and I was underwhelmed overall. At $1,500 regular admission price I would not pay to go on my own dime, but that’s just me.
The Pebble concours capped the week. Second time there for me, was about as per last time. IMO, worth the ~$500 ticket price just to experience the experience, see some of the finest cars on the planet displayed in all their finery. Yes, it’s crowded, parking’s a hassle, but the cars, the setting and the people watching are incomparable. And worth it.
Overall, had a great time with my son, daughter and niece (lot’s of good food & drink and plenty of laughs). Overall, this year seemed way more crowded than four years ago, especially the traffic in and around the Monterey/Carmel area. The Ocean Ave street scene in Carmel was especially nuts. It’s turned into a giant cruise night-type of affair and it’s just too much, too loud, too crazy. The town is not equipped to handle that many cars and people. Would not be surprised on they clamp down on this going forward, as they should.