How the docent team brings the Pebble Beach Concours to life

Photography Credit: Alan Galbraith

Words by Alan Galbraith,
Head Gasket, Concours d'Lemons

Possessing encyclopedic recall of a particular make or model does not a decent Pebble Beach docent make. One must be engaging and entertaining to guests who might not be dyed-in-the-wool automotive aficionados.

I’ve attended the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance for 33 years running, and it has been my honor to be a docent for the last two of those years. But before I could don the blue blazer, khaki pants and straw hat, I had to be invited to participate.

Wayne Craig, head docent and founder of the program, has a Rolodex containing some of the most knowledgeable people in the automotive world to draw from. Wayne combs through his list of collection curators, vintage racers, restoration specialists, concours board members and museum docents to find those who can make the rolling sculpture on the fairway come to life. It takes quite a bit of knowledge, talent and work to be recognized for the best docent team in the world, but being asked is just the start of the work.

While planning Pebble Beach’s featured classes and special displays begins years in advance, these closely guarded lists are only shared with the docent crew shortly ahead of the show. Docents with specific class and marque expertise are asked to write detailed briefs outlining the history and significance of each car to share within the group. Others are assigned to cover the remaining marques and classes.

The docents aren’t expected to memorize each brief, but they are expected to be more than casually familiar with the subject matter. As the Concours approaches, the amount of automotive info poured out before the docent crew could easily fill a yearlong, graduate-level university syllabus. In the days leading up to the event, the entrant list is shared with the docents, and those with knowledge of those exact cars reply with more detailed information. Even with this mountain of learning, there is one last class for the docents to attend: the morning field walk.

Go deeper at Pebble Beach. Docent tours often include those who know–like, as shown here, one of the lead engineers for American supercar builder Vector Motors. Photography Credit: Kristina Cilia

While others sip coffee, munch on donuts and wade into rugby-style scrums trying to secure an elusive Dawn Patrol hat at one end of the fairway, the docents attend their last class before graduation at the other end. As a group we all set out across the field, stopping at cars of interest, where those with knowledge particular to the car note the highlights.

Often an owner or caretaker will tell us something that can’t be learned from the research–like what the car is like to own or drive. The sights, sounds and smells of the cars taking their place on the fairway starts to crescendo as the sun rises and the fog slowly lifts.

Every year in mid-August, the hallowed 18th fairway at Pebble Beach becomes the world’s best automotive museum, if only for a few hours. Often the gathering is the first–and perhaps last–time cars of a particular class or marque will be displayed together.

Fortified with some fresh knowledge and our own secret coffee supply, we regroup and consult the schedule of tours to be given. All of the preparation comes together when those first groups of sponsors, VIP ticket holders, guests of the Concours and general ticket holders are paired up with a team of docents and set out on a tour.

Tour participants range from those who have never been to a car show to serious collectors and knowledgeable enthusiasts. Tailoring the presentation to the interest, knowledge and attention span of each tour is part of what makes a good docent. It is one thing to recall the technical details of a particular car, but it is another thing altogether to imbue the static cars with life. What it must have been like when the car was new, what it was like to own and drive, and who has been part of its history paints a more colorful picture than just looking at a recently restored paint job.

The Pebble Beach Concours assembles one of the world’s finest car collections–but only for a few hours. Photography Credit: Kristina Cilia

There are lots of questions about the process of the concours, preparation, restorations and judging. Questions about the sometimes eye-popping values of the cars are frequently asked. Occasionally, an owner or handler will grace the group with a short talk about their car, giving firsthand accounts and insider stories that always leave tour groups with a much deeper appreciation of the vehicle and its history.

As the late afternoon approaches and the docent schedule comes to a close, tour participants take up station to watch the awards ceremony from their VIP suites or picnic blankets in front of the main stage. Seeing their eyes light up with recognition and appreciation as a car featured on the tour crosses the stage is the ultimate reward for the docent team. Bringing a deeper understanding and connection to the cars makes the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance not only the world’s most prestigious car show but a living, breathing, world-class museum.