Targa Trophy 2013 OC Event #2 at Lamborghini Newport Beach

With summer almost here in sunny Southern California, the Targa Trophy team had a very special event to get everyone hyped up for the coming season.  Event #2 Italian Car Festival Orange County was held at our Newport Beach showroom which worked perfectly for the amount of cars and fans that were there to show their love for the finer things in life.

Makes and models from various European-based manufactures were there to show pride.  From the German bloodline came Mercedes', BMW's, Audi's, & Porsche's.  The Italian exotics were not shy either with all kinds of Lamborghini's, Ferrari's, & Maserati's proudly representing the boot-shaped country.  A Range Rover and even a few Aston Martin's also sprinkled the parking lot.  A handful of GT-R's, an Evo and even an IS-F seamlessly blended their Asian blood into the European-based crowd with ease.

But don't worry, in case you prefer the brute-force of American cubic inches, a Corvette ZR1, Camaro SS, and a highly-modified Chrysler 300 with a blower peeping through the hood had you covered as their low-rumbling V8's were hard to dismiss.  As we asked the owner of the 300 what was done to make his 300 sound like a 9-second drag monster, he responded: "It's just easier if you ask what hasn't been done."  That's when we knew this thing was more serious than we anticipated… as if the stripped interior, roll cage, front racing seats, and lack of rear seats wasn't a big enough clue.

While most were enjoying themselves in the company of the finest automobiles to be produced, the Targa Trophy team and girls were scurrying around making sure the event went as flawless as possible.  Despite running at 100mph, the girls were still able to smile and enjoy themselves while tending the herd of people ready for their gift bags containing goodies from Targa Trophy sponsors.

As everyone knows, hungry people turn to angry people so a food truck was responsible for keeping the stomach's quiet.  Equipped with a mixer and laptop, DJ Esquire did a fine job keeping the good vibes floating as well.  Something we didn't expect to find at a car event was an artist who was making automotive-based art pieces.  We're not sure what media he was working with, but whatever he was using looked very unique.  We simply had to snap a photo of him doing his thing.

What we read in magazines is always a comparison of X-brand vs. Y-brand.   In real life, the cars while simply sitting next to each other, almost take on the same role. Ferrari's sitting next to Lamborghini's, AMG's next to M's... which is also next to an RS-line Audi, a Porsche GT3RS sitting with it's rear facing a McLaren, etc etc.  As an automotive-enthusiast it's great to see these cars side-by-side so that one can draw their own conclusion of which fits their taste instead of being swayed by the magazine editor's opinions.  Below are a few examples of what we mean by such circumstances.

With the heat slowly cranking up, the participants started applying their Targa Trophy graphics and fixating their GoPro's on their vehicles to capture the experience.

GoPro's mounted, stickers sticked, & temperature rising, it was time to get the Driver's Meeting under way.  As participants flocked inside our showroom, Targa Trophy producer Jason was sure to let everyone know what was expected of them in the run.

With the routes now in the hands of the participants, teams begun strategizing where and how they were going to win.

The moment that everyone has been waiting for was drawing very close.  Cars starting and photographers snapping, the time to get the Targa Trophy Event #2 initiated brought the adrenaline glands from idle to full throttle in .5 seconds flat.

With the official start of the event, spectators were going haywire as a chaotic pool of V8's, V10's, & V12's drowned the ears and pounded the chest from the exhaust pressure pulses.  The rest as you know…. is history.

To view more photos, please visit our Flickr: Lamborghini Newport Beach Flickr

Click HERE to watch the time lapse of the entire pack leaving Lamborghini Newport Beach