As another year comes to a close, it's time again to top off the coffee and recap the adventures, the opportunities, and the progress made in building up the Bearded Mug brand.
Read MoreThe Greenwich Concours d'Elegance is a Must-Attend for the Masses.
Although over six months have elapsed since the last of the highest caliber competitors rolled off the field at Roger Sherwin Baldwin Park, the 2017 Greenwich Concours d'Elegance is still fresh in my memory. The better events tend to do that. And with thousands of pictures captured over three days of excitement, even the most trivial details can be triggered with a round through the album. Join me now as I recount one of the best weekends the east coast has to offer.
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This is your 2018 Bearded Mug Calendar. Pre-order today!
For the last three years, I've enjoyed recounting the events I've covered by memorializing them in calendar form. As you lift the page to reveal the final month of your 2017 Bearded Best calendar, no doubt hanging in a prominent place in your home or office, the selection process of the 2018 Bearded Mug calendar is wrapping up.
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TopGear Imports/Cars & Caffe Season Closer: An OMG at the GSP.
Ask anyone in Bergen County what they do on Sundays and you're almost guaranteed that they're not going to respond with 'shopping.' The county's [in]famous blue laws prohibit most retail shops from doing any business on the caboose of the week. Enter the dynamic duo of TopGear Imports and Cars & Caffe to take advantage of the biggest of the vacant lots.
Read MoreMountain Lakes Cars & Coffee Makes a Small, but Mighty Splash into the C&C Pool.
Mountain Lakes is a borough in NJ you've probably never heard of. At 2.9 square miles, it's roughly equivalent to the size of a pinhead when compared to other communities in the area. Last year, a cars and coffee at the local train station was organized to take advantage of the beautiful landscape that the borough is situated in and put Mountain Lakes on the C&C map. This past Sunday, the first gathering of 2017 took place and was a strong proponent of the quality over quantity mantra.
Read MoreBergen County Cars & Caffe Pours an Extra-Large Cup for Its Season Opener.
As the date drew near, initial speculation forecasted around 500 cars would show up for the Bergen County Cars & Caffe Season Opener, held at TopGear Imports. But before the clock struck noon, an estimated 1,500 autos had circumnavigated the industrial park in Saddle River. Despite the massive crowd that came with and for the cars, most people behaved as they should in public.
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Lime Rock Park Goes Hot with LRDC's Opening Weekend.
The Lime Rock Driver's Club, a group of racers who are geared more towards perfecting their driving skill with a family-like vibe rather than an overtly competitive one, officially kicked off the 2017 season of tracking and autocross at Lime Rock Park on the weekend of April 7–8, 2017. Old Man Winter laid down his sword, although it was a bit overcast and breezy, and at least 14 cars made it onto the track, including a mashup of Miatas and a cadre of Caymans.
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Prestige Pulls No Punches for Their Concluding Warehouse Event.
This is it. The photographic events that Prestige held in a secluded warehouse, where they provided a spectacular setting and supplied sexy supercars, have come to an untimely end. The lease is up, quite literally, on what was hands-down the most clever way to mine for images. It will be missed, without a doubt, but as Neil Young put it best, "it's better to burn out than to fade away." And this last one certainly burned bright.
Read MoreA Plan of Attack on the 2017 Season.
As this post goes to the proverbial press, Mother Nature is contemplating whether or not to drop ice or rain on the northeast this weekend. Although March 2017 is nearly in the books, it feels like just yesterday that I was packing up my camera equipment in early December after what turned out to be the last C&C of 2016. Digital hibernation isn't really an option when you have folders upon folders of unedited pictures, but it was nice to at least give my shutter finger a few months rest from the regular action, the occasional commissioned work notwithstanding. But it's time to get back to it.
Read MoreIn Memoriam: Hemmings Sports & Exotic Car Magazine (2005–2017)
Yesterday evening I arrived home to find my final issue of Hemmings Sports & Exotic Cars waiting for me on my kitchen counter. That issue was different, both in the fact that it was wrapped in plastic protection, and that it contained a letter announcing it would be the ultimate issue. My favorite esoteric magazine had been the latest casualty in the ongoing war of print vs. digital.
Read MoreSlinging Snow in the Springtime 'Sphere with LRDC.
The Lime Rock Drivers Club, a sort of extended family of like-minded racers of varying levels of talent, met on one of the warmest days of winter to toss their cars around a snow-covered road course. I was invited to partake in the festivities and brought along my better half in snow boots, and a Golf R wearing summer shoes. This is our story.
Read MoreSAVINGS ALERT!! Get Your 2017 Bearded Best Calendar Today!
The 2017 Bearded Best wall calendars have arrived and are ready for immediate delivery! The 12-month, 8.5"x11" full color calendar is filled with carefully selected images that will perfectly complement each month they represent.
Read More2017 Bearded Best Wall Calendar is Available for Preorder!
After months of voting for your favorites among eclectic groups of images, the Bearded Mug constituency has spoken. I am honored to present the final twelve that will represent the 2017 Bearded Best wall calendar.
Read MoreSaratoga Bound: A Celestial Journey to the Hemmings Sports & Exotic Show.
My classic car - a purchase prompted by an insatiable fit of nostalgia over five years ago. A Craigslist find that nearly mimicked the first new car my mother bought way back in 1981 and drove happily for 15 years until the arrival of my little brother negated the presence of only four seats. A car whose odometer I had advanced less than two thousand miles since I took ownership. It was finally time for my 1981 Toyota Celica GT Liftback to have its day in the sun.
Read MoreSeventh Heaven for Domenico Spadaro Memorial Drive.
The 7th Annual Domenico Spadaro Memorial Drive, for reasons beyond my comprehension, only marked my first attendance. The rally is a rolling tribute to Domenico Spadaro, master mechanic and the namesake of Domenick's European Car Repair, who joined the great garage in the sky at age 89 in 2009. Since 2010, the memorial drive has been a way for those who knew and loved him to honor his memory, by gathering on a Sunday afternoon to enjoy cars, food and friends, and by raising money to help fund the fight against cancer.
Read MoreMemories Aplenty from the Greenwich Twenty.
When you get your jollies from the four-wheeled persuasion, is there anything better than spending a day looking at top-notch, high quality cars on the manicured grounds of a park that's nestled on the shores of a picturesque harbor? How about spending three days capturing pictorial moments shared between prominent machinery and influential people. These endless opportunities for photographic greatness were provided by the Greenwich Concours d'Elegance, which celebrated its 20th anniversary on June 4-6, 2016 in Roger Sherman Baldwin Park overlooking the Greenwich Harbor.
Read MoreMeet the Month: May the Anonymous Ford GT Be with You.
This little red riding Ford, appearing through the mist at last year's Caffeine & Carburetors in Waveny Park, is May's featured car for the 2016 Bearded Best calendar.
Read MoreThe Pomp and Circumstance of an Invite-Only Prestige Warehouse Affair.
Meet the Month: Santo's Ubiquitous '555' Is Our Number One Alfa for April.
It gives me great pleasure to introduce this month's cover car. Not only is it from an event that I recommend to anyone on planet Earth, the Lime Rock Historics, but Santo Spadaro is a name that should ring a bell in more than a few automotive households.
Read MoreMeet the Month: March Madness with Tony's Mopar.
I first saw March's car a few years ago in early 2014 at a Cars & Croissants in Berkley Heights, NJ. Since then, Tony Esteban's 2009 Dodge Challenger SRT8 "Sinister" has been a staple at key C&Cs, as well as a usual suspect at his own gathering of pals, the Wednesday night North Jersey Mopar meet. Sinister has evolved over the years and is in the operating room as we speak. Please take a moment to get to know a little more about Tony and his SRT, and make sure to say hello at the next C&C you see him at.
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