Published in Monterey Car Week (The Quail A Motorsports Gathering)
By D. Brian Smith
Photography: D. Brian Smith
Having covered many great automotive events during Monterey Car Week over the years, we have always heard great things about The Quail A Motorsports Gathering. Indeed, The Quail A Motorsports Gathering is supposed to be the hardest event of the week to go and see. There are a limited number of tickets sold for the show. In addition, very few press credentials are given out to automotive press for covering The Quail A Motorsports Gathering.
The Quail A Motorsports Gathering
For many years the editors of Monterey Car Week, Redline Review and Autobahn Buzz always had a scheduling conflict. The Quail A Motorsports Gathering takes place on Friday of Monterey Car Week. This is traditionally when the Concorso Italiano occurs and the Vintage Historic Races at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca begin for the end of MCW (Friday, Saturday, Sunday).
Fortunately for the editors of Monterey Car Week, Autobahn Buzz and Redline Review, Concorso Italiano moved back to the ending Saturday of MCW. This enabled us to apply for and be granted the coveted press credentials to be a part of The Quail A Motorsports Gathering on Friday. Since we had already been accepted to cover the Concorso Italiano on Saturday, we now had a new event to provide coverage for our readers.
Held at the Quail Lodge in Carmel, California, The Quail A Motorsports Gathering is an amazing way to spend your Friday during Monterey Car Week. The producers of this event take a lavishly casual approach to car worship and curate an exceptional array of automobiles for event patrons to admire. I spoke to a woman who had her grandkids climbing around in a vintage 289 Cobra on display that she and her husband have owned for over 30 years. She shared that coming to the Quail every year is like coming to see old friends. I thought to myself, what a great way to be in the old car hobby. Have a famous 289 Cobra that has race provenance and show it every year at the same fabulous event, so you can also see old friends. Cool stuff!
Though the automobiles on display are the stuff of legend, there is also a festive atmosphere about the show. This is mainly so due to the way guests are treated. Going to The Quail A Motorsports Gathering is almost like attending a tastes of Carmel outdoor barbecue or picnic. There are no less than five different venues to enjoy various gustatory delights and imbibe some tasty adult beverages. When I showed up to cover the event, I thought I was just going to be impressed by a field of timeless and sometimes priceless automobiles. What I found to be the case was much more than I imagined.
The Quail A Motorsports Gathering is the best and perfect way to spend your Friday during Monterey Car Week. Cheers and thank you to the producers of this fabulous bbq with friends and our favorite automobiles. Monterey Car Week hopes to be back next year.
