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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MEDIA CONTACT: Bernard Martin MORGANTOWN, WV. - Concours LLC is excited to announce the launch of a new ongoing series of videos entitled "Through the Gears". The video series captures the history and backstories of people and cars in the Concours, Car Show and Racing Communities.
"Wayne's spot on," says Bernard Martin, "and then the idea evolved, Given what we do, we are often privy to some wonderful stories and anecdotes that later become the stuff of legend. Ferrari's adoption of the Cavallino Rampante is a great example: Many are familiar with the story of how Ferrari was given the emblem of the fighter ace but few know the connection it has to Porsche. In this series we're not going to just talk cars, we're going to take a page out of James Burke's "Connections" series from the 1970's." On "Through the Gears" your hosts will talk about the stuff that most others forget to ask or don't think it's important to talk about. How did you family become involved in the industry? What where your influences? How did this come about? Why did you do this? The series will also take a deep dive into some iconic collector cars and the people who own them. And , yes, of course we will still talk about cars!! Look for these up coming shows:
ABOUT CONCOURS LLC Concours LLC provides a level professionalism and best practices to those people and organizations seeking to create a successful automotive event. We offer our clients a wide range of services from Strategy and Planning to complete marketing, design and management of the event for you. From creating and managing every aspect of a Concours to developing a touring series, we have a product specialist at our disposal that brings years of experience to the effort.
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This is an interview conducted by the Hilton Head Concours d'Elegance.  Paul has been a car enthusiast since his early childhood. He is a retired engineer who spent more than 40 years in the automotive supplier industry and has degrees in engineering, mathematics and physics. And he has been involved with every facet of the Hilton HeadIsland Concours d'Elegance. He provided guidance to our founder, Dr. Paul Doerring, before the event opened, helped with the transition to the Port Royal Golf Club, regularly sources cars, and was the 2018 Honored Collector.
We had a chance to sit down with our long-time friend, Paul, to learn a little more about this year's Chief Judge. Q: What was your first car? A: A 1954 Chevrolet nine passenger station wagon (Woodie). It was a "hand me down" from my family. I used to pull into the filling station and say "check the gas and fill up the oil please." I thought that it was the ugliest car on the road, but it got me around at a time when other guys my age did not have a car. I always had lots of friends because we could "triple date" in it, and we went to lots of drive-in theaters. I actually think that it looks pretty nice now. Must be old age, right? My next car was a 1959 Renault Dauphine with a hopped up motor. But that's another story. Q: How would you describe your collection? What is it you look for when adding to your collection? A: My collection is very eclectic. I never met a car I didn't like, and I never bought a car because it was, or might become, valuable. I bought the car because it was a love affair. If the styling or the engineering or the ownership or its participation in an event appealed to me, a little bell inside my head told me to "buy that car." If I didn't like it I would often tell a friend about it so that they could buy it. And many times they did. So using this "love affair sense," I gradually built up my collection. I did not really give it much thought, but one day it occurred to me that all the cars in my collection were what I call "onesies or twosies." In other words, they were the only one known to exist, the only one built, one of only a few known to exist, and many of them had belonged to famous people or participated in events. So I am proud to tell people if you come to my house to see my cars, and you have seen another car like mine, I have failed you. I still look for styling, engineering and provenance when considering the purchase of a car. Q: What do you look for when judging a car? A: I like original cars. They can be original from the factory or be authentically restored. While I think that modified or custom cars are great and reflect the builders artistic abilities and taste, I still prefer them to be original. That said, I judge them using my engineering background. I spent over 40 years as an engineer in the automotive manufacturing environment and watched it evolve around me. So I learned the methods of workmanship and the materials available decade by decade. If you know and understand these you can pretty much judge any car. For example, if I am judging a car built in the early 1920s and I find a Phillips head screw somewhere, then that car scores less than normal because the Phillips head screw wasn't invented until around 1934. So it could not have possibly been available when the car in question was manufactured. This same logic can be applied to paints, welding, soldering, brazing, wiring, upholstery, tires, plating, etc. So I look to make sure that the material was available and the method of manufacturing is correct for the year of manufacture. But this is not the only thing I judge. Once I have judged the car "technically" I then judge it "culturally." Was the color or details like pin striping and monograms actually something that owners would have done when the car was new? Purple cars did not roll off the assembly lines. They were built on special order. So was the car a special order? As you might suspect, asking the right questions leads a judge to find out more about the car and its present owner's knowledge. Q: What's your favorite car from past Hilton Head Island Concours events? Why? A: There have been so many great cars exhibited at the Hilton Head Concours over the years. It is hard to pick a favorite. I tend to love Pre-War cars because of their history and early engineering. But I grew up in the 1960s during which it can arguably be said that some of the most exciting cars were designed and built. You might say I was on the sidelines watching. But these are not "old cars" to me because I grew up with them. Old cars are cars that I did not get to drive growing up. Hence, my preference for Pre-War cars. All this being said, I prefer the brass era cars and full classics as defined by the CCCA. Now that I have truly confused you, my favorite car shown at the HHI Concours is a 1915 Crane Simplex Roadster from the Jack Rich Collection. It satisfies the "brass era" HCCA definitions but looks for all the world like a late 1920s full classic roadster. It checks two boxes. And it has a huge engine! Q: What is your (or some of your) favorite thing(s) about the HHI Concours? A: The Hilton Head Concours is exciting to me. I love the fact that each year little things are different. I imagine that some people might even come to see what is different from one year to the next. The Concours has always been right on the cutting edge of enthusiast interest. It started showing production cars when that was a "no - no" at other Concours. It started showing trucks when that was just not done. Now it shows boats and airplanes too as well as motorcycles. You could say the HHI Concours is about transportation. It also has a performance element and racing when many other Concours don't have an interest or a facility to do so. Each year the tours are always good, varied and interesting. For the last several years the HHI Concours is multi-tasking events on Saturday with the club day two fairways and another show or display a third fairway. What is not to like? Finally, the weather is generally very good and still very pleasant compared to what's going on around the country with winter setting in. Oh, did I mention the "Southern Hospitality"? For more on this year's Chief Judge, Paul Ianuario, click here. Interested in showing a car in this year's Concours? Applications are currently being accepted. Click here to apply Our very own Paul Ianuario has been been named Chief Judge for the first post pandemic Hilton Head Concours d' Elegance!  Paul has been a car enthusiast since his early childhood. He is a retired engineer who spent more than 40 years in the automotive supplier industry and has degrees in engineering, mathematics and physics. Upon retirement Paul started his own business. His company provides consulting services and support for museums and vehicle-related events. He was under contract for twenty years as the Curator of the BMW Zentrum in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Paul does work for many museums as well as provides consulting services for a variety of collector-car events. He is on the Steering Committees and Boards of several major automotive museums. In the spring of 2001 Dale Moss called Paul and asked whether he would come to Hilton Head Island to talk with a group of people who were interested in hosting a car show. Paul agreed and made the trip with his wife, Dinky. While on the island, he looked at the planned location for the proposed show which was behind a local shopping center. Paul told the group that they would have trouble promoting a high-end show in such a location and suggested that they find another location where they could host a “Concours,” not a “car show.” Dr. Paul Doerring became a promoter for this idea; as a result, he asked Paul and Dinky to make a number of trips to Hilton Head Island in the months that followed to help with decisions like event location, the choice of featured marques, obtaining sponsors, etc. As a result, Paul Ianuario became an integral part of the “Concours” group and helped build the event into what it has become today. Paul is the HHIC Senior Consultant, a member of the Concours Board of Directors, and an Honorary Judge. Paul has been part of the Concours since its inception in 2002. He and Dinky continue to be strong supporters of the Hilton Head Motoring Festival. Paul is not just an organizer or supporter, he is an active enthusiast. His private collection consists of several dozen automobiles ranging from 1908 to 1972. Many are unique cars with significant history and/or full Classics. He performs all his own restoration work. He is a member of many marque clubs and a number of National and International societies such as the Society of Automotive Engineers and the Society of Automobile Historians. He is the past Executive Director of IAGMASEP which represents 80 automotive training schools in the USA and around the world. Paul is the Senior Advisor for HVA in North America and for the FIVA Technical Commission in Europe. He is a recipient of the prestigious Lee Iacocca Award for his contributions in preserving automotive history. Paul is an AACA Judge as well as a CCCA Master Judge. He is the Chief Judge at a number of major Concours events around the country, and each year he judges at the the Amelia Island Concours, the Pebble Beach Concours, the Hilton Head Island Concours and many others around the USA. He has previously been the Chief Judge at Hilton Head on a number of occasions. Paul and Dinky, his wife of 55 years, live in Duncan, South Carolina. Applications are currently being accepted for the 2021 Concours d'Elegance (Sunday, Nov. 7). For more information on the requirements to participate in these events and to submit an application for 2021, CLICK HERE.
Any questions about showing a vehicle at any of the events at the Hilton Head Island Concours d'Elegance & Motoring Festival, contact our Exhibitor Concierge, Meredith Kronz, at (843) 785-7469 ext. 4 or [email protected].  By Bernard Martin When Wayne and I started this Concours LLC endeavor, we agreed on several groundrules:
When we get emails, like this one from Ford Heacock below, and phone calls from some folks we highly respect, and see very kind things written in articles about our events, we know that that the six hours of planning was more important than the six minute solution we could have tossed in and hoped for the best.  At our events we operate on keeping everything simple. It's called K.I.S.S. by most. We don't ask a volunteer or judge to do anything more than a couple things that they can check off on the fingers of one hand. Otherwise people will forget things if its too complicated. This especially holds true for any first year event: You don't know what you don't know. At the end of the day, it really takes a team of great people to make a succesful event. It takes every person on the team jumping in to lend a hand. We certainly had an "all hands on deck" moment last May. We experienced the second highest amount of rainfall since the "1000 Year Flood" that closed the Greenbrier for a few months after the June 2016 high water mark destroyed so much of the facility. We had watched the weather closely on Saturday and decided that we should be clear of rain during the Concours on Sunday. We made the call at 2pm on Saturday afternoon. We would not need to implement our "rain plan" that would have required moving cars into the building by late Saturday afternoon. Sunday was indeed beautiful, albeit slightly overcast, with only a few raindrops at the beginning of the Concours. Perfect weather for the photographers actually. What we had failed to pay close attention to was the severe amount of overnight rain. I recall Wayne calling me as I was finishing some showfield marking about 10pm at night on Saturday. The rain was coming down in buckets. As I walked back to the golf cart for the last time, I told him we where finally ready for tomorrow and I was not going to make it to the Gala but was going to take a hot shower, have a glass of wine and get some sleep.
We could still handle that easily and but needed to take care of the other half of of the showfield classes.
We still needed a place to put five more judged classes. Fortunately, the golf pro suggested the idea of putting cars in front of the main entrance to The Greenbrier. We where very fortunate to have originally planned to use the front entrance for our show. We pulled out and dusted off the very original plans that called for putting some iconic 20-30's era cars right in the middle of the roundabout and the brass cars under the roof. We had a plan. We could park all the classes and have a show. But how do we notify everyone? It came down to the effort of the judges. What an incredible group of judges Paul Ianuario assembled. Each group called their class, told them where to go and when to unload. The Volunteer hosts who had been to other car shows really pulled out the stops and made if happen. OODA loops! 
It really does take a lot of people to make an event success. You've got to have a team and a that team you have to trust to do their jobs to the best of their own discretion.
It's the people that mean alot to us. It's the people that should mean alot to your and your efforts doing a car event.  Roy Sjoberg, Wayne Long, Bernie Martin and Paul Ianuario. During the 2017 Amelia Island Concours d' Elegance Wayne and Bernie where invited by Paul to spend some time with Roy Sjoberg. Roy H. Sjoberg was named Executive Engineer-Viper Project in February 1989. In that position, he created and managed the Project Team for the development & production of the Dodge Viper. The "Platform Team" concept envisioned by Sjoberg (to bring the Viper to production) became the corporate-wide organizational structure for Chrysler. There was some terrific stories about the inception of the Viper and Roy's recruitment to Chrysler! We not sure if everyone know's Paul Ianuario backstory. Paul is a retired engineer who spent more than 40 years in the automotive supplier industry and has degrees in engineering, mathematics, and physics.
Our discussion on the patio at The Ritz ran the gammit from mothballed factories to CNC machining and CFD testing. Paul is going to be the Chief Judge at the Inaugural Greenbrier Concours d'Elegance, so of course there was a healthy amount of discussion about all aspects of Concours judging ranging from car selection and assignment to classes to filed layout and weather contingencies. Paul is the president of SLR Support Services, Inc. His company provides consulting services and support for museums and vehicle related events. Paul was under contract for twenty years as Curator of the BMW Zentrum and recently stepped down from this position. He was an AACA Museum Director and served eleven years in that capacity. Wayne Long, Founder of the Greenbrier Concours, has selected Paul Ianuario as Chief Judge of the inaugural Concours.  The Greenbrier is proud to host the first annual Concours d'Elegance on September 21-24, 2017. The Greenbrier Concours d'Elegance is honored to welcome Paul Ianuario as Chief Judge of the inaugural Concours, to be held September 21-24, 2017 at The Greenbrier in White Sulphur Springs, W.Va. Ianuario – a retired engineer, who spent more than 40 years in the automotive supplier industry and is a Master CCA judge, as well as an AACA judge – has been instrumental in setting up the Concours classes to make The Greenbrier Concours unique in comparison to any other Concours event around the world. Paul resides in Duncan, S.C., with his wife, Dinky. A little throwback to 20 years ago! Clipped from The Greenville News, 20 Jun 1996, Thursday, Page 45  The entrant experience takes a leap forward for the inaugural Pinehurst Concours d'Elegance with the naming of Paul Ianuario as Chief Judge for the event, slated for May 2 through 5, 2013. In this role, Ianuario will oversee the highly-competitive judging process, including selecting judges and assigning vehicle classes.
'I am honored to be chosen as the Chief Judge for the inaugural Pinehurst Concours d'Elegance,' said Ianuario. 'It took a lot of discussion with Concours founder Dean Kessel and director of events Brian Barr for me to come to the decision to accept this position, but I am very confident that this event will be a success – it has all of the elements to make it so and I hope that my consultation and assistance will only enhance it further.'
Hailing from Duncan, SC, Ianuario is a retired engineer with more than 45 years of experience working for companies such as Michelin Tire and his own company, SLR Support Services, which provides consulting and support for museums and vehicle-related events. Ianuario is also Curator of the BMW Zentrum museum in Spartanburg, SC, a Director of the AACA Museum in Hershey, PA, and is on the steering committee of the newly-opened LaMay Museum in Tacoma, WA. He also works for a variety of additional museums around the world, as well as consulting on collector-vehicle events. But Ianuario's not just a judge. He's also the owner of an eclectic collection of several dozen automobiles, many of which are award-winning thanks to his meticulous nature. He regularly exercises many of these cars, which include a 1910 Chalmers Detroit, a 1912 Hudson, a 1941 Lincoln Continental, and a 1948 Chrysler Town and Country, at a variety of vintage events. Over the years, Ianuario has won a variety of awards for his contributions for preserving automotive history, including the prestigious Lee Iacocca Award in 2008, for demonstrating an 'extraordinary dedication to the classic car hobby through vehicle preservation, club participation, and is one who has unselfishly assisted and encouraged others in perpetuating an 'American Automotive Tradition.'' 'To have Paul Ianuario as the Chief Judge of the Pinehurst Concours d'Elegance is an incredible accomplishment,' said Dean Kessel, founder and CEO of the Pinehurst Concours d'Elegance. 'His depth of knowledge, resources, and contacts in the industry will elevate our Concours to a true top-tier U.S. event.'  Paul Ianuario is a retired engineer who spent more than 30 years in the automotive-supplier industry and has degrees in engineering, mathematics and physics.
The last 20 years of his engineering career were spent with Michelin Tire Corporation. During this time he and his family lived for a while in Tours, France, where he became fluent in French. Paul’s love of the automobile, its related use and history, began at an early age and are an integral part of his lifestyle even today. After retiring from Michelin in 1996, Paul started his own business. He is the president of SLR Support Services, Inc., which provides consulting services and support for museums and vehicle- related events. One of his first customers was BMW. He was involved in the installation of the exhibits at the BMW Zentrum and has been under contract with them for the last 16 years. He is currently an AACA Museum Director for the second time, having initially served as Director of Interior Concepts prior to the Museum’s construction. He is also on the Steering Committee for the LeMay Museum, which is presently under construction in Tacoma, Washington. He does work for museums across the USA and in Europe, as well as providing consulting services for many collector-car-related events. Paul owns an extensive collection of rare and historically significant automobiles which he meticulously maintains. His personally restored vehicles have won some of the most prestigious National Awards, as well as Concours awards, in the collector-car world. He is a Master CCCA judge as well as an AACA judge and has long been recognized for his judging abil-ity. Each year he is invited to be a Concours judge at events such as the Pebble Beach Concours, the Meadow Brook Concours, the Amelia Island Concours, the Radnor Hunt Concours, the Hilton Head Concours, the Louisville Concours, and more. Paul is a member of many marque clubs and a number of National and International societies such as the Society of Automotive Engineers and the Society of Automobile Historians. He is the past “Executive Director” of IAGMASEP, which represents 80 automotive training schools in the USA and around the world. Paul is the recipient of the prestigious Lee Iacocca Award for his contributions to preserving automotive history. When he is not working on a museum, restoring or showing one of his cars, judging at a Concours or some other type of automotive event, Paul loves driving vintage cars. He has participated in the Mille Miglia road race in Italy nine times. He was a member of the BMW Mobil Tradition winning teams in the years 2000, 2002, 2004 and 2006. He enjoys driving in touring events like the Glidden or Reliability tours. Paul is also friends with a number of former SCCA, IMSA, and NASCAR national driving champions. Over the past 45 years Paul has owned a wide variety of American and European automobiles. The cars he has owned range from the pre-teen era to the post-war period and encompass many existing makes as well as extinct ones. His collection is eclectic. Paul resides in Duncan, South Carolina, with Dinky, his wife |
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