Today’s post title was “inspired” by the expression “The Fog Of War.” The latest example of the strange workings of my brain is a dream I had this morning.
I dreamt I was on my back porch–the house in the dream was not the house in which we live–and my wonderful wife was inside the house. We were both worried because our dog (we don’t have a dog in reality), which was obviously a German Shepherd, would jump off the back porch to chase any small animal that wandered by. In particular, I was worried that the dog would break a leg or get hit by a car. However, the dog seemed to be able to jump off the porch and back on the porch with impunity, not that the dog would understand the word “impunity.”
Of course, The Fog Of War refers to the uncertainty of battle, of not really knowing the enemy or even oneself and your fellow soldiers. I am in no way trying to belittle the sacrifices of soldiers in US history.
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I had originally written hundreds of words about the decline of Scientific American (into a wokeness rag) and of religion as outlined in Why Evolution Is True, but decided it would not make good reading for most of you. (You can check the blog out if you are interested.) Instead, I offer this Hemmings article from July as bolster for my belief that attending car auctions is not just for those who want to buy a car. The intro to the piece somewhat ties into my now deleted writing:
“Have you attended a collector-car auction? Admittedly, only religion and politics are likely to stimulate more spirited conversations than collector-car auctions. Hobbyists generally describe the auction/hobby relationship with one of two four letter words: boon or bane. May I suggest other possibilities?”
Bob Palma, the author, listed four reasons to attend an auction without any intent to buy or to sell. The first had the most resonance to me and is something I have written before: “An opportunity to see cars (or trucks, etc.) you’ll likely never see anywhere else…” Here is a picture from the Hemmings piece that illustrates the point:
This is a 1957 Dual-Ghia convertible, of which only 117 were made. I don’t think you’re likely to see one where you live. One of these, in Maroon over Beige, was offered at the recent Mecum auction in Monterey. It was bid to $325,000, but didn’t sell.
Even in the part of Arizona in which we live I have never seen a Dual-Ghia “in the wild.” I have also never seen this car with which I have become obsessed:
This is a 1961 Ferrari 250 GT Pininfarina coupe. Not that this blog will continue long enough for me to offer Ultimate Garage 4.0, but this car would obviously be included.
The probability that I someday buy a car at an auction is certainly not zero, but is also no more than 50-50. I still hope to attend many more auctions while I can and when my wonderful wife retires (whenever that will be) we can attend many more, hopefully.
#TheFogOfMyBrain
#AttendACarAuction
#Dual-Ghia
#1961Ferrari250GTPininfarina
#somanycarsjustonelife
#disaffectedmusings
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Disaffected Musings 
“An opportunity to see cars (or trucks, etc.) you’ll likely never see anywhere else…”
I guess I have been fortunate in that thru a participation in motorsports activity since my mid teens, I have got to see many autos that the average person doesn’t get to see. In addition I have been to some of the biggest car shows in the Eastern half of the US; Shades of the Past Rod Run in Gatlinburg TN, Turkey Rod run at Daytona Speedway (entire infield of the track filled with cars), The Walter Mitty Challenge at Road Atlanta and countless smaller, but still big, marque specific shows. Things like Mopar Nationals, Super Chevy shows,the Orphan Car show in Michigan (highly recommended) and more. And then thru my work travels over the last 35+ years, countless museums from The Petersen in LA, Tallahassee Auto Museum*, etc to 5 cars in a storefront in some small town. Don’t get me wrong, I still like the auctions because there will ALWAYS be something I haven’t seen. Like one auction years back where there was a 1968 Camaro that had been ordered by an Army vet when he returned from Vietnam; White paint, red interior and blue vinyl roof (paperwork going back to the original order sheet).
I guess my point is, there are many places to find “cool” and rare cars besides auctions.
* https://tacm.com/
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Thanks, DDM. Of course, there are places besides auctions where people can see cars they have not seen. On the other hand, very few people have your history in building and racing cars.
For example, I remember that the first time I ever saw a 1957 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham (the one with the suicide doors and stainless steel roof) was at the Barrett-Jackson auction at Mohegan Sun in 2016. I was simply mesmerized by the three-dimensional reality of a car I had only previously seen in a two-dimensional picture. I don’t think I would have seen that car anywhere else but an auction and, in fact, the only other one I saw was at a Mecum auction.
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“very few people have your history in building and racing cars.”
I feel you’re giving me more credit than I deserve as I’m a small potato in the automotive world of racing/collecting. There are many many more that are more prolific, not to mention more knowledgeable, than I. Yes, compared to someone who has one or maybe two “play” cars, my fleet would seem enormous. But if one was to add up the realistic dollar value of them? I might could get the price of a couple new Corvettes, albeit not base model ones. I just enjoy the process of building something different, buying something rarely seen these days, and taking them out for others to see. Same reason I go to museums, shows and auctions: to see cars the I haven’t seen before.
As an aside, next year our company will be doing a project in the Tacoma, Washington area, so I will be able to cross the Lemay Collection off my bucket list. I also will be going to New England for family reasons, so the Audrain is on the “to do” list…
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Thanks, DDM. Your history is impressive to me as I don’t really know anyone else’s that compares.
My wonderful wife and I once visited Newport, Rhode Island for one of our wedding anniversary celebrations. In a typical (for me) twist of fate, the Audrain Museum was closed that week while they “realigned” their exhibitions. We did, however, visit the Newport Auto Museum, which is actually in Portsmouth, RI. That was where I was offered a job a few minutes after I began speaking with one of the docents.
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