Some say continuous progress is the only thing standing between you and outrageous success.
Well, brace yourself, Chattanooga, because outrageous success has arrived. Over the course of three brief years, the Chattanooga Motorcar Festival has continuously refined and, in many cases, redefined the motorcar festival experience.
In the process, they’ve once again delivered a world-class automotive celebration to the downtown streets of the Scenic City. Fortunately, this was a three-day event because with so much going on, you needed every moment.
Here are some of the activities that were on tap for the weekend.
- The Concours d’Elegance
- The Canossa Fall Rally Chattanooga
- The Pace Grand Prix at the Bend
- The Gathering of the Greats Ferrari Edition
- The Mecum Auctions event
- The Family Fun Zone includes a Ferris wheel, carnival swing, yard games, and a drawing zone.
- V8’s in the Village, along with the hilarious Concours d’Lemons.
- Street festivals, live music, and food trucks.
Canossa Fall Rally
Yes, this was a weekend event, but the fun started early on Thursday with the Canossa Fall Rally.
This year, the Canossa Fall Rally Chattanooga ran on Thursday and Friday through the picturesque Tennessee countryside. Top Prize honors went to Michael and Elena Haskew, who answered the most riddles correctly while driving their 2021 Ford Mustang Cabriolet.
Two Special Achievement Awards were also presented. Oldest Car went to Greg and Jess Porter for their 1925 3-liter Bentley and the Most Unusual Car award was earned by the 1973 VW “Thing,” driven by Jerohn Anderson and Will Gock.
Beyond the Fall Rally, Luigi Orlandini, Chairman and CEO of Canossa Events, spoke about the goal of this event. “It was an important mission for Canossa to support Byron DeFoor and his dedicated Chattanooga Motorcar Festival team in his quest to help find a cure for Alzheimer’s disease.”
“The Canossa rally was the natural way for us to support this fantastic event, and we thank everyone for their participation.”
River City Corvette Club
Back by popular demand, the stunning cars of the River City Corvette Club (RCCC) lined the main thoroughfare. So in many ways, the Chattanooga festival is right down this club’s alley.
RCCC began in 1992, so Corvette owners could meet and share their pride in ownership. Given the constant crowds surrounding their glistening Corvettes, this motorcar festival provided the perfect opportunity to do just that.
The fun, unassuming nature of this club also shows itself in other ways, especially when it comes to prospective new club members. RCCC makes it easy because they recognize all Corvettes as classics and welcome owners of any year to become a member.
As you might suspect, River City Corvette Club, Inc is a non-profit, tax-exempt organization in which the net proceeds from their events help support local charities.
And to round it out, River City Corvette Club, Inc is a member of the National Corvette Museum.
Mecum Auction Brings Excitement
There is a collective energy to a Mecum Auction that is, in a word, palatable. This year’s Chattanooga auction showed the same incredible verve and excitement as last year’s record-setting event.
Once again, the array of vehicles up for auction was diverse, the bidding spirited, and the crowd energy sky-high. But, even if you didn’t take home a shiny new car, you had to marvel at this event’s flow and precise choreography.
Judging by the remarks of Dave Magers, CEO of Mecum Auctions, the auction was another success. “We were very happy to be a part of another very successful Chattanooga Motorcar Festival and to be once again invited by Byron DeFoor, (event founder) and his group to join the event.”
“The Mecum Chattanooga auction once again exceeded our expectations, and we look forward to joining Byron and the Chattanooga Motorcar Festival for many jointly successful events in the future.”
The Grand Marshal’s Perspective
For 2022, the Grand Marshal honors were bestowed to former Indianapolis race car driver Lyn St. James. For the 1992 Indy 500 Rookie of the Year, this was her second year in attendance.
While Lyn enjoyed the various events, she was excited about the road course competition. When asked to share her thoughts, she said, “It’s a fabulous event. It had all the elements it had last year when I was here for the first time.”
“It is a unique set of circumstances to have all the racing elements they have. The race track was an improvement, and so much fun to be out there.”
“I think that the competitors enjoyed it. The classic cars and the quality of the race cars have improved, as well as the layout. And, of course, the weather cooperated, which was fabulous.”
“It’s a quality event with quality people attending as well as presenting and participating. It was an honor to be the Grand Marshal.”
National Concours Prominence
The Concourse d’Elegance portion of the Chattanooga Motorcar Festival has quickly risen from regional notoriety three years ago to national prominence.
Need poof? Look no further than the breadth and depth of the nationally-heralded entrant field.
All told, there were approximately 125 pristine vehicles in 21 various classes, plus a host of carefully curated exhibition cars. The competition was fierce within the multiple groupings, with only a razor-thin margin separating many competitors.
For brevity’s sake, we’ve listed only a handful of the 2022 classes & winners.
Ferrari Class – Super Cars
1. Outstanding in Class: Bruce Ellison – 2015 Ferrari 458 Speciale
2. First in Class: Kevin Cogan – 2003 Ferrari Enzo
Class 2: Prewar Special Interest, presented by Wayne Carini
1. Outstanding in Class: Chris Levan – 1937 Ford Sedan Delivery
2. First in Class: Mark Becker – 1936 Chrysler Airflow
Class 2A: Prewar American Classic, presented by Mike Haskey, Millennium Bank
1. Outstanding in Class: Greg Ornazian – 1929 Cord L29 #72
2. First in Class: Travis LaVine – 1937 Cord 812 Phaeton
Class 3: Prewar European Classic, presented by Tom Cotter
1. Outstanding in Class: Jon Dega – 1938 Lancia Astura Tipo 241
2. First in Class: Jon Dega – 1938 Lancia Astura Tipo 241
Class 5: Postwar American Special Interest, presented by Judy Stropus
1. Outstanding in Class: James Wagon – 1957 Cadillac Model 62 Convertible
2. First in Class: Kayo Erwin – 1960 Chevrolet Impala
Class 6: Postwar American Sports, presented by Ken Gross
1. Outstanding in Class: Brad Bean – 1960 Chevrolet Corvette
2. First in Class: Kayo Erwin – 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Split Window Couple
Best of Show
1. Laura and Jack Boyd Smith Jr. – 1937 Cord 812 Phaeton
Festival For Charity
The Festival did a masterful job weaving its support for neuroscience research throughout the weekend. Their charitable cause of choice is the NeuroScience Innovation Foundation.
This foundation provides valuable analysis and brings advances in neurological medicine for the benefit of all. Proceeds from the Festival supported their neuroscience research and Fifty Plus Foundation, Inc.
Perhaps it was Ray Evernham, a member of the NASCAR Hall of Fame, who best summed up the 2022 Chattanooga Motorcar Festival. Ray said, “I like the excitement. What’s different for me this year is the amazing level of growth here.”
“You can see the commitment to improving it every year. There’s something electric here. I love what the Festival has done with Tommy Kendall and Justin Bell with the Torque Show and the new design of the race track.”
“So many things,” Ray went on to say, “have improved almost exponentially over the last year, and the number of people attending amazes me.”
Having experienced this event ourselves, we’d have to agree with Ray Evernham. The 2022 Chattanooga Motorcar Festival delivered a world-class event once again.
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