Object of Desire: Heuer Monza Chronograph

Created to celebrate Ferrari's World Championship in 1975 with drivers Niki Lauda and Clay Regazzoni, the Monza Chronograph is pretty much my favorite vintage watch. The case was available in chrome plated finish or in PVD matte black. Personally, i'll take a black one.

Here are some photos of the Monza from a recent ebay auction that I failed to win..

De Portago's final moments

I discovered this image on the web and found it rather poignant. This is one of the last photos taken of Alfonso De Portago in his Ferrari at the 1957 Mille Miglia.  Not long after this photo was taken, a sudden tire deflation caused him to lose control of his car resulting in one of the worst racing accidents in history. Portago and his co-driver Edmund Nelson were both killed in a gruesome fashion, along with 10 spectators, including 5 children.  It was a dark day in Italian motor racing history, and ultimately led to the banning of the Mille Miglia race.

I am fascinated by this photograph because it is eerily quiet despite all the people and activity in the image. The naive madness of this type of road racing is made so clear in this photograph. The impending tragedy is almost palpable.  I particularly love the photographer crouching right on the edge of the wall, flirting with disaster.

"It is so choice..."

"...If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up."

Those were the famous words of Ferris Bueller describing his friend's father's 1961 Ferrari 250 GT California. Well, now the actual movie car is up for auction.  I think we all remember that heartstopping moment when the Ferrari is sent crashing through a plate glass window and into the ravine below.  In fact that car, as well as this one, were both replicas built by the studio specifically for the film (there were 4 replicas total).  A faithful recreation on the surface, the car is actually bodied in fiberglass, and propelled by a 4.7L Ford 289 V8 and automatic transmission.  The auction's estimate is 40 to 80 thousand pounds, but I just have a feeling the car could sell for far more than that because even though it is not a real Ferrari, this machine is basically the most famous car in cinema (up there with the DeLorean in Back to the Future) and as such is a desirable piece of pop culture history.  I hope it goes to the Peterson Museum in LA for their Hollywood cars section! Click here for the link to the full auction item description.

On a side note, the house in which the car was kept in the movie (formerly belonging to real car collector Ben Rose) has also been on the market.  Perhaps one lucky fan can own them both!

Alberto Ascari wannabe spotted in Soho!

Alberto Ascari may be back from beyond the grave...and he wants attention.

Yesterday there were tons of cool cars out and about on the streets of Manhattan.  But this was by far the most unusual sight of the day.  I tried to find out more info about what this kit car / replicar was online, but to no avail.  So All I can say is it appears to have a 4 cylinder powerplant, and seems to be like a 3/4 scale replica of an early 50s Ferrari Grand Prix or F2 car.  It was certainly a cool toy, and very loud.  The guy behind the wheel was grinning for all the iphone cameras that greeted him at each stop light on Spring Street.  Clearly the guy craves attention.  Why else would you risk being squashed by a cab in order to drive a fancy go-kart on the streets of Manhattan?  But hey, I give the guy one bit of credit.  He's clearly doing it for the fun, because you can't pick up chicks in a monoposto!

Monday Morning moment of Zen

Please let the weather get better soon!