2023 Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion

A Celebration of Speed, Passion, and Legacy

Story and Images by Robert Watt

This year’s Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion chose Corvette as its featured marque to honor Corvette’s 70th anniversary. Held annually in August at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca during Monterey Car Week, the event still has something for every car enthusiast.

It was disappointing that Rolex Reunion didn’t choose to honor Porsche’s 75th year, but we can’t win them all. Fortunately, celebrating our favorite is what Rennsport Reunion is for and that gathering was coming up soon at the same track. Even though Porsche wasn’t the featured marque there were plenty of Porsches to be seen in the paddock, along with a wide variety of race cars like Can-Am, F5000, and F1 on the race track. It was exciting to see so many eras of Porsches, from a 1960 RS 60 Spyder, 1961 Abarth Carrera, 1969 Porsche 917PA, RSRs, 935s, 962s, and a 2006 Riley Porsche DP Mark X1, to name a few.

The Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion brings together historic race cars that “are accepted based on the car’s authenticity, race provenance, and period correctness.” Always enjoyable is the “Ragtime Racers” that features the earliest models of which the 1908 Locomobile Model “I” was the earliest of them all. If you’re lucky, you can see the “Ragtime Racers” put together a working vehicle from parts and pieces to a fully assembled and running car in minutes (in one case, 8 minutes to be exact!).

If you made the event this year there was a lot to see. If not, there is always 2024 when it kicks off on Friday, August 9, with festivities through Sunday, the 18th. Being Monterey Car Week, book your lodging early!

Robert Watt has been a member of PCA since 2009. He drives a concours-winning 2008 Cayman in Speed Yellow.