Atlanta's 8th Annual Italian Car Day,
was held at Kurt's Restaurant, 4225 River Green Parkway, Duluth, Georgia 30096. Restaurant information and map to
venue. http://www.kurtsrestaurant.com/
Because of other commitments that came up at the last minute, I was not able to participate in the show this year, but I did spend a few minutes at the beginning of the show and took some pictures of the cars that had arrived by 10:30. Many other Italian cars and a few more Panteras arrived after I left.
Message from John Montgomery, ICD Coordinator
Atlanta's 8th Annual Italian Car Day was held under sunny skies on
Saturday, October 2nd, 2004 at Kurt's Restaurant in Duluth, GA. Italian
marques from Fiat to Ferrari graced the manicured landscape, along with new
and vintage Italian cycles, grouped together by marque within the intimate
setting of Kurt's lawn and grounds. Guests and spectators were once again
admitted free, greeted by a hot cup of our traditional cappuccino, served in
the cool of the morning on a clear Indian summer day by host car club Fiat
Lancia Unlimited.
Twelve Italian marques competed this year for 1st, 2nd and 3rd place trophies
in nine designated classes. Each registered owner received a ballot, and was
permitted to vote for one vehicle in each class. The 1st, 2nd and 3rd place
awards are selected by peers; the collective group of owners were entrusted to
carefully select the winning car for each marque.
Italian Car Day owners also recognized "Best Modified" and the coveted "Best of Show" award, selected most honorably by peers from the entire group of owners.
This year the general audience also participated by voting for "The car I would most like to drive home," sponsored by Lamborghini Atlanta.
Italian Car Day enjoyed the support of thirty sponsors this year, who collectively contributed over $3000 in raffle prizes. Registered owners also received a free copy of Keith Martin's Sports Car Market magazine, one free raffle ticket and sponsor literature, all contained in an official "Ferrari of Atlanta" show bag.
A talented live band called "Inside" (
http://www.insidetheband.com/) played for guests all day while professional photographer Sylvester Berger captured images of the show for owners and for the historical record.Kurt's Restaurant served a fine Italian buffet lunch, drink and dessert at noon for a very reasonable $12 /adult. Kurt's also offered an excellent selection of beverages with a cash bar. Patrons enjoyed viewing hundreds of racing lithographs, photographs & racing memorabilia located throughout the restaurant; the vast collection of owner and enthusiast Kurt Eisele.
This year's attendance of registered cars is as follows:
Alfa: 32 cars
Ferrari 25 (plus new dealer cars)
Fiat 13
Lamborghini 5 (plus new dealer cars)
Lancia 6
Maserati 5
deTomaso Pantera 11
Open Class 2 (Iso Rivolta & Italia)
Italian Cycle 4 (Benelli, Moto Guzzi, Vespa)
Several dealer cars were on display including a new Maserati Gran Sport, a Ferrari 575 as well as a new Lamborghini Murcielago and three new Lamborghini Gallardos. Vespa Atlanta also displayed the new Vespa scooters.
Winnners for each marque were as follows:
Alfa Romeo (Sponsored by Auto Delta)
1st Place: Mark Strohauer / 1959 Alfa Roadster
2nd Place: Joe Dolgetta / 1974 Alfa GTV 2000
3rd Place: W.L. Wagnon / Alfa GTV 1750
Ferrari (Sponsored by Ferrari of Atlanta)
1st Place: Alan Boe / Ferrari 250 GTE 2+2
2nd Place: Bill Foree / Ferrari 365 GT 2+2
3rd Place: Tom Mabon/ Ferrari 365 GTB
Fiat (Sponsored by Fiat Lancia Unlimited)
1st Place: Bob Stanek / 1965 Fiat 1500 Cabriolet
2nd Place: Garrett Weiss / 1964 Fiat 600D
3rd Place: Tim Vacarro / 1981 Fiat Abarth 131
Lamborghini (Sponsored by Onsite Shine, Inc.)
1st Place: Vail Frost / 1988 Countach
2nd Place: Don White / 1974 Uracco S
3rd Place: Vail Frost / 1972 Espada
Lancia (Sponsored by Fiat Lancia Unlimited)
1st Place: Bud McIntyre / Lancia Fulvia Zagato
2nd Place: Jeff Davison / 1976 Lancia Scorpion
3rd Place: Dave Weaver / 1979 Lancia Beta Coupe
Maserati (Sponsored by Maserati of Atlanta)
1st Place: Ivan Ruiz / Ghibli SS
2nd Place: Kirk Stevenson / Ghibli
3rd Place: Dick Preston / 1975 Merak
de Tomaso (Sponsored by Mortgage Capital)
1st Place: Dick Koch / 1974 Pantera
2nd Place: Dan Hough / Pantera
3rd Place: Andy Smith / Pantera
Open Class
1st Place: John Apen / Italia
2nd Place: Gary Goldstien / Iso Rivolta
Italian Cycle
1st Place: Ian Atkins / 1970 Moto Guzzi Ambassador
2nd Place: Tom Sanor / 1982 Benelli 900 Sei
3rd Place: John D. Linton / 1973 Moto Guzzi Eldorado
Best Modified (sponsored by Atlanta Dent Company)
Dick Koch / 1974 Pantera
Best of Show (sponsored by Flashback Motorworks)
Mark Strohauer / 1959 Alfa Roadster
Congratulations to all the winners and "thank you" to all ICD trophy sponsors listed above.
This year's Italian Car Day was sponsored by the following organizations.
They made this year's show possible! Please thank them with your business
through the year.
Atlanta Dent Company, Blair Kirkpatrick, 404-787-2233
Auto Delta, 3698 Clairmont Road, Atlanta, GA, 770-451-2277
Automod, 5940 Peachtree Rd., Atlanta, GA, 30341 770-457-9663
Bayless Fiat Lancia World, 770-928-1446, 1-800-241-1446
Car Care America, Suwanee, GA, Bob Menzies 770-614-4667
Classic Motorsports Magazine,
Constellation Car Care, Stellar Detailing Service, 770-416-6306
Ferrari Of Atlanta, Roswell, GA, Carson Cornell, 678-802-5000
Ferrari Market Letter, http://www.ferrarimarketletter.com/, 770-381-1993
Fiat Auto Services, Duluth, GA, Dave Weaver 770-623-4680
Fiat Lancia Unlimited, http://www.flu.org/, 864-304-6537
Flashback Motorworks, Auto Restoration/Storage, 770-781-8989
Frozen Rotors, H.P. Brake Rotors, frozenrotors.com, 888-323-8456
Gran Turismo East, Tires, Balance & Alignment, 770-455-0347
Inside http://www.insidetheband.com/, Musician Tony Haney, 770-712-3934
International Auto Parts, Alfa/Fiat Parts 1-800-726-0555
Keith Plaques, Jeff Allen, 770-451-5574
Kurt's Restaurant, http://www.kurtsrestaurant.com/, 770-623-4128
Lamborghini Atlanta, 7360 Roswell Road, Atlanta, 770-394-4234
Maserati of Atlanta, Roswell, GA, Carson Cornell, 678-802-5000
Mortgage Capital, Harry Coker, 404-542-6227
Onsite Shine, Atlanta's Most Wanted Prof. Detailing, 770-596-1471
Scaledetails.com, 1/8 Pocher Ferrari models, 770-932-6849
S.O.S., Standard Office Systems, Julie Montgomery, 770-449-9101 x 1224
Sports Car Market Magazine, http://www.sportscarmarket.com/
Sylvester Berger Photography, Atlanta, GA 404-294-7124
T. Rutland's & Maranello Auto Parts, 770-493-8852
Vespa Atlanta, http://www.vespaatlanta.com/, 678-417-6447
Vick Autosports, http://www.vickauto.com/, Alfa/Fiat 1-800-466-3428
Special thanks to Kurt Eisele, his wife Vreny, son Alexander Eisele and the team at Kurt's Restaurant for the wonderful venue and catering services! Remember to consider Kurt's when selecting your next fine dining experience.
Thanks to the following volunteers who made Italian Car Day another successful show:
Alan White
Jeff Davison
Bob Stanek
David Speight
Karen Hastings
Dan Brown
Tim Vacarro
Julie Montgomery
Tony & Vickie Haney
W.L. Wagnon
Carol Wagnon
Jim Thomas
Mike Reese
Tony Fassola
Cindy Pedaggi
Jeff Allen
Mitch DeFrancis
Mike Dailey
We welcome your comments to
bertoneman@aol.com and see you next October for another Italian Car Day!John Montgomery (
bertoneman@aol.com)ICD Coordinator
President, Fiat Lancia Unlimited
www.flu.org
864-304-6537