For the past 15 years or so, I have had the honor of serving as a judge at the Radnor Hunt Concours d’Elegance near Philadelphia. It is a charming event and is a bit unique in that it mixes a casual Friday barbecue and Saturday road tour (followed by a black tie gala) with Sunday’s concours event. The Concours itself is also unique in that it was the first true concours event to have both a female chief judge and a dedicated Motorcycle class judged by what I feel is the best team of judges ever to evaluate two-wheeled vehicles. This year, I served on that judging team led by motorcycle collector, historian, and true enthusiast John Lawless.

I usually take a press car to the event, but this year event chairman Tobey Ross asked if I could bring my 007 edition BMW Z3 to show at the event in the James Bond Class. Since I had not shown my Z3 since 2016, I agreed and planned my trip to Malvern.

I generally take a direct route to Radnor, trying to get to the event as quickly as possible. This year, I decided that if I left early enough, I could take a side trip to a place I have always wanted to see: the C. F. Martin Guitar Factory and Museum in Nazareth, Pennsylvania. I did visit the museum years back with my wife, but it was on a weekend and the factory was not open.

I left Connecticut at 9:30 a.m. and, after a quick stop at White Castle, arrived at Martin at 12:15 p.m. I had tried to book a tour but all the slots were filled, so I spent time in the museum. If you play, collect, and enjoy musical instruments (or even just love music), the Martin Guitar Museum is a must-see place. Not only is the history of the guitar in the U.S. on display, but also the documented history of music from the 1800s to today.

After spending around 45 minutes in the museum, I made my way to the Pickin’ Parlour. This is a demo room where you are able to try out any current Martin guitar, with prices ranging from $599 to as much as you wish to spend. If you want to try out a $10,000 D45, you can. This is a hook as not only can you try these guitars out, but you can also buy them right there direct from the factory. I did not leave with one but finally discovered the model that fit me the best — something I have been trying to sort out for about two years.

After visiting the gift shop, I thanked the staff for their hospitality yet, just as I was about to leave, one of the staff asked me how I like the tour. I told him that since this was a last-minute visit added to my Radnor trip, I was unable to see the factory. He asked me if I had time to spare (which I did), so he gave me a visitors badge and took me on a personal tour of the factory. Stupidly, I did not take any photos as I was basically walking around in awe of the craftsmanship all around me. The fact that the staff did this made me a Martin fan for life.

After the tour, I made my way to the Radnor Hunt Club, arriving two hours before the barbecue. Since I had killed what seemed like every single bug in four states with my just-detailed car, I spent those hours cleaning.

The next day, I participated in the road rally. I did not initially have a navigator (something critical for the Bill O’Connell Memorial Road Rally) but, at the barbecue the night before, I asked my friend Mike Kimmrey from Manns Restorations if he wanted to go. We set off and had a great time on the 79-mile tour, only making one error along the way. No, we did not answer all the questions on the rally sheet, but we had a great time.

After going back to the hotel to clean the car (again!) and get dressed in formal wear, I made my way back to Radnor so my car could be part of the 007 display. It was an honor to be asked to park next to a stunning Aston DB4 and the BSA A65 that was used in the movie “Thunderball.”

Sunday, I awoke to rain, something that is the bane of all concours organizers. Despite the weather, both the car and motorcycle turnout was incredible, with only several cars and motorcycles dropping out. The people who show at Radnor are a tough crew, and a little rain never seems to stop them. The same holds true for the spectators who stood in the rain for the first few hours of the show. Happily, by around 10 a.m., the rain stopped and the rest of the show had sunny skies.

The cars this year were a perfect mix for a larger regional concours event, with everything from Ferraris to Duesenbergs, and even the Jaguar LT3 competition car which was raced by Phil Hill at the Pebble Beach Road Races. In addition to the 100 or so cars, we had over 40 amazing motorcycles including a perfect Brough Superior SS80 and the leanest Moto Guzzi Falcone Sport I have ever laid eyes on.

I put my own car on the field as display-only since judging and showing can be rather difficult, plus I wanted to focus on the job of judging. Despite this, my car proved to be more popular that I could have guessed — every time I went over to visit, I had plenty of questions from spectators.

Like all shows, the winners were announced at the end of the day. Radnor is one of those concours events that smartly has two Best of Show awards: one for elegance and one for sports cars. The winner for Best of Show Elegance went to the 1915 Packard Model 3-38 5 Passenger Phaeton owned by Gail Schaevitz, and Best of Show Sport went to my single favorite car at the event, the 1951 Jaguar XK 120 LT3 Silverstone Works Lightweight owned by my friends Jim and Lisa Hendrix. Better yet, the car was restored by my friend Jason Mann’s shop. These two winners chosen by judges could not have been better choices.

If you have not attended the Radnor Hunt Concours d’Elegance I would highly recommend it. It is a unique and fun event in the concours calendar and, if you travel early enough, there is a pretty neat side trip I could recommend.