Audrain or Shine

Audrain Concours & Motor Week is again just around the corner. Automotive splendor and super-luxe vibes in Newport, RI. The first of 4 concours events I covered in just 6½ months.

Dearest Gentle Reader,

When you reach the first weekend in October, New England is the place to be. The weather is usually still warm down on the southeast coast, and people are beginning to think about leaf peeping.

As for me, I’m more interested in chasing the more brilliant colors down in Newport.

Luxury colors. Sport colors. Historical colors.

The colors of automotive speed and grace.

My yellow 2013 Porsche 981 Boxster Outlaw, a custom-built 400 hp track weapon with a 3.8L 911 (991.1S) engine and an utter thrill to drive, known as Buzz (aka Super-B). Note the black and orange 2022 Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+ Coupe behind it, which sold at Bonhams’ auction for $5.725M just a few hours later. The Gathering at Audrain. (Newport, RI)

Audrain Concours & Motor Week is more than just a fall weekend on my calendar. It’s the hometown ritual that I’ve been a part of since 2019, both as an attendee and as the media. I typically make the 90 minute drive down from Boston, stay with my fellow petrolhead BFFs in RI for a few days, and consider myself very lucky that it’s so nearby. As it’s both fun and actual work, I leave each long weekend both spiritually full, albeit physically spent. It’s no small car show; it is a buffet of tasty and opulent grandeur served up at the great Newport mansions. It never gets old.

Rewinding to last year, my automotive dance card was a bit tricky to manage. Smack in the middle of the event, I also served as the Director of Werks Judging for the Porsche PCA-NER Concours d’Elegance, which we held at the nearby mansion at The Elms during that same weekend. But as I’m increasingly covering concours events these days (Audrain was just the first of 4within 6½ months), I’ve intentionally set other such things aside this year.

One of my best shots ever taken. Aside from a simple photo crop. this Porsche 356 coupe photo needed absolutely nothing. Bonham’s Auction at Audrain. (Newport, RI)

In step. Audrain Concours. (Newport, RI)

“Experimental vehicle for the use of carbureted gas.” Audrain Concours. (Newport, RI)

Now, each individual concours event I cover offers a different character. Audrain has remained my first love, especially as it is where I got my pro automotive photography start; standards for the event remain incredibly high. Although I find myself both quite relaxed and myself when I occasionally mingle with the rich and (occasionally) famous, I’m neither slack-jawed nor jaded. When standing on the manicured lawns of Newport, the feeling of quiet luxury is never lost on me. The little kid in me is quietly still full of oooohs-and-aaaahs, while I quietly nod in quiet appreciation of it all.

As many of you in the Road Feast posse know, I’m not one of those automotive journos who focuses exclusively on historical petrolicious details, especially these days when such information can be quickly looked up via AI just as fast as you can type. I’m also not one of those young social media influencers who attends events largely for the selfies and the vibes, where the substance is lacking.

Instead, I choose to buck both trends and proactively evolve our craft. My goal is to to offer you a very different curation that goes much deeper. I want you right there in the passenger seat with me.

Now, my dear ladies, do you think fancy car shows are just for the boys?

If so, you’d be so very, very wrong.

Imagine the opportunity to dress for the occasion, while surrounded by tons of pretty, pretty cars. Luxe is indeed great fun. That’s a key element of Audrain’s carefully curated brand and experience, and they get it right.

At Audrain, the word of the day is swank. For those of you who aren’t into cars, imagine going to the poshest spa you can think of for a full day. How do you feel afterwards? Sure, many attend to both see, and be seen. It’s a fun outing for both sexes alike.

Beyond the chatter and jazz from the loudspeakers, and the occasional waft of an errant cigar floating on the sea breeze, there’s a politely dull roar of a crowd that’s typically well dressed in the October sun. It’s a superb time, (Aud)rain or shine. In 2022, I even shot Audrain during the remnants of a hurricane, where the winds were literally blowing me over while I was low to the ground, intentionally bracing myself while shooting video. It was worth it.

At Audrain, there are seemingly infinite cars carefully laid out on the lawns, worth more in total than the GDPs of many small countries. You’ll see automotive celebs and event emcees like Jay Leno and Donald Osborne strolling around and shaking hands with the public, let alone offering their natural patter and chemistry like two buddies just back from the war. Judges rove in organized and proper packs, scrutinizing every single bolt and panel, with an electric excitement that’s palpable by entrants, spectators, and judging teams alike. It’s wild.

I saw this one-of-a-kind 1932 Röhr 8 Type F Autenrieth Streamliner at the Hilton Head Concours again just a few weeks later. Audrain Concours. (Newport, RI.)

This incredible 1967 Jeepster convertible (a rare Model 8701 Deluxe variant) named “Buttercup” was lovingly restored by the Roan family father/daughter team, taking home “Best of Class” in the “30 Under 30” category. You’ll see this family again at Misselwood. Audrain Concours. (Newport, RI)

But what happens at many concours events, especially at Audrain, something magical typically unfolds around midday. (That is, especially if you’re a fellow ambivert who knows how to access one’s internal pause button.)

You step back from it all to simply exist within it.

You look at the people, who have traveled from near and far, paying handsome sums just to attend grand events like Audrain, simply to celebrate this pursuit of automotive beauty together. You see a community of all ages that huddles around these older mechanical marvels, who take great joy in preserving history.

You might think it’s all about the pedigree of a given marque, how many coats of wax were applied to perfectly shine a bonnet (hood), or taking home a trophy.

It’s not.

It’s about the drive to keep these stories alive, group grokking over human craftsmanship, and the collective curation of the art of the automobile. Motorcycles too.

Yes, that’s a Vincent. You’ll see this gent again at Misselwood. Audrain Concours. (Newport, RI)

Audrain always does a superb job here, bar none. Typically, I save my photos in anticipation for next year’s event (just as I’ve done here), especially as you’re likely starting to think about your autumnal plans to enjoy, once your regular fall routine is well established.

Just as I whet your appetite for all things culinary, hopefully I’m similarly doing the same here in my Food Biker petrolhead way. Besides, if you’re one of my readers who loves the glamour but not necessarily the cars, I must not be doing my job very well if you’re not thoroughly enchanted by now.

As with all of these events, assuming I have the honor of being invited back again, I’m certainly looking forward to seeing you there “on the field” (as we say in concours parlance). In that case, I’ll be walking around wearing my red and blue ribboned straw boater; you shouldn’t be able to miss me.

So, let’s step into the Newport grandeur together and kick it HBO’s The Gilded Age-style, with horseless carriages galore. Roulez! - Seth ✦

When you shoot enough concours events, you keep bumping into cool cars and people on the circuit. This 1982 Monaco Grand Prix Lamborghini Countach LP400 S is one of my favorites, especially when the gumballs on the top are turned on. Over the next 6½ months, this one reappeared multiple times. The Gathering at Audrain. (Newport, RI)

The 2026 Audrain Concours & Motor Week will be held this year in Newport, RI from Thursday, 10/1 through Sunday, 10/4.

As a huge bonus, Audrain will be hosting a brand new Supercar Concours at Fort Adams this year from 10am-3pm on that Saturday.

Event details and ticket purchases are at audrainconcours.com

If you’re a member of the Road Feast posse, don’t hesitate to directly
reach out to me with any questions, as I’d be delighted to help if I can.

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