Tag Archives: exotics@rtc

Getting Rid of the Visitors at Exotics@RTC

This was not something I really made a proper effort at during a visit to Exotics@RTC but I did have a brief go just to see how things might work out. With all of the lovely looking cars on show, there are plenty of people checking them out all of the time. This does mean the chances of getting a shot without someone in it are limited. I figured I might play around with using a bunch of shots and Photoshop to blend out the people and get left with the cars.

To do a good job of this I really could use a tripod to keep the shot identical and take way more photos than I did to give the algorithms something to work with. However, I didn’t have the tripod and wasn’t too keen on staying in exactly the same position for ages trying to hold the camera in place, so this was always destined to be a feeble effort. With limited data, people aren’t going to vanish but become ghostly. Added to that is that a few people were chatting with friends for ages so didn’t move much at all during the time I was shooting. They clearly were not going to disappear. Still, it was a good thing to play with and might encourage a more planned approach next time.

I Learned Something About Karmann Ghias

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The Karmann Ghia is a vehicle that I have known of since childhood. A teacher at my primary school had a white example and it looked amazing to me as a small boy. They turn up at car event pretty regularly and I occasionally see one out on the road. However, I was caught out at Exotics@RTC recently when I saw another car parked next to a Karmann Ghia that was also badged with that name. I had to google it when I came home and found out that there was a different platform used for a newer design during the 1960s. These are apparently known as the Type 34 whereas the original version is the Type 14. I had no idea until this visit. I guess that makes my excursion and educational exercise.

Testarossa Brutish Elegance

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The mid-80s was very different to today when it came to expensive cars. Now it feels like a new super car or hypercar is being unveiled every other week. The market for big cars was obviously a lot smaller back then. One of the cars of that era was the Ferrari Testarossa. It was a beast of a car with conspicuous grilles on the side and, in an early iteration, only one wing mirror on the driver’s side.

When I come across one these days, it is always a nice reminder of my teenage years. There is one that is a regular at Exotics@RTC. It was there on a normal day and returned for the Italian Day along with some other examples. It is a car with a muscular look to it with a very wide and low profile and some flaring at the back to emphasize its features. I still think it looks great. Whether it is a fun car to drive, I have no idea.

The Littlest Campervan

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America is the home of the RV. The size of vehicles which people live in while out on the road is enormous. Exotics@RTC attracts the more unusual vehicles, though, and this little thing showed up. It was in excellent condition and the interior was fitted out for picnics although whether it would be okay for more than day trips is a trickier question. Quite a cute little vehicle, though.

A Pair of Alpines

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If you follow Formula One, you will have seen that the Renault team recently changed their name to Alpine. This is an old brand that has recently been reintroduced by the company. I popped down to Exotics@RTC recently to see what was showing up and came across a pair of Alpines of differing vintages. One was a new one to me but the younger example did seem rather familiar. I guess I must have seen them in the UK when I was younger.

A few people were hanging around them but I thought they weren’t getting the attention that they deserved. Exotics@RTC has a never ending supply of McLarens, Ferraris, Porsches and Lambos but these were something that definitely deserved the title exotic.

German Day at Exotics@RTC

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The improvement in the pandemic in our region has meant that certain gatherings that were cancelled last year have been able to restart. That includes the Exotics@RTC car gatherings in Redmond. The first of the year that I was able to attend had a German theme to it. The theme days do not exclude other car types but they provide a focus to the theme cars and give them pride of place within the center. The other cars are out in the parking lot.

It won’t surprise you to learn that there were plenty of Porsche and Audi vehicles on display. Mercedes was also represented but not in such large numbers. There were some nice old Porsches to be seen including a pair on display which are owned by a father son team – the son being a neighbor of ours. I was really pleased to see a nice selection of older BMWs and a Z1 which I recall from my teen years. I had assumed the Audis would be more around the R8s (and there were a few of them) but to see a Quattro from the rallying era was a cool addition.

I had ridden down to Redmond on my bike so I wasn’t carrying heavy gear with me. I went with the M6 which shows how useful it is for such a situation. It is nice and compact plus, it has the folding screen which is great for getting low or high angle shots. Waiting for people to move out of shot is always problematic in this events but they have as much right to be there as I do so I either wait a long time or just accept that the shot will be more cluttered than ideal.

I hope to get down there a lot more this season and see what they have to offer and what fun cars show up. I will also share a few of the non-German cars from this day in another post to come.

Last Exotics of the Year

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It is around this time of year that the Exotics@RTC should be starting up again. Of course, with everything on lock-down, that is not happening at this point. Consequently, I thought I might go back to the last meeting of 2019 which I paid a visit to. It wasn’t a big gathering but, with it being the last one to take place (I think weather scrubbed some later meets), it was the final run out to Redmond for some of the cars and their owners. Here is a selection of shots of the fine machines that showed up.

Alfa Romeo C6

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During the Italian car day at Exotics@RTC, all of the focus was on the selection of cars inside the mall area. I did take some time to wander out in to the parking lot to see what other cars had shown up that day and hadn’t been “worthy” of a spot inside. As I was strolling around, something unusual showed up. I had no idea what it was but it was clearly pretty old. As it pulled to a halt, we got a chance to take a look around.

It was an Alfa Romeo C6. I asked the guy driving it why he was outside when this would clearly have been something that would have got a prime spot. He wasn’t bothered about all of that sort of thing and was happy to roll up when he wanted and to have those outside check the car out. The restoration had been undertaken in the UK and I imagine it hadn’t been cheap judging by the condition of the vehicle. It had that swoops look that cars of its era sometimes had and was a fantastic looking machine. If I had gone out earlier in my visit, I would have missed it completely!

Italian Car Special at Exotics@RTC

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The Exotics@RTC team have a number of special days throughout the season and I figured the Italian Car Special was probably one worth taking a look at. I wasn’t mistaken. Unlike the normal meets that take place out in the parking lot, this one was centered in the shopping mall itself. The atrium was filled with Italian cars of many marques. This even included Lamborghini tractors!

It will come as little surprise to know that the prancing horse was on display in large numbers. The centerpiece of the display was a a pair of La Ferraris – one with a roof and one open topped – with an Enzo and an F40. This was quite a valuable selection to have in the middle and it seemed rather funny how so many expensive cars were barely getting any attention as a result of the focus on this foursome. Alfas were also on show and there were some older Fiats that were clearly trimmed for rally activities.

Esprit V8

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As a young kid growing up in the 70s watching Bond movies, the Lotus Esprit that became a SAM launching submarine made a big impact on me. The next movie also had an Esprit, this time in turbo form, but it got blown up very quickly and a 2CV was the “star” of that movie which did not please me at all. My love for the Esprit was born and it continued through the Turbo SE and to the V8. It had another movie appearance in Pretty Woman although I suspect only a few of us watching were impressed.

A V8 example showed up at Redmond. I got chatting to the owner, a Brit as it turned out. He had owned a Turbo in the UK and then bought the V8 after he moved to the US. Apparently, only about 70 were sold in the US and maybe half of them are still in use. I loved checking it out and talking with him about the car. It also reminded me of one that used to live in South Kensington when I lived there so I dug out the old negative scan and that one is included here too. What a great looking car. A shame the gearbox was never able to accommodate the power the engine had potentially on offer.