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Sir Jackie Stewart Talks Rolex And Racing During Pebble Beach 2014

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Thanks to a kind invitation from Rolex, I had the good fortune to spend five days on the Monterey peninsula in the heart of the incredible automotive week collectively known among auto enthusiasts as “Pebble Beach” in August 2014.

This week of classic, vintage, and modern supercars is held together by four main events, all of which have one thing other than stunning, revving machines in common: they are sponsored by Rolex. These are the Pebble Beach Tour d’Elegance, The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering, the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion held at the Mazda Raceway in Laguna Seca, and – of course – the culmination of it all, the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.

For me, the glue holding all of these exceptional events together over the course of five days was Sir Jackie Stewart. A Rolex ambassador since 1968 (yes, you did read that correctly: he has been officially affiliated with Rolex for 46 years), Stewart is arguably one of the most significant figures in the history of motor racing.

What amazed me so much about him was his openness and his willingness to share. As a legend involved in his sport for a period of time going on 50 years, certainly no one would fault him for being a little choosier about who he associates with. However, my impression was that he was happy to talk to anyone and everyone about his experiences and generally anything about cars. Fans continuously approached him throughout the entire series of events: they wanted to shake his hand, they’d like a photo or an autograph, or they just wanted to talk shop for a few moments. Stewart was more than obliging – in fact, welcoming and courteous – to every single fan.

And, really, having the honor to be part of the official group led around the paddocks, box, stalls and showplace by him on more than one occasion that week was not only thrilling, but felt much like a taking a tour through time. For one reason because, as one of the voices of ABC’s Wide World of Sports in the 1970s, I heard him speaking every week on Saturdays as I was growing up. Walking with him, having him stop and tell stories about cars we came across and drivers he knew was like a tour through time in more ways than one.

Rolex has been the presenter of the Pebble Beach Tour d’Elegance since 2007. This “showcase in motion” provides an “on-road” experience with the approximate 150 beautiful Concours cars as they drive along one of the most picturesque stretches of American road: 17-Mile Drive and the breathtaking stretch of California Pacific Coast Highway (also known as Highway 1) that heads toward Big Sur.

All in all, the Tour d’Elegance drives 80 miles, which can take several hours if you are riding in a historic Hispano-Suiza from 1923 like I did thanks to Bill Kuettel and Rolex. See A Touch Of Switzerland In Pebble Beach: Hispano-Suiza And Rolex for details.

Stewart was naturally there as well, moving about the Rolex hospitality, shaking hands and exchanging smiles and words with various participants. He co-drove the car belonging to his son, Paul: a 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4 Scaglietti Coupe. The Pebble Beach Tour d’Elegance presented by Rolex was open to all entrants in the 2014 edition of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. In fact, if a Concours car had successfully completed the Tour and it was tied with another car in the actual competition, it would get the edge.

The next day at The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering, which Rolex has sponsored since 2005, Stewart was a guest of honor. Nonetheless, this didn’t prevent him from doing interviews, chatting with fans and inspecting the magnanimous cars on display: an eclectic congregation of vehicles laid out on the golf greens in front of The Quail Lodge and Golf Club, which literally has something for everyone ranging from vintage machines from the early 1900s to supercars of the present day.

To see my interview with Stewart taken on this day, in which we talk mainly watches, please see Video: Racing Legend Sir Jackie Stewart Talks Rolex At Pebble Beach 2014.

“If you’re wearing a Rolex, you’re wearing something special,” Stewart said to me during the interview. And to prove it, he proudly “wardrobed” his various Rolex models during the events, matching them with his daily outfit, which generally included tartan pants and hat or just a plaid hat.

A 1938 Talbot-Lago T150 C SS owned by Tom and Gwen Price was announced as the Rolex Best of Show (the overall “winner,” which is determined by vote of all participants in the event). They received a Rolex Oyster Daytona timepiece from Stewart, who made the presentation.

On the third day, Stewart accompanied us to the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion. This could not have been a more contrasting event to the previous two or the one that came next. It has also been sponsored by Rolex since 2010 (from 2001-2009, Rolex sponsored its predecessor, the Rolex Monterey Historic Automobile Races, which took place at the same venue, the Mazda Raceway in Laguna Seca), and it boasts more of a true race atmosphere than an elegant show environment.

Here we had a wonderful tour of the nearly 550 cars representing more or less every period in racing history: when they weren’t on the track, they were on show in the “streets” inside the raceway that formed a literal museum in motion. The race cars seemed to particularly interest Stewart, and he frequently told stories and talked to owners.

This year, the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion welcomed Maserati as its featured brand. The reason behind that was that this iconic luxury sports marque celebrates its centennial in 2014. Participants in this zooming celebration included the oldest running Maserati in the world, the 1928 Tipo 26B.

On the last day, we attended the main event: the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. Rolex has been a partner to both this event and The Lodge, where it is held, since 1997.

As Stewart said, “Relationships are synonymous with the culture of Rolex.” This applies to Rolex in general and, naturally, to Rolex’ 46-year relationship with Stewart. “Long-term relationships mean a lot to me, but to have a relationship with a company with such quality and global reach, along with their image, it’s much more than sponsorship; that’s not what Rolex does, they build relationships.”

Rolex is involved in some of the most prestigious events in the motorsport industry and has been since 1959 when the brand partnered with the Daytona International Speedway. A few years later, it added the word Daytona to the dial of the Cosmograph chronograph it created especially for drivers.

The pinnacle of these 50-odd years of involvement is, of course, Rolex’ takeover of Formula 1 backing, a coveted sponsorship that Stewart helped facilitate.

According to many experts of the luxury car world that I spoke to, the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance is viewed as the top collector car show in the whole world. The 2014 edition comprised some 220 prized automobiles that are judged for historical accuracy, technical merit and style. What they are not judged on is speed, though the automobiles must be drivable. If a car entered into the Concours, for example, and ties with another car in the competition, if it had successfully completed the Tour d’Elegance, it receives the edge.

The entrants in the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance must be invited to participate, and all of the vehicles entered are either painstakingly restored or carefully preserved. Unlike with watches, the value of a car does not decrease if parts have been restored and/or replaced along the way.

Corresponding to the world of vintage watches, the cars selected to participate – and win in their classes – always have three main common denominators: rarity, value and beauty. This year’s winner of the Concours Best of Show, which wins from all the class selections made by a total of close to 100 judges, was the 1954 Ferrari 375 MM Scaglietti Coupe designed by Sergio Scaglietti for famous filmmaker Roberto Rossellini and restored by current owner Jon Shirley in 1995. Shirley, who has taken home top prize at Pebble Beach before, is the former president of Microsoft. This model represents Scaglietti’s first passenger car design for Ferrari and is a unique, finely sculpted Coupe Speciale. This is the first post-war-era automobile since 1968 to win the top prize at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. The event has been held since 1950.

Stewart also visibly enjoyed this day. As revealed above, his son, Paul Stewart, had entered his 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4 Scaglietti Coupe into the Concours. Above and beyond that, Rolex put Sir Jackie to work by having him hand over a Rolex watch to the winner of Rolex’ charity raffle.

If you would like to hear Stewart talk more with me about various aspects of motor racing in his lovely Scottish lilt, please watch this video produced by Roads & Rides.

Elizabeth Doerr is the editor-in-chief of Quill & Pad, an online magazine that keeps a watch on time.