GALLERY: Some Heavy Maranello Metal Crashed The 458/488 Challenge Series Opener

Last week the wife and I took an extended weekend vacation to Northern California. I’m slightly ashamed to say that after years of living in the state, we’d never made our way to Monterey before. Being a petrolhead, my only real goal in this trip was to convince Mrs. Golseth that a visit to Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca was of paramount importance to a successful drive up the coast. Per my usual wing-it attitude (see the definition of “unprepared,” and see below it my mug), I had done zero research as to whether there were actually any events scheduled at the “Home of the Corkscrew.” Thankfully a quick phone search informed me that not only was there a race going on, but it just so happened to be the 2017 season’s Ferrari 458/488 Challenge opening weekend.

I’m lucky that my wife quite likes Ferraris too, so off to watch horses prance we went. To our surprise, we were welcomed by far more than race-prepped 458/488s in this stable. The parking lot was full of Californias, 308s, 348s, 360s, and even a couple of LaFerrari, but as special as those machines are, that’s not what set this splendid day of motorsports apart from the usual day at the races. No, what made it so special for classic car lovers like myself was the mini Ferrari Concours.

Just behind the Challenge teams’ tents was a corral of vintage Ferraris parked along the turn 1 wall. As exciting as the ludicrously fast 458 and 488 race cars are to watch, I found myself ogling the shapely Maranello masterpieces parked in formation at least as much as anything in motion that day. I eventually watched some competition, but not before snapping a set of photos to share with you. Moral of the story: if you find yourself near a racetrack one day, be sure to check in; it might just make you (and your significant other’s) day.