THE MASERATI CLUB – SOUTHEAST SAVOY WEEKEND
TMC-SE President Michael A. Demyanovich
Fifteen club members, and respective significant others, braved the June heat to attend the TMC-SE Savoy Weekend! Of course, I am not referring to the famous London hotel where the glitterati stay when in London, but rather the Savoy Automobile Museum located in Cartersville, Georgia. And in this case we were graciously treated like Royalty!
The Savoy Automobile Museum, located in the heart of the U.S. Southeast chapter territory is a beautiful, brand new museum hosting all sorts of automobile exhibits. Our reason for being there was the ‘Pirelli: The Story of a Company – A 150 Year History of Passion and Innovation’ exhibit. The exhibit displayed many special Italian vehicles, and featured the absolutely gorgeous 1970 Ghibli Spyder on loan to the museum from Ivan Ruiz, a TMC-SE Chapter member! Additional automobile exhibits viewed were ‘American Art Deco’, ‘Woodies’, and the ‘Savoy Collection’. All the exhibit vehicles were spectacular examples for the era represented in their respective exhibit. However, the Pirelli exhibit was very special for the TMC-SE participants.
Our weekend began on Friday, June 24, as participants and guests arrived from as far as South Florida, East and West Tennessee, and of course, Georgia. The evening culminated in a wonderful group dinner on the Patio of Largos Restaurant in Cartersville. On Saturday, June 25, our group enjoyed a wonderful morning drive, laid out by Ivan Ruiz and honorary member Dave Kirkman. Our scenic drive ended with a wonderful lunch at the Highlands Country Club Grill. After lunch, a few braved the heat to participate in a walking tour of ‘Old Car City’. ‘Old Car City’ is basically a junk yard where thousands of mostly American automobiles ended their useful lives. Although many have been parted out, the cars are arranged in a rather interesting artistic way. Through the years, moss, trees, and pine needles have taken over most of the cars. In some cases mature trees have grown right through the engine bays and interiors of the vehicles. In retrospect, it was eerily beautiful in its own way!
The highlight of the weekend was our private visit to The Savoy Automobile Museum on Saturday evening! We had a special welcome as we were greeted by an electronic banner welcoming TMC-SE to the museum. The museum curator guided us through all the exhibits, and even the museums storage garage, where many of the museum owned vehicles are kept. On cue, we were ushered into the museum theater, where the Ghibli Spyder of Ivan Ruiz was featured on the stage. Absolutely stunning, the Ghibli Spyder has to be considered one of the most beautiful automobiles ever conceived. After our tour was complete, participants enjoyed a cocktail and appetizer hour, followed by a wonder buffet dinner in one of the Museum dining rooms. The Savoy Automobile Museum made us feel very special throughout the whole evening!
Our special thanks go out to Jordan Brezinski, the museum event coordinator, who guided me through the planning process and ensured an excellent event, the museum vehicle curator, and the many staff who assisted throughout the evening.
Many participants expressed their desire to make this an annual TMC-SE visit!