Exotic Car Show Draws Legions of Participants and Spectators

Glen Cove hosted the Second Annual Gold Coast Concours, an assemblage of exotic, classic and muscle cars on Sunday. Off and on rain showers and a constantly threatening sky didn't dampen the spirits of car enthusiasts drawn to the Village Square area for the event.

Gleaming red Ferraris, a souped-up canary yellow Camaro, Batman black Porsches, silvery Mercedes, and all manner of BMWs, lined the streets up from the square like spokes in a classic car wheel.  The event was sponsored by Glen Cove's Martino Auto Concepts/MAC Auto Couture of Glen Cove for the benefit of the Diabetes Research Institute (DRI).

"We are proud to support the Diabetes Research Institute for its mission of finding a cure for diabetes and educating the public about this disease," said Joe LaPadula, president of Martino Auto Concepts. 

More than 800 participants were signed up, hailing from all over Long Island and the tri-state area, as well as Pennsylvania, Michigan and as far away as California. 

"We lost some participants because of the weather," LaPadula said, "but we still packed the house." 

Exotic cars were parked diagonally up School and Glen Streets and at the corners of the square: a navy blue Bentley, orange Lamborghini, jet black Maserati, the NASCAR Team Miller Lite racecar and trailer and an abundance of BMWs, the latter part of a program called "Bimmerstock," which partnered with the local promoters to support the event. 

"People can't believe how low and how wide some of these cars are," said Russ Golyak of TheoMetrics, a company that creates high-tech visual measurement tools used to lay out racetracks. "We feel our technology will soon be useful in designing cars, as well." 

Aside from the individual vehicles, there were trailers and booths representing vendors selling everything from upholstery cleaners to engine components, racing wheels to complete styling makeovers. One display, offering high performance driver training, was the Jeff Andretti Coaching Group. 

"When you have this much horsepower in one place, you can't help but drool," said Jeff Andretti, son of the legendary race driver, Mario Andretti, and an accomplished driver in his own right. His trailer, along with the canary yellow Camaro, had made the trip from Pennsylvania. 

"I'd heard about this event from Joe LaPadula," Andretti added. "When I found out it was to benefit diabetes research, that was the icing on the cake. I'd lost both my grandparents to diabetes."

Prizes for raffles to raise money for the charity included a fantasy weekend getaway and suite at Oheka Castle in Huntington and an official BMW bicycle donated by Competition BMW of Smithtown. 

"Martino Auto Concepts/MAC Auto Couture is excited to continue to build a legacy for the Gold Coast Concours Exotic Car charity event and involve our local community and exotic car aficionados in supporting the Diabetes Research Institute," said Derek Pasch, president of MAC Auto Couture.