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2005 Palm Beach Cavallino Classic XIV
By: Drew Phillips
Photos by the author
February 06, 2005

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Ferrari owners on the east coast who didn't get the chance to make the trek to Monterey in August got their chance to mingle with dozens of other prancing horses this January at the fourteenth Cavallino Classic in Palm Beach, Florida. The Cavallino Classic is regarded as one of the premier automotive events in the world with racing at Moroso Motorsports Park, a driving tour through Palm Beach, a Ferrari-only concours, and this year also saw the addition of the Palm Beach International Concours.

The series of events started off at Moroso Motorsports Park just north of Palm Beach where Ferrari owners were treated to four full days on the track. Tuesday and Wednesday were private days for owners only, but Thursday and Friday were open to the public. There were all types of Ferraris on the track including everything from vintage to current models, and a mix of road and race cars. The high point of the four days was on Friday when the vintage Ferraris and Maseratis competed in the first Shell Ferrari/Maserati Historic Challenge Race of the 2005 season. The racing series is for pre-1980 original competition Ferraris and Maseratis, giving spectators a view at some of the most coveted Ferrari race cars of all time in action on the track. The cars were divided into two groups, the Drum Brake Class, and the Disc Brake Class. In the Drum Brake Class, Peter Giddings captured the pole in his Maserati 250 F and led half of the race until he dropped out with a driveline failure. Carlos Monteverde took advantage of Gidding's misfortune and finished first in the group in his 250 Testarossa. The Disc Brake Class provided some more racing action than the older cars, with a battle for the lead between two great drivers in two great cars. Ed Davies started at poll with a 512 M followed by Todd Morici in a 512 BB/LM. Morici passed Davies several laps into the race but could only keep the lead for a few laps. After regaining the lead, Davies stayed just ahead of Morici for the rest of the race and crossed the finish line a car length ahead.

Also preceding the main events on the weekend were several private activities for Ferrari owners. The schedule of events included a grand driving tour of Palm Beach and a private reception at the Palm Beach International Airport.

After spending several days at the track, it was finally time for the Concorso d’Eleganza on the lawn of the Breakers hotel in West Palm Beach. The perfect mid-January weather would have made any other area of the country jealous. Several of Enzo's finest were on display on the lawn including Pebble Beach class-winners, several very early and rare models, race cars, and some of the best examples of models like the Dino 246 GT, 328, and F355. Many people also got their first view of the new F430 of which there were two. Each was constantly crowded with viewers inspecting every detail of the car, making comments, and comparing it to the 360 Modena. Throughout the day one of them was started up, and the new 4.3-liter V8 was revved to redline for the listening pleasure of everyone at the show. The main focus, however, was on the Ferraris entered in the show. The cars were judged throughout the day, and awards were presented later on that evening. Some of the awarded cars included:

Scuderia Ferrari Cup - Best of Show Competition Ferrari
1953 340/375 MM Berlinetta S/N 0322AM owned by John Shirley
Gran Turismo Ferrari Cup - Best of Show GT Ferrari
1955 375 MM Speciale S/N 0490MM owned by Manny Del Arroz
Vintage Preservation Cup - Outstanding Original Preserved Condition Pre-1975
1950 166/195 Inter Vignale Coupe S/N 071S owned by Stephen Dudley
Classic Preservation Cup - Outstanding Original Preserved Condition 1975-1990
1986 328 GTB S/N 63333 owned by Charles Scardina
La Coppa Per Dodici Cilindri - Outstanding 12-Cylinder Ferrari
1957 250 GT Zagato Coupe S/N 0665GT owned by Lee Herrington
La Coppa Per Otto Cilindri - Outstanding 8-Cylinder Ferrari
1999 F355 F1 Spyder Fiorano S/N 115937 owned by Bill and Karen McLaughlin
La Coppa Per Sei Cilindri - Outstanding 6-Cylinder Ferrari
1973 246 GT S/N 05816 owned by Cheryl Scardina
La Coppa Per Quattro Cilindri - Outstanding 4-Cylinder Ferrari
1955 750 Monza Spyder 246 GT S/N 0502M owned by Bruce Perrone

In previous years, the concours on the breakers was the last event of the week, but this year was the inaugural Palm Beach International Concours d'Elegance on the following day. The event's organizer, Andrew Carduner, explained his idea behind the show: "The cars are the stars at the Palm Beach International. The Concours will feel like an elegant garden party, where spectators and car enthusiasts have the opportunity to see some of the world's rarest and most famous cars." Carduner lived up to his words with the first-time event, with a fabulous line-up of cars and a beautiful setting at the Palm Beach Polo Fields. Cars were displayed far apart, so it was easy to see each one without being crowded by other spectators, and the weather cooperated for most of the day with only some small showers in the late morning. Some of the feature cars included four race cars built by Cunningham and several Ferraris from the concours the day before. Keith Martin of Sports Car Market acted as master of ceremonies and announced the class winners for the show. Unlike most shows, the owners of the cars judged the cars in their own class, and the public got to decide the best of show. No one was surprised when a beautiful Bugatti Type 57 C won best of show.

Palm Beach really has organized quite a nice week. There was a nice mix of cars with cars in action along with cars on the green and plenty of sunshine to go along with each. The multitude of events almost made me reminiscent of Monterey four months prior, except maybe without as much stress. Throw in a few auctions and maybe another show or two and Monterey might just have some competition for hosting everyone's favorite automotive week in the year! On the other hand, it was nice having low key events and not having to deal with the crowds and parking issues. Either way, I expect the Cavallino Classic Weekend to quickly become one of my favorite events of the year.