Special Motorsports Event - America's Car Museum Partners With Kirkland Concours d'Elegance

TACOMA, Oct. 1, 2011: LeMay – America’s Car Museum (ACM) has announced that, starting in 2012, it will oversee the production, planning and administration of the Kirkland Concours d’Elegance, a Pacific Northwest classic car show founded in 2003.

The 2012 “Phil Smart Kirkland Concours d’Elegance, presented by America’s Car Museum” will take place September 9, 2012 at ACM’s Haub Family Field in Tacoma, Wash. The 3.5-acre show field has ample room to accommodate all of the Concours’ classic coupes, sedans and sports cars.

“The Kirkland Concours ranks among the top five Concours in the nation and has become the premier event of its kind in the Pacific Northwest. It will instantly become a signature event for the museum,” said David Madeira, president and CEO of ACM, the Tacoma automotive museum which will open on its nine-acre campus in June 2012. “I salute Tom Armstrong, Jeff Clark, Peter Hageman, Marc Nowak and the rest of the Concours board for having faith in ACM to assume stewardship of this fabulous event that is known by car collectors around the world.”

The all-volunteer board of the Kirkland Concours agreed to legally transfer ownership to ACM after the Concours earlier this month in Kirkland, Wash.

“As a board, our goal has always been to insure the long-term viability and significance of the Kirkland Concours,” said Jeff Clark, Chairman of the event. “Partnering with America’s Car Museum gives the Concours a home that’s at the heart of the collector car community in the U.S.”

Clark added that the board has agreed to remain as a working Founders’ Committee to assist with the transition and production at the new location. “This will provide continuity and help retain the high caliber sponsors, judges and participants the Kirkland Concours is known for,” said Clark.

Phil Smart, a Mercedes-Benz dealer in Seattle, has also agreed to remain as title sponsor of the event.

The Kirkland Concours d'Elegance is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, which contributes 100 percent of the net proceeds to benefit children's healthcare funds. Seattle Children's Hospital will remain the principal beneficiary of the net proceeds of the event.

The Kirkland Concours d’Elegance will continue to take place during the second weekend in September each year.