© Rod Hatfield
Best of Show
As afternoon turned into evening on Sunday August 16 on the Monterey Peninsula, the sun continued to blaze brightly on a stunning, rare 1924 Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8A F. Ramseier & Cie Worblaufen Cabriolet, which took the Best of Show trophy at the 65th-annual Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.
© Rod Hatfield
By Special Request
One of the most renowned classic car competitions in the world, the Pebble Beach Concours draws well-heeled entrants from all corners of the planet. The Concours is by invitation only, so simply to be asked to show a car on the 18th fairway of the Pebble Beach Golf Links is an honor.
© Rod Hatfield
Thrilling Win
According to past Pebble Concours winners, taking home the Best of Show trophy once is amazing, but winning twice — as Isotta owner Jim Patterson of Louisville, Kentucky, just achieved — is even more unbelievably thrilling.
© Rod Hatfield
Second Victory
Even though it was Patterson’s second Best of Show win, the taste of victory was no less sweet. “If you win at Pebble Beach, you’ve done it. Nothing else compares,” he said in a post-Concours interview. He also noted that winning the Concours once was like winning the Kentucky Derby, but twice was akin to “winning the Super Bowl.”
© Rod Hatfield
A One-Off
A mouthful to pronounce, the Isotta Fraschini Tipo is a one-off custom-built cabriolet (convertible) built by Carrosserie Worblaufen, after the coachbuilder acquired the car in 1931 to construct a Sport Cabriolet on the long-wheelbase chassis.
© Rod Hatfield
Winner From the Start
The completed car debuted at the 1932 Geneva Motor Show before winning the Grand-Prix d’Honneur at Cannes in 1933. Although it was rebodied in 1932, the Isotta is still considered a 1924 model. The car has had a total of four owners in Switzerland and France before coming to North America in 2014.
© Rod Hatfield
Surprising Win
The 20,000 or so auto enthusiasts in attendance at Pebble Beach were as surprised at the victory as the car’s owner. “It’s more exciting this year than it was before, because this year we had tremendous competition. Sam and Emily Mann had a fantastic car,” Patterson said. (Mann’s 1937 Delahaye won a different award as the most elegant convertible of this year’s Concours.) “I really kind of expected them to win, so I’m sort of overwhelmed,” admitted a humble Patterson.
© Rod Hatfield
Patience Rewarded
Patterson had his eye on the 1924 Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8A F. Ramseier & Cie Worblaufen Cabriolet for some time, but could not buy it until last year. “We’ve known about it for a dozen years and I was unable to get it,” he noted. “It showed up at an auction in Paris a couple of years ago and we were grateful then to have the opportunity to buy it,” explained Patterson.
© Rod Hatfield
More Competition Abroad
“We’re thinking about whether to go to Villa d’Este with it,” Patterson said. “It’s an Italian car, with a Swiss body. Villa d’Este loves Italian cars so we’ll see,” he noted. A traditional classic car show held each May in Italy, Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este was originally held in 1929 and revived in the 1990s.
© Rod Hatfield
Best of Show
Best of Show
Best of Show
Best of Show
Best of Show
Best of Show
Best of Show
Best of Show
Best of Show
Best of Show
Best of Show
Best of Show
Best of Show
Best of Show
Best of Show
Best of Show
Best of Show
Best of Show
