Sandhills Motoring Festival Concours d’Elegance

The Sunday Concours in the Village is the Sandhills Motoring Festival’s premier event. Set against the beautiful historic Village of Pinehurst, over 150 unique and hand-picked automobiles line the streets. There are 16 classes of vehicles, along with special display cars, throughout the Village. Each class is judged for the Winner and the Sandhills Award.

The Concours runs from 9 am until 3 pm and is open to the general public for spectating. Entrants to the Concours must apply to the SMF Concours Committee for approval of their entry.

The ‘Concours in the Village’ at the Sandhills Motoring Festival uses ‘French judging’ when determining the best vehicles on display. As a bit of background, the term ‘Concours d’Elegance’ is French, which roughly translates to ‘competition of elegance.’ As such, the first events of this sort were held in France in the early 1900s as transportation began to transition from horses to horsepower. Those early events were largely about the overall impression of the vehicle, and that led to the use of the term ‘French judging’ throughout the Concours world. This, of course, is not the only type of Concours judging, but it is the one that is most relevant to the Sandhills Motoring Festival