California's crawlin' with concours

If you live in California or if you might be coming through, here are some car-related events you'll want to see. You may even want to make a special trip to see them.

Feb. 24: Desert Classic Concours, Desert Princess Country Club and Doral Desert Princess Resort. This show suffered a tumultuous offseason but after great dedication by supporters and organizer/founder Paul Merrigan, it's ready to go again. The theme for this year's show is “Year of the Winners,” featuring concours and race winners from throughout the years. See the greatest from Pebble Beach, Villa d'Este and Amelia Island. Since this is its 60th anniversary, there will also be a special tribute to the Corvette that will honor racer, tuner and all-around great guy Dick Guldstrand. Things start Feb. 23 with a classic road tour and an entrant and VIP reception. The concours itself is Sunday, Feb. 24, on the golf course of the Desert Princess Country Club and the Doral Desert Princess Resort. It's a few blocks from Palm Springs Airport, so fly in and check it out.

March 1-2: Corvette 60th Anniversary at the Petersen Automotive Museum. First, there's a special exhibit featuring 20 Corvettes from all generations. Corvette concept cars will be on display as well. That's in the museum from Feb. 27 to March 31. On March 1 there will be a Corvette-values seminar, “What's Your Corvette Worth in Today's Market?” from 2-3:30 p.m. The seminar is followed by a Corvette panel discussion featuring Corvette icons that will be announced in the near future. Then at 6p.m. is the Gala: cocktails, dinner, memorabilia auction and another panel discussion. March 2 is Corvette Show Day, where the entire multilevel Petersen parking structure is taken over by your favorite two-seater. There will also be a restoration seminar on that day.

April 7: La Jolla Concours d'Elegance. Now in its ninth year, this fun event just above the Pacific Ocean fills the Ellen Browning Scripps Park with great classic cars. This year, organizers say, those will include Rolls-Royce, Bentley, Bugatti, Cadillac and Duesenberg.

April 27-28: Pacific Coast Dream Machines brings a truly unique assembly of classic cars and airplanes to Half Moon Bay Airport, just 20 miles down the coast from San Francisco. We've been a couple times and it's really neat. Most guys who like cars also appreciate planes and you get plenty of both. Show organizers promise “automobiles ranging from hot rods, dragsters, customs, low riders, imports, street machines and muscle cars to fanciful touring, luxury, and sports cars; also exceptional vintage warbirds, classics from the '40s and '50s and homebuilt aircraft, tricked out trucks and motorcycles, custom bicycles, Model T fire engines, antique engines and tractors, helicopter and plane rides, kinetic art, rolling sculptures, extreme toys, mega-modified machines, military vehicles, a display of advanced 'green' technology vehicles, a super-gnarly Demolition Derby Championship, Unimotorcycle Racing, monster truck rides, go-kart rides, kid's amusements, food and live music…”

May 19: Marin Sonoma Concours. This year's gathering features cars owned by movie stars, the 50th anniversaries of the Corvette Sting Ray and Lamborghini, Italian motorcycles, woodies and vintage campers and trailers. Look for it at the Marin Civic Center in San Rafael from 10-4. Also: Cars of Steve Moal and cars of “Japanese Manufacture.” The tour is May 18 and ends at Sonoma Raceway.

June 9: The San Marino Motor Classic is a fun show with a wide variety of cars parked on the ginormous lawn of Lacy Park in San Marino. San Marino was old money when Beverly Hills was farmland. Look for everything from microcars to Duesenbergs with Ferraris, Porsches, Corvettes and Lotii in there as well. Things start Friday, June 7, with cocktails at the Annandale Country Club. On Saturday there's an architectural tour, followed by a Gala benefiting the Petersen Automotive Museum. On Sunday is the show.

June 23: Dana Point Concours d'Elegance, Monarch Beach Golf Links at the St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort. Always a great collection of cars and motorcycles, this year will include the Orange County Collector Car & Motorcycle Weekend, which includes a tour of Camp Pendleton Marine Base on June 21.

By Mark Vaughn