Monterey – Canepa Motorsports Museum & Showroom – Luau

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Canepa Motorsports

Thursday in Monterey has usually meant doing our own thing and generally having clam chowder in a bread bowl on Fisherman’s Wharf for lunch. The Res decided to do their own thing in 2018, but the Glenores, Stevens and Webers changed things up a little. After breakfast, they drove up the coast to the Santa Cruz area and took CA 17-N to Scotts Valley to check out Bruce Canepa’s collection of fantastic automobiles.

Bruce Canepa was a racer, became a collector and also owns a restoration business and sells beautiful cars to people who have way larger checkbooks than we do. First, we walked around the showroom on the ground floor to check out the many one-of-a-kind cars and motorcycles for sale. None of them have price tags, so you get to negotiate with staff – obviously way out of our league. Marilyn found an Austin Healey that would go really well with her hair.

Then we moved upstairs, where we could view the restoration shop from above, before moving on to the race car collection. We can’t even imagine what kind of a budget you would need to acquire a collection of famous winning cars such as those spread over this floor. We were told that some of them had been taken to Sears Point for the historic race there, but there seemed to be plenty left.

Once we had satisfied our automotive appetite, it was time to satisfy our other appetite at a local hangout, Malone’s Grille, where some shared and some didn’t, trying not to fill ourselves too full before tonight’s Luau for the early arrivals.

Luau

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Canepa Motorsports

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Luau

What started out in 2016 as a way for a few early arrivals to the MPCC event to get together and immediately morphed into a free barbecue for 120, this year became a luau for the first 125 to sign up at a nominal fee. The Ruskell family takes their role in the whole MPCC very seriously. Katie has been the lynchpin, doing the lion’s share of the organization and registration with the help of John, when they are not running their own business. John’s sister, Stephanie, has offered her hilltop residence in Carmel Valley for this pre-event both times. We can’t imagine inviting 125 people to a dinner around your pool and overflowing into your lovely home. We are very grateful to have been invited to experience their hospitality, not once but twice.

Those who had made the cut met in the hotel lobby from around 4:30pm on and received their leis and instructions to the parking area down the hill from Stephanie’s home where the shuttles would ferry us upward. Of course, there was a less than orderly rush to follow Katie’s yellow Corvette south on CA-1 and along the edges of Carmel and into the Carmel Valley. By the time we arrived at the house, we were probably behind any possible schedule. There we loaded up on crackers and cheese while Katie and crew handed out name tags and tickets for those taking the private tour of the Zoo Friday morning. This event was only supposed to take place if they got 30 PEOPLE signed up and we found out there would be 60 CARS heading toward Salinas.

When the administrative details were taken care of, we moved on to the main event, the food. There was pulled pork, barbecued chicken, several salads and an array of desserts. Wine, rum punch, beer and softer choices were available. Between the main course and dessert, Katie introduced three young hula dancers who performed several numbers. She then tried to drum up interest in a hula contest. Although Darlena and Cynthia were ready to volunteer for one of the guaranteed prizes, it all fell by the wayside in the end as the air got cooler and cooler and folks started to head back down the hill and off to the hotel for warmer climes and beds.