Concours d’Elegance roars into Dayton
The cars of the Roaring ’20s will be featured at the 14th Dayton Concours d’Elegance at Carillon Park on Sunday, Sept. 19, 2021. In addition, Dayton’s own drag racing legend and Motorsports Hall of Fame of American inductee “Ohio George” Montgomery will be the grand marshal. Montgomery will be on hand all day to greet guests and share his numerous drag racing stories. One of his famed Mustang gassers is scheduled to be on display.
Presented by AAA, the Concours is limited to 175 antique and classic automobiles and motorcycles, all displayed on the grounds of Carillon Historical Park. A few of the classics already confirmed include: a 1929 Duesenberg “J” Bohman & Schwartz Sedan, 1909 Packard Model 3 Runabout, 1928 Auburn 8-115 Speedster, 1957 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud 1 Drophead, 1937 Humber Pullman Limousine and a 1933 Pierce-Arrow 1236 Club Brougham.
The weekend kicks off on Saturday morning Sept. 18 with a special edition of Dayton Cars and Coffee, held in front of the Carillon Brewing Co. It is free and open to all cars and motorcycles. Saturday evening will feature the Preview Party celebrating the Roarin’ ’20s.
The reservation-only party will preview some of the Concours automobiles and will feature a silent auction, entertainment, food stations and a variety of bars serving adult beverages. The Art Pavilion will be open on Saturday evening and all day Sunday. David Snyder of Milford is the featured artist who will be joined by other nationally recognized
automotive artists. Advance reservations and tickets for the preview party and Concours are now available online and at Carillon Park. Ticket prices are $95 per person, $85 for Dayton History members.
The Concours will be held from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Cars and motorcycles will be judged for awards in 17 classes. In addition, a number of specialty awards are presented, including the R.
H. Grant Best of Show, Col. Edward Deeds Judge’s Choice, Charles F. Kettering People’s Choice, Jeffrey Siler Spirit Award and The Hagerty Youth Judging Award. There will be handbuilt model cars in the Dicke Transportation Center. It also features a reunion of Fisher Body Craftsman’s Guild modelers exhibiting their hand-built models from the 1950s and 1960s that embrace automotive design creativity.
Live entertainment and a variety of local food and beverages will be featured throughout the day. All exhibits at the park will be open. The parade of class-winning cars, motorcycles and major award winners will be presented at 3 p.m.
General admission is $25 at the door, or $20 in advance, $10 for children (ages 3-17), children under age 3 and members of Dayton History are free. Proceeds from the Concours go directly to Carillon Park, a private non-profit organization established to preserve, share and celebrate our region’s history. The Park’s 65-acre campus is home to more than 30 historic structures and cares for more than three million artifacts.