The Car Festival in Newport, Rhode Island: A Celebration of Elegance and Power

As we walked through the gates of the festival, it was like stepping into an art gallery, where classic cars were on display, each one more breathtaking than the last. The air was electric with excitement, as car enthusiasts from all over the world had gathered to celebrate the beauty and power of these magnificent machines. The event was a culmination of months of planning and preparation, and it was clear that everyone involved was dedicated to making this inaugural festival a success.

The hosts and organizers of the festival were thrilled to have reached this milestone, and they took great pride in showcasing the best of the best in car culture. From classic British beauties to stunning American muscle cars, each vehicle on display was a testament to the creativity and passion of its owner. The owners themselves were eager to share their stories and showcase their beloved cars, and it was clear that this event was as much about sharing knowledge and expertise as it was about displaying beautiful machines.

One of the highlights of the festival was the opportunity to learn from some of the most knowledgeable car enthusiasts in the world. Owners shared tales of their cars' histories, and the judges explained the criteria for selecting the winners. The event was a masterclass in car appreciation, with something for everyone to enjoy. Whether you were an expert or just a car enthusiast, there was no shortage of fascinating stories and anecdotes to discover.

As we made our way through the crowds, we came across some truly remarkable cars. A 1953 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost took first prize in Class 5, Sporting Cars from the 1920s and 1930s. This beautiful car had clearly been well-maintained over the years, with its sleek lines and classic design making it a true head-turner.

Next up was the winner of Class 8, a stunning 1964 Ferrari 250 GT Lusso. This Italian sports car powered by a 2-liter Fiat V8 engine was a real showstopper, and its sleek design made it a standout among the competition. But the event wasn't just about the cars themselves - it was also about the people who owned them. A 1951 Nash-Healey Lomov Prototype took top honors in this category, with its sleek lines and innovative design making it a true classic.

As we waited for the awards ceremony to begin, we caught up with some of the owners and learned more about their cars. There was one car in particular that stood out - the 1901 Mercedes, which had been entered into competition by a team of enthusiasts who were determined to make history. The excitement was palpable as we waited for the results, knowing that this car was not just any ordinary vehicle.

And then it happened - the moment we had all been waiting for. The winner of Best in Show was announced, and it was clear that this was going to be a special moment. The winner was none other than "Conquest of Elegance", a stunning 1957 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing. This beautiful car had been owned by Joseph and Margit Cassini for many years, and its sleek design made it a true masterpiece.

The audience erupted into applause as the winners were announced, and we couldn't help but join in. The festival had truly exceeded expectations, with something for everyone to enjoy. From classic cars to stunning displays of engineering prowess, this inaugural event was a resounding success. As we looked forward to next year's festival, one thing was clear - this was an event that would become a highlight on the car calendar.

The hosts and organizers took a moment to thank everyone who had been involved in making this event such a success. It had been a long and challenging journey, but it had ultimately paid off with a truly unforgettable experience. As we left the festival grounds, we couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement for what was to come - 363 days until next year's festival, when we would once again gather to celebrate the beauty and power of cars.

The event also highlighted the significance of Newport, Rhode Island as a place where history and luxury intersect. The city's rich heritage and passion for sports made it the perfect location for this inaugural festival. As we looked around at the stunning cars on display, we knew that this was just the beginning - the word was out, and car enthusiasts from all over would be flocking to Newport next year to experience the thrill of this world-class event.

The organizers also emphasized their commitment to creating a world's first in terms of automotive events. With this inaugural festival, they had set the bar high for future events, which promised to be just as impressive. As we left the festival grounds, we couldn't help but feel a sense of anticipation - what would next year bring? One thing was certain, however - the Car Festival in Newport, Rhode Island was an event that would become a highlight on the car calendar for years to come.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: encalling all cars it's about pushing boundaries statement to the world and our cell on mankind really had two enemy lived on in the end it's all about the drink hello and welcome to the inaugural Newports home coromoto week I'm sitting here with Tommy Kendall world champion racecar driver and a very special co-host and chairman of this event Jay Leno himself welcome Jay and you have a new form resident and Newport resident yeah well here we are can you believe it you've been involved with this for the last few months and here it is come to life on a Friday here at the gathering yeah it's come together very well you know it's a great place for a Concord because if you have a spouse it's not particularly interested in cars there's other things to do here a lot of times they go to the Walmart parking lot on Saturday you give it which is fine for me because I'm walking around look at the cars and friends that are not carpet getting forward to death here you've got museums you got mansions you've got restaurants you've got all kinds of things to do it's a beautiful setting it's kind of like Pebble Beach East you know in fact in some ways I think it's pretty else it's time for a gathering of automotive excellence to spread its wings to a beautiful town where the sound of the world's fastest most unusual and valuable cars has yet to be heard that town is Newport Rhode Island where luxury sport and history combined luxury can be defined in many ways but in the Gilded Age of American industry it was displayed by the mansions of some of America's notable families magnificent properties each bigger than the next lines the cliff walk along the wild Atlantic Ocean and of course they drove cars that represented style elegant power and the latest technology you cannot escape the passion for performance that exists here with the first recorded race on an actual track run in 1896 history is alive in Newport you feel it everywhere from the historic downtown to the mansions on Bellevue Avenue one of the highlights is the or drain automobile museum currently housing a world's first with a rare two hundred million dollar GM collection there's just no other place like this town when it comes to luxury and sport set amongst the history that defines America this is Newport the last three months have been so accelerated with the planning and the strategy you put together a great team of people that are working through round the clock to do it but in the end it to be start off with rather you do have to have a vision and what was it that Sparta what did you want this event to be between the you guys let's try and get more young people involved so we started something called 30 under 30 where people 30 years old and younger who've restored a car from whatever error they wish for less than $30,000 in this way because a lot of kids come to these things and they go how much that Lamborghini have them nearly enough and it's just discouraging when you got nothing you know but when you show up with a 2002 BMW maybe you bought fairly to be five six years ago and you've been working on your garage and you bring it to an event like this and you get recognized I think it's great it's great for self esteem but gives kids something to do other than watching Netflix you know and it's it's it's it's a lot of fun and I think that began that kernel of an idea that Jay had really began us to look at how do we make everything more accessible how do we make it more fun how do we make it really for everybody's half of the events here are no charge all the events by the car companies they're all open to the public they're open every day our Motor village is only $30 and at that point you can see you're gonna have food you can see dozens and dozens of cars you can go to symposiums what do you hope people say though as they walk away especially the gathering here we are first most important thing people say is I had fun yeah I want to tell my friends about it and what's next there's such a big fan of yours and we were all excited everyone's pretending they've come to see the Bugatti but I think that's just a little secret certainly should so coming here can you imagine that the wealthiest woman in the world in 1920 lived here what do you think should have made of all these people in all these amazing cars today and of course the car that you're about to unveil have you had a sneak peak before it's beautiful it's really exciting and it's very blue yes yes yes yes so an old began to our new Bugatti what would be your choice I'm gonna let this be like a you know crowds choice because they have to see the newest Bugatti in order to say that so you have a job to do well thank you so much thanks for talking us see you later all right guys just I need a cigarette now here's the unveiling of this dilections new car with the the glass panel roof and again the drapery Falls neatly off the car and without these side view mirrors and there's Nick and Jay taking a look the cars are amazing we get to drive them we get to drive them fast but it's really the people that resonate through the decades isn't it I mean every one of these if they could talk and in the back of Doris Dukes Packard I mean that way might not necessarily want to hear what's up but yes nevertheless they have a personality they have a life they will touch the lives of the very very very lucky new owners they have and then for the second owners they'll represent the culmination of a life's dream and for the third owners it will be something about rediscovering what was so special about this car in 2019 that made people say wow this is astonishing and these stories live on hopefully we leave these artifacts slightly better than when we found them but they live forever like like Greek Greek sculpture I mean it's amazing why did you come to this event even though they're sitting in your purview of your your job why this event what do you think so special oh you've been to a lot of them yeah first of all it's a great event and I only arrived this morning but when you look at the atmosphere it's nice to see you and you know Nick brought me out here I've never been to Newport before and when I landed and I looked around I went this place is amazing and kind of feel like it's the east coast of Pebble Beach so to speak and so I'm a big car guy didn't want to miss it see what year one was like it looks great and I think it's only gonna get stronger so I'll be back we're drawing to the close on our first show here what a beautiful way of celebrating the opening of motor week with or drain here in Newport I just disappointed myself that if I'd been born a hundred years earlier I think I would have been having you know a good time with Doris I do I do think so she would have appeal the talkshow would have appealed to her so motorWeek we've got someone whispering angel Rosie I know you don't go to Rosie over there on the south a friend well it has been an incredible week so far now just think about it the world has quite a few of these incredible collector car events we like to call them the autos social lifestyle events and there are some magnificent ones obviously a Melia Island Pebble Beach you have Villa d'Este a and now you most definitely have Newport Rhode Island this is as you can see that the Sun is well and truly up but it started in the dark as we all had coffee and had a great drivers briefing by David and when we took off across the bridge we actually settled on the top for three minutes which is the first time that's ever happened and for me just looking around we were in that beautiful Aston Martin with the top down but we had sea heaters most of the people here were we were being warmed up by there by the engines you're commenting on this gentleman riding solo and his 330 convertible I said he's probably trying to keep his options open but what was striking to me was all these beautiful cars these Tour de Lagaan cesare part of the judging at these being concours you get extra points as a tiebreaker inside the Adria museum is a collection right now that has rarely been seen outside the walls of the secret vault at General Motors now the value of these cars and what is such that they would only let two at a time in a truck even though the cars could carry six trucks or six cars the insurance limit was 30 million per truck and this is free to the public you can come in there and look around and see these cars they're a huge part of automotive history very influential in the direction of General Motors now joining me on set is someone that you're a car person is very familiar to Wayne Carini the host of chasing classic cars here an owner of three cars that will be on the lawn that's right you're a guy who's who's just followed his passion having an event of this magnitude join the calendar where do you think this fits in year one they came out with a bang they did I mean we're very fortunate we have some great events all across this country all around the world with with automobiles and concours but they're really striving to make this one of the top five if not the top two when we think about the cars out there we talked about it pre-war post-war I mean we have all these different genres represented here when you look out on the field tomorrow morning what are you most excited to see I think it's important for young people to be able to sit in these cars yeah so if you've got a car in the show field you see young person walk up to don't say please stay back don't touch the car give them the gear what did you see what have you seen when that have to minute they get in the car and they hear that engine they said they hold that steering wheel are hooked I mean that's it so here we are mark gauntlet everybody um I drove what Tommy drove this morning that beautiful Superleggera and roof down though we had all these amazing cars 300 sl's around us all is old finery and these young boys came the other way on the bridge when I owe my god look at that there's something about an aston martin that but does make your chest feel a little fuller in your hair a little thicker i like that well i think i think ultimately also there's a there's an element of everybody else appreciating that it's quite understated so as much as you driving that car everybody looking and you looking at the 300 air cells everybody's looking back and admiring you as well being understated but in this case also very beautiful design and engineering team yesterday we saw the reveal that pair of extraordinary cars how many of those are you making tell us a bit more about that DBZ centenary collection so this is the centenary gato and our relationship goes back to 1960 with the db4 GT Zagato so for us it was an idea to create something totally different 19 pairs the db4 GT Zagato continuation there's brand new built Aston Martin works with all the all the skills that we've had and built up over 50 60 years of knowing those cars and living those curls in the craftsmanship and then the latest version of the collaboration which is the DBS GT Zagato which unveiled yesterday for the first time in the world so the idea is very lucky owner exactly think about it Global reveal in the inaugural year of this motor week you guys got you were early adopters you were one of the first people to put your stake in the ground and say we believe in the event I think so and what a superb setting and isn't this weather now I mean for Nick and Rick and the guys and the organisers what thing to have this is backing it up but what a stunning setting and a great group of people so real car nuts well we are here now with Rick shads you've seen the where so many hats what would your title be really it's we all wear so many hats a designers I designed the logo the trophy the cover of the book we had a very special amount we become very close friends all of us as we've been putting this project together from the media side and we were really lucky to be in the museum when that beautiful trophy arrived you designed it and look at the first time you saw this trophy yeah I mean I got to say you're a man who's drawn to tears on this project but this trophy really represented so much for you and there you are with David the museum it is so beautiful what are we crying why is that so emotional because I mean at first I fought with a design for a long time because I knew the trophy was everything to this event as a designer I didn't want anything that was mediocre so I struggled with a design for a long time and the design hit me in the middle of the night one night I literally got out of bed and I sketched it on a sketch pad so I wouldn't forget it and I went to a friend of mine who's a great sculptor named Brian life and he sculpted it for me and Caroline who's the founder of Alex and Ani introduced me to Boardman silver which is in Connecticut and they're the company do the Super Bowl they do the Warner trophy and they did the original Augusta National Master's trophy in their very prestigious and when they finally delivered it to me I mean I get emotional now about it when the person gets this best-in-show trophy this isn't something that was bought off of a shelf that has a car on it you know and here you go I want them to understand that it was hours and hours and hours and hours of our heart soul and it wasn't just me designing for me I was designing for everybody that works for the audrina and everybody who's believed in this event so that trophy is solid sterling silver nearly 25 inches tall and everybody goes well I guess I have to come back and the trophy in the museum and I said no you actually get to take it home with you and they fall over yes and people still don't believe it but they actually get to take that trophy home with them we have another one being made that's gonna live in the museum and we'll use it as a perpetual trophy and we'll put their their names on the outside of it but that trophy goes home with the winner and I hope then they display it proud but you kept your old number 16 yeah some of those old black-and-white photos of that car racing yeah it's it's it's captured well listen you my friend have been brilliant tomorrow at the end of the day we're gonna stand there watching the sunset at the breakers and we're gonna be thinking we were here well thanks for watching everyone see you tomorrow well that was the scene early this morning at dawn patrol as the owners the collectors made their way onto the front lawn here at the Vanderbilt cottage in Newport Rhode Island the breakers welcome to the inaugural or drain and Newport Concord elegance and as you can see all that beautiful cars are lined up according to their category their class their genre and the fans are making their way in because this is a very special event now Newports history luxury and sport history definitely since the turn of the last century it has been a place where many firsts have happened and of course with luxury well that was a given for a lot of the lucky people who lived here and sport tennis golf polo motor racing but today I'm joined by Jay Leno which one of you which one of those do you resemble most yeah I got in a knife fight with a guy out of 65 Borg Ward Isabel and he stabbed me in the lip yes I'm bleeding a little bit class the Borg Ward Isabella no it's great fun I mean it's just the right number of cars you know 100 cars you can sometimes you go to these concours and this literally 1,500 cars it gets a little overwhelming this thing there's space between the vehicles you can walk around talk to the owner look at each car it's very nice it's really terrific I woke up this morning with that familiar feeling in my tummy like you know something's happening today it's a there's a sort of climax of competition that happens and it really is recorder sorry from the world of racing I'm back it looks like from you from the world the racing doctor good right here it's a fantastic suit but I thought you only stays didn't I Jay there you are I love that you see all my money went into the vehicles yeah I did not spend a dime on clothing as you can see but yeah you could get a suit collection not a car collection of the car collection yes so as you sitting here today you've been involved with Nick sauce building up this event you're very aware of how we get younger generation involved in what we do here 1330 about that that's what it was you know when I would come to car shows as a young person it's a bit discouraging because you see people put literally hundreds of thousand dollars into restoring cars and who's got that kind of money you know so it started with something I used to call the rattle candle war and I would always try to find the person who did the most amount of works and the least amount of money you know sanded it and their mother's garage to me I thought it'd be fun to take that sort of attitude to a conch or so a 30 under 30 is young people 30 years a younger that have put no more than $30,000 and restoring their and when you're at 24 that's a huge amount of money Jay thank you so much willy wonka's here he wants the suit back and are you gonna change before the show oh sorry you can borrow mine when we just and I were on the tour d'Elegance and we saw the town come out and they were lying in the road we thought of you we said that hadn't been really gratifying for you see young and old and it was like a big parade all the cars had just run it and they all drove the cars should just sit there not trailer Queens they don't do better over time sitting in a garage they do better doing what they're built to do so their kinetic art well the word is out there's a lot of people here that have been to all of the events all over the world and there's a lot of great events but there's some people that are pretty jaded that her eyes wide open that Jay Ward from Pixar said it best he said you guys didn't just kind of sneak into this he said you did a cannonball into the deep end of the pool I thought that was a perfect description of it but we're just getting started here yes this we expect to be an annual event and we expect to be able to help the town help the charities that we're working with for decades to come and we'd like to have a track record where everybody looks back and says this is done good for a lot of people that need it but thank you for all you've done and now it's time it's getting close to finding out who the winners are thank you for joining annek yeah Justin's going to go for his wife when you're walking around there is something that's like being an art gallery and you go oh my goodness look at this classic British beauties as well as some classic Rhode Island beauties what have you seen so far I mean everything it's been incredible talking with the owners learning more about the cars getting really educated it has been a phenomenal event one of the things that happens here you you realize also in your history lesson over here you have this huge Bentley it's stunning it actually I think I wore my suit today just to fit in with this but over here also 1929 you have this gorgeous DuPont Walter you have a sea otter a 1954 sea otter that I think you've had for an awful long time but are you nervous to see how the judges treat the your lovely lady you're always a little bit nervous good luck today all right take care and now we have some awards to get out we do indeed let it be known God that as here we have the first of our awards this 1953 rolls-royce Silver Ghost congratulations beautiful car no mistaking a Packard beautiful car most amazing he bought it new look how young he looks fantastic this is a very very unusual time this is class 5 sporting cars 1920s 1935 and it's the 1931 fellow not as well known as Bugatti but certainly engineered just as well and our next is the winner of class 8 and this is the 1964 Ferrari 250 GT Lusso ok here comes the exact opposite just American brute force right here big 4-4-2 there you go an Ultima Buell 4-4-2 can't get more American than that 1953 Fionna 203 s this is a really amazing Italian sports car powered by a 2 litre Fiat v8 end to the alcohol food and and I'm showing off yeah yeah you don't have to show it off it shows off the beautiful job guys a 1951 nash-healey Lomov prototype right okay our first driver without gray hair ladies and gentlemen okay this is the winner of the 30 out of 30 plus probably the most famous race car of all time sadly the the one car there's one more races than just about any in history isn't that correct it's not absolutely pretty amazing look at history Wow it goes and stops I like to know what one I'm sorry 1901 great pizza history pretty amazing fantastic have a nice round of applause for that lady got me and then now ladies and gentlemen what we've all been waiting for what a beautiful car that is look at that the inaugural winner of best of show in the audience conquered elegance is this amazing a sense of risky knee or by Joseph and Margit Cassini what an amazing week this has been Tommy we have seen this inaugural event climb the rollercoaster of expectation and like putting twos downhill skis on launch itself off the top that's a huge success well it was remarkable from the start and we got a sneak preview because we've been coming here for a number of months and an honor to be a part in it on the ground floor but I can't wait 363 days till next year and that's really what this event has been about everybody is creating a world's first here in Newport Rhode Island remember this is a place where history has been part of the fabric luxury and sports is what makes this place so special and as we look forward to next year remember the word is out you can tell everyone you were here for the first time\n"