A 1909 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost owned by DeNean Stafford III of Tifton, Georgia, won Best of Show honors Sunday at the inaugural Atlanta Concours d’Elegance at Chateau Elan.
The car, believed to be on the only short-wheelbase chassis of its kind, went to Atlanta after earning best in class honors at Pebble Beach.
Winning Best of Show among post-war cars was a 1961 Maserati Frua prototype owned by Elton Stevens of Birmingham, Alabama. The car, one of two 1961 Maserati prototypes designed by Carozzeria Frua of Torino, previously won its class at Amelia Island.
One of the focuses of the Atlanta show is bringing together cars that have won class honors at the major American concours.
“The quality of cars at this all-new event was extraordinarily high in each and every class, and the two cars that won the top two awards were world-class cars that would be eligible for top awards at any concours in the world,” Keith Martin, the honorary head judge and publisher of Sports Car Market magazine, was quoted in the Atlanta Concours news release.
Event co-chairmen Harry Krix and Bill Wallet staged the first major collector car showcase in the Atlanta area and drew a field of more than 100 cars, 80 percent of them already class winners at other concours.
“We had an impressive field of cars that were clearly a tribute to the heritage and history of the automobile – with collections highlighting the turn of the 20th Century as well as some of the most remarkable and rare innovations of our time,” Krix said.
“Our goal was to offer a program that encapsulated more than the average show and engage both aficionados and attendees with world-class offerings not often found in our local community, and regarded among the very best of the best.”
Other cars winning awards included:
- The sixth 1961 Jaguar XK-E built, winning in the British Sports 1961-1976 category;
- An original-owner, 41,000-mile 1971 BMW Tii that won the Preservation award;
- A 1955 Chevrolet Corvette, owned by Georgian Carolyn Sikes, that won the American Class Sports Cars up to 1972 class;
- A 1956 Chevrolet Nomad that won the Post War 1946-1960 class.
