Images Courtesy of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance
Vince Finaldi kept his sanity by playing with cars. His work as an attorney for plaintiffs in various sexual misconduct cases equated insurmountable stress on a daily basis, and having an outlet was paramount to remaining human. Having inherited motoring DNA from his family, Vince learned early on the various nuances of vehicle restoration, from metalwork to engine rebuilding to electrical systems and so on, so it was natural for him to gravitate to cars when it came time to work out some stress.
“Without an outlet, the shelf life for this kind of lawyer is about 4-years,” he said. “I always told younger lawyers they need to be able to go home and turn it off. For me, cars have always been a major way of unwinding, to let the mind relax and let go.”
Vince grew up around cars, thanks to his father and uncles who opened shops around the Chicago area before moving out to Southern California.
“I was always around cars, my dad would bring home cars to fix up and sell on the side, so I was exposed to that. My grandfather worked for GM, and my father and my uncles opened shops, so we always had cars around,” he said. “They were from Italy and knowing how to work on the European machines with their dual-overhead cams, multiple carburetors, and other unique nuances gave them a little edge over some American mechanics when it came to fixing foreign cars, so they began working mostly on those kinds of cars.”
Having grown up in a family of car people, he began buying and selling cars early on and continues to do so today.
“My collection is always evolving,” he said. “I’ve had a multitude of Lamborghinis, Ferraris, Alfa Romeos, Mercedes, and many other kinds of cars. I’m currently looking for a closed Pre-War car to enjoy in some rallies, but I’m always buying and selling cars.”
With so many cars having been built, Vince feels it’s important to experience as many as possible, but he also understands the concept of hanging on to what someone has had for a while.
“I meet a lot of people who’ve had their cars for decades, and they have their own reasons, and I think that’s fine,” he said. “It’s all part of the tapestry that is the automotive community.”
With cars as an outlet, Vince planned ahead with an escape route to exit the legal field after about 20 years of service to begin anew. Once again, he looked to cars for that escape.
“Stress is huge in the practice of law, and I didn’t want to burn out, I wanted to end my career on a high note, or at least ease out of it with positive thoughts,” said Vince. “So, I knew I’d want a second career, and I knew that it would likely revolve around restoring or maintaining cars.”
That segue into a second career, even a second life, began a few years ago relocating from Southern California to the Monterey Peninsula where he and his wife Melissa turned their vacation home into their primary home moving to the area permanently. Meeting many car owners and enjoying Monterey Car Week to the fullest, Vince followed his family lineage and opened a shop, which enabled him to meet even more car owners and collectors.
“I attended my first Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance about 12 years ago,” he said. “I’m actually kind of new to attending them compared to so many who have done it for decades. But, meeting a lot of people in the car community, including the Concours, word began to circulate that Chairman Sandra Button was interested in stepping into an advisory role and letting someone else take the lead after her decades of service to the Concours.”
Vince was often approached with the idea of helping the Concours by taking a leadership role, but he continued to decline, uncertain it was a road he wanted to take.
“It absolutely aligned with my interests in following a car path, but I just wasn’t sure that exact path was what was good for me or the Concours,” Vince said.
One night at dinner, his wife asked why he was so hesitant, pointing out that it was difficult to find a person with car skills and business skills, which is what the Concours needs. With that, he began talking with people at the Concours about helping out. Various meetings and conversations led to the obvious undertone that the Concours was looking to do more to encourage younger audiences to attend the Concours and all of its associated events. The big question was how.
“It’s a fine line to cultivate newer audiences while continuing to please and remain loyal to the people who’ve attended and participated for decades,” he said. “So, part of the goal is to raise more interest among younger enthusiasts without alienating those who’ve supported the Concours for so long. It’s a fine line, but one that can be accomplished. Just slowly.”
Vince points out that the Concours is a living thing, an evolutionary body that is cultivated and nurtured and passed on, not rushed and brought together in a slipshod fashion. In the past 30 years or so, changes to the Concours have been normally well received.
“Anyone who comes in and says they want to make huge changes, or even immediate changes, is the wrong person to lead this event,” he said. “This is a pinnacle Concours, it will evolve slowly and gently to be kept relevant, and that’s part of the art of curating the show and event and engaging with changes that will appeal to younger enthusiasts. The Concours has been working on welcoming younger cars and enthusiasts for decades, but it’s been a delicate introduction. Those introductions are how the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance has maintained its place in the concours world, by adapting with newer cars and collectors. A concours is a living, breathing event year after year. It’s always changing, and must to remain relevant. But those changes should occur carefully and organically.”
With the idea of bringing younger people to the Concours, of course, the conversation arises about ticket costs. At the moment, a ticket to the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance runs around $600. Pricey in anyone’s book, but especially to a younger enthusiast who’s likely just starting out and on a budget.
“It’s not inexpensive, but the Concours hosts a number of free events surrounding the Sunday Concours,” said Vince. “One of the most popular free events is the Tour d’Elegance, whereby people can see the cars readying for the drive, people can await the cars at certain points along the route to photograph them and see them, and of course, greet them as they return. There’s also Concours Village, which hosts a number of manufacturer displays with Ride and Drives and other interactive experiences, expert forums, and RetroAuto where people can purchase various motoring-related items. So, yes, while the Concours itself is the summit of the week, there are a number of other options related to it that are totally free.”
Importantly to Finaldi, and one of the biggest things that brought him to this new position, and people often forget this, but the purpose of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance is to raise supplemental funds for a variety of charities. It also costs a mint to assemble the event and ensure it goes as flawlessly as possible.
“The Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance is a remarkable, world-renowned event that is a benchmark for so many other events to follow,” he said. “The money it raises goes to so many worthwhile causes, and the celebration of the automobile is like no other, the camaraderie, the amazement, the sheer joy. Truly, there is nothing like it in the world, and no matter your age, the experience is magic, it is something every car enthusiast cherishes. And in the process, we are raising money to help out some very worthy causes. What could be better?”
So, what can participants expect on the green in a few years? Vince says ideas are percolating, and that while nothing has been settled, it’s likely that the Concours will increasingly entertain newer, apex cars while continuing to honor those vehicles which helped to make the Concours what it is.
