๐ ๐ฒ๐ผ ๐ฏ๐ธ๐ป ๐๐ฎ๐ซ๐ซ๐ต๐ฎ ๐๐ฎ๐ช๐ฌ๐ฑ ๐ก๐ธ๐ช๐ญ ๐ก๐ช๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ผ โ ๐๐ช๐ผ๐ฝ ๐ช๐ท๐ญ ๐๐ป๐ฎ๐ผ๐ฎ๐ท๐ฝ
๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ ๐ธ ๐ฅ๐ โค… โ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐น๐๐๐๐ โ๐ ๐๐ โ๐๐๐๐ฃ๐ค ๐๐๐ฅ๐
The Pebble Beach Road Races were a series of sports car racing events in Pebble Beach, California, from 1950 through 1956. The Del Monte Trophy was held on the twisty, leafy, and very narrow town roads the town and the Del Monte Forest.
Not all of the “track” was paved; the original 1950 route consisted of both paved two-lane roads and sections of dirt or loose gravel. Races started along Portola Road near the present-day Pebble Beach Equestrian Center. Cars then turned right onto Sombria Lane, then right again onto Drake Road. In 1950, drivers would turn right once again onto Forest Lake Road; in 1951 and later years they turned left onto Alvarado Lane (now Stevenson Drive), then sharp right onto Forest Lake. The final corner was a sharp right-hander at Ondulado back onto Portola and past the start/finish line.
The inaugural winner was a 23-year-old Phil Hillโwho went on to become Americaโs first Formula One World Championโdriving a Jaguar XK120. His son Derek will drive the 1949 Parkinson Jaguar in the races next week, that the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion at Laguna Seca. See the list of entries at https://dmtrg.com/wp-content/uploads/Del_Monte_Trophy_RMMR_media_release_7July2026.pdf. Carroll Shelby won the final race in 1956 driving a Ferrari 750 Monza
Photo: American Racing Museum Collection
Although the course was always tight and twisty with tall Cypress trees hemming in the track on either side, accidents were scarce and relatively uneventful. The exception came in 1956 when Ernie McAfee (no relation to fellow racer Jack McAfee) fatally slammed his Ferrari into a tree. This spelled the end of the popular Pebble Beach Road Races, although it was the genesis of Laguna Seca Raceway, its modern-day successor. And that takes us today, the extraordinary assembly of Pebble Beach Road Racers from that period, many of them which actually raced the circuit. August 12-15 2026 is the moment to celebrate 75 years of the races and of the Pebble Beach Concours dโElegance August 16. I started this article with the PAST tense โwereโ, but the Pebble Beach Road Races are in the PRESENT. 40 cars battling out on track next week just as they did 75 years ago. Now THAT calls for a celebration.
Thanks you Julian P. Graham Pebble Beach Company/Lagorio
Archive for the period photos.
Want a deep dive? Buy Mark Brinkerโs 4-volume book Heroes of the Forest at https://heroesoftheforestbook.com/