$200m-worth of Ferrari 250GTOs lined the streets of Carmel, California on 18 August as Pebble Beach’s annual Tour d’Elegance gave locals and visitors a preview of the spectacular line-up for Sunday’s Concours d’Elegance.
Eight of the 36 legendary Maranello sports-racers – considered by many enthusiasts to be the most desirable cars in the world – were among the 150-plus entrants in the tour, the voluntary annual run through the Monterey area that precedes the static displays on the fairways of Pebble Beach golf course.
The 70-mile tour – participation in which is used as a tie-breaker in the event of a class tie in Sunday’s concours – featured a lunch stop in the upmarket seaside town, with the cars packed three lines deep across the high street.
The 250GTOs are a highlight of this year’s concours, which marks the iconic track-slaying sports-racer’s golden anniversary with a dedicated class, while the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion at nearby Laguna Seca circuit will host a GTO-only race on Saturday.
Also sharing the limelight on the 50th front at Pebble is Jaguar’s E-type, and the event will include a static display of the famous Lightweight racing variants.
Pebble will also raise a glass to Mercedes-Benz this year, which celebrates 125 years of car-making, with no less than five classes (including one dedicated to celebrating preserved cars) allocated to the famous Stuttgart badge.
A selection of photographs from today's tour follows. Double click on the lead picture to launch a slideshow of all the images.
Eric Hereema's 1962 250GTO on 17 Mile Drive
Frank Spellman's 29,000-mile, stored-for-30-years 1963 Mercedes-Benz 300SL featured its original factory luggage (a $150 option at the time)...
...as well as period skis.
