Vanderbilt Cup Races

Open Air Automobile Show to be Held!

In cooperation with the American Automobile Association a large tract of land was made available for use during the running of the race. 

An area the size of one city block would be divided among the participating auto manufacturers; there would be no fee to display their cars. 

The space would be adjacent to a 30' "specially constructed road to the stands" and would measure 150' by 100'.  Anyone have pictures showing this special road to the stands?

Views behind the 1905 grandstand. Note the tent.

The Pope Toledo tent behind the grandstand promoting "Quiet, Mile a Minute Cars".

The area would serve as a place for racing viewers to gather and socialize while waiting for the racing cars to make their way past the grandstand; a gathering place that was felt to be lacking in the previous year's race. 

An advertisement promoting the "Open Air Automobile Show". 

As the first outdoor automobile of its kind (according to the this article) it was hoped that enough positive interest would encourage future events to be held. (Brooklyn Daily Eagle Sept. 16, 1905)

The grandstand.  (Brooklyn Daily Eagle Sept. 10, 1905)

The course and the location of the automobile show.  Unless otherwise informed, I haven't been able to determine if the automobile show actually took place.  Possibly the show's announcement was made too close to the date of the race or perhaps auto manufacturers just were not interested.

One on the Motor Parkway!

Regardless if the 1905 show took place or not, another outdoor event was envisioned to be held during the 1907 Vanderbilt Cup Race along the newly constructed Long Island Motor Parkway.  (The Sun Mar. 31, 1907).

Held under a canvas the show would capture the attention of auto enthusiasts and manufacturers alike and would alleviate the problem of "lookers" rather than "buyers".  As we know, the show and the 1907 Vanderbilt Cup Race never took place.   And neither was the Motor Parkway done in time!  (The Sun Mar. 31, 1907).

Indoor Events Prevailed (at least at the time)

Automobile shows continued to be held indoors such as this one at Madison Square Garden in January, 1907.  Often times Vanderbilt Cup racers were exhibited, possibly to attract the public's interest.  (The Automobile Jan. 17, 1907)

George Robertson was to accompany "'Old 16" to a show in Chicago in February, 1909.  (Motor Age Feb. 11, 1909) 

The Cup and the Locomobile! (Motor Age Feb. 11, 1909)

On guard protecting the cup!  (Motor Age Feb. 11, 1909)

Even the racers were said to be for sale at the shows.  Here a Lancia was sold and offers made for a Vanderbilt Locombile racer.  (Motor Age Mar. 18, 1909).

Today's Shows

Today automobile shows have become major events ranging from local small town gatherings to large scale productions such as the Pebble Beach Concourse D'elegance.  Go Howard!

Howard and John taking a victory  lap! 

Growing up in the 1960s I often ventured into Manhattan to attend the auto shows at the NY Coliseum and came away with big dreams of owning the latest sports car of the day. As stated in the article, safety was a major selling theme that year (1967) as seat belts became mandatory in 1968 models and thus were prominently displayed.

I still remember the "Excaliber" as one of my favorites to dream about.  Here's a 1968 model.

I welcome comments about your experiences with automobile shows through the years and what you might have dreamed about after attending them.  I'm sure many of your dreams came true.  And if they haven't yet, dream on!  By the way, my dream of owning an Excaliber never came to fruition.  But you never know, dreams do come true; you might one day own a 3-wheeled pizza delivery vehicle.   Happy reminiscing.