It’s official: The 2020 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, scheduled for Aug. 16, has been canceled, joining a growing list of industry, motorsport and enthusiast events that have been postponed or called off due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

While a few smaller Monterey Car Week events had already been canceled, including the German-focused Legends of the Autobahn, this is likely to be the domino that takes down the rest of the party.

This move, while unfortunate, is not entirely surprising. While the planned date is still months away, the logistics underpinning an event on the scale of the concours—which involves transporting scores of incredibly rare and valuable vehicles to the California location from all over the world—are mind-bogglingly complex. The necessary lead time, coupled with the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 situation, makes the decision to pump the brakes more understandable. And that's to say nothing of the crowd that packs the concours green the day of the show.

A statement posted to the event’s website reads, in part:

“My heart goes out to all of the people who are involved in the Pebble Beach Concours and who are impacted by this decision,” said Concours chairman Sandra Button. “Many of our entrants have been working on a special car for years, and this was to be their moment. Some of our overseas entrants were nearing the point of putting their cars on boats and planes, and their own travel arrangements have long been made. The same is true for many of our international cadre of judges.”

Monterey Car Week isn’t just the most densely packed grouping of classic car shows and meetups, some open to the public, some fabulously pricey and super-exclusive, on the planet; it also hosts the Monterey Motorsports Reunion, which unfolds at nearby WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.

And, critically, it is also a huge week for high-end classic car auctions. To get a sense of how big of a deal it is, last year's cluster of auctions saw $245 million worth of cars change hands—and that was considered a down year. It will not be easy for auction houses to make up that number despite their hurried turn to online sales; expect this to have long-lasting repercussions for the industry.



The sliver of good news for Pebble Beach entrants—who by this point have already been notified that their cars were selected for the 2020 show—is that they’ll be able to bring their vehicles to Monterey for next year's show, which is slated for Aug. 15, 2021. Maybe by that point, we'll have all collectively decided to forget 2020 ever happened.

Naturally, 2021 will still be considered the 70th running of the event. According to event organizers, “Features will remain as planned, with a display of past Best of Show winners along the edge of Stillwater Cove, and special classes focusing on Pininfarina coachwork, Porsche 917, Talbot-Lago Grand Sport, Miller Racing, Iso, Early Electrics and the Carrera Panamericana.”

If you’ve already purchased tickets, you can either hold on to them for next year, or email info@pebblebeachconcours.net for a refund. Again, we expect the remaining Monterey Car Week shows and events to follow suit in the coming days. Here's hoping things get back on track for 2021.

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