The event previously known as the Meadow Brook Concours d’Elegance will now be using its legally recognized name, Concours d’Elegance of America, beginning with the 2010 event scheduled for July 25 at the Meadow Brook estate.
Founded in 1977, the Concours was originally operated by the Meadow Brook Hall and has been held on the grounds of the Meadow Brook estate, located on the campus of Oakland University in Rochester Hills, Michigan since its inception. In 2004 the event established a separate Board of Directors and became a registered non-profit 501 (c) (3) entity as the “Concours d’Elegance of America.”
In addition, the Concours d’Elegance of America Board of Directors announced that James McCarter will become Executive Director for the event. McCarter, a Michigan native and car guy from the very start, completed Chrysler’s MoTech Automotive Training Program before going on to earn an English degree from the University of Wisconsin—Milwaukee.
McCarter’s professional background includes the founding and publishing of The Shepherd Express, a weekly newspaper in Milwaukee, from 1982 to 1990. From there he went on to publish newspapers in Minnesota and Michigan, including the Metro Times in Detroit, Michigan from 1995 to 2001. After leaving Metro Times, McCarter worked at Michigan Web Press where he developed press management software and became the first publisher of the LA View, a successful weekly newspaper in Lapeer County. Most recently, McCarter held the position of Marketplace Advertising Director at Automotive News in Detroit.
“I feel like my entire career has been in preparation for this position,” said McCarter. “The Concours d’Elegance of America is the finest annual exhibition of automobiles in the world, bar none. Keeping this unique event here in Michigan will require a bit of everything I’ve learned over the years: sales, marketing, publishing, public relations and community service.”
McCarter says the key to creating this great event lies in the car selection process. “The Concours in essence is an art exhibit: once per year curators bring together works of art for a one day display at Meadow Brook. And these machines are not chosen by me. They are culled from thousands of candidates by our car selection committee, which is comprised of 20 of the most knowledgeable automobile scholars, designers, engineers and collectors in the world.”
The 2010 Concours d’Elegance of America at Meadow Brook schedule of events takes place the week of July 19, including RM Auctions’ 16th annual “Vintage Motor Cars of Meadow Brook” sale, a motoring tour of vintage cars through Michigan’s north Oakland County and a gala celebration.
The Concours itself is scheduled for Sunday, July 25 at Meadow Brook. The breadth of cars scheduled for the show field is illustrated in the variety of the featured automobile classes for 2010, including:
— Celebrity Owned Cars of the Classic Era
— Space Age Sport Coupes from the 1950s and ‘60s
— Speedsters and Sport Roadsters
— “Best of Detroit” – The cars that made Detroit great
— Ridler-Award Winners
— Factory Experimental Cars – Drag Cars of the ‘60s
— Classics, Brass, ACD, Sports Cars, European Luxury, Muscle and more
Held annually each summer on the historic grounds of Meadow Brook Hall in Rochester Michigan, the Concours d’Elegance of America at Meadow Brook is considered one of the most prestigious classic automobile exhibitions in the world. For more information, visit www.mbconcours.org or call 248.643.8645.
See 2009 Meadow Brook Concours d’Elegance Photo Gallery.
[Source: Concours d’Elegance of America at Meadow Brook]
