Judging the Orphans…

Sometimes a good deed is returned as a very nice and unexpected reward. This all started when I helped a friend’s friend out with a small favor, and that guy being helped happened to be Bill Warner, who runs the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance. We struck up a great conversation that covered everything from Edsel Ford‘s Roadster and best designs of the 1930s, to what a great racing driver Paul Newman really was. The day ended with Bill inviting me to come judge at Amelia this year, which I figured was just a gesture of kindness- Until the official invitation showed up in the mail! Recently I found out my judging class, and couldn’t be more excited about what they threw my way: Orphan Concept Cars of the 1950s! Among the savory vehicles entered will be the 1954 DeSoto Adventurer II, a Hudson Italia Coupe (1 of 26 built), and the 1954 Mercury XM 800 Concept. To be honest, I’ve never really judged anything like a Concours, so this will be really interesting for me. I plan to read up on each car entered and study period photos about what is absolutely correct for each vehicle in terms of colors, materials, trim, etc. Sure, it sounds geeky, but I take my orphans very seriously…