Early tickets available to the 2012 Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance

The 17th-annual Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance is set for March 9-11, 2012, at the Ritz-Carlton Amelia Island Resort in Florida. Tickets to all of the events are on sale now online at www.ameliaconcours.org.

Discounted tickets to the main events are $50 per adult and $25 for youths ages 12-18. At the gate, adult tickets are $60, $25 for youths and $25 for active-duty military personnel with identification. Children younger than 12 are admitted free on March 11 with a paying adult.

Club Amelia membership is also available in advance online. Club membership entitles guests to breakfast, lunch, a snack and three drink tickets for the club's private bar in the pavilion. Club membership costs $300. An official program is included, as is one VIP parking pass valid from Thursday to Sunday. Members are also given an autographed poster of 2012 honoree Vic Elford and a special gift.

In addition to the concours, the weekend includes the Cobra vs. Ferrari seminar at 4 p.m. on Friday. The event will feature a panel of engineers, drivers and entrants who competed for the two teams at Le Mans, Daytona and Sebring. Tickets are $25 per person while supplies last.

On Saturday, the Talbot Room at the Ritz-Carlton will host the “Great Endurance Drivers” seminar at 10:30 a.m. with Elford and special guests Sam Posey, Hurley Haywood, Joe Buzzeta, Derek Bell and Brian Redman. Tickets are $25 for this event as well.

Other events include the Rolls-Royce Winemakers dinner on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. (tickets are $250), and the Porsche Driving Experience on Saturday at the Fernandina Beach Municipal Airport at 7:30 a.m. The entry fee is $175 per car.

By Jake Lingeman