This 1935 Mercedes-Benz 500K, owned by Jim Friswold of Tigard, won Best In Show at the 2022 Forest Grove Concours d’Elegance. Friswold told the awards ceremony crowd that the restoration of the car had been completed just three days prior to the show.

By John Schrag/Pamplin Media Group

FOREST GROVE, Ore. – After a two-year break, the Forest Grove Concours d’Elegance returned to the Pacific University campus on July 17.

“It’s great to be back,” said Phil Hutchinson, who has been showing off his 1909 Pope Harford on the Pacific University campus for more than two decades. The car, which was purchased new by his great-grandfather, always attracts a crowd, and this year was no different.

This year’s show, the first since the outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020, featured nearly 300 entries, coming from as far away as Petaluma, California and Bainbridge Island, Washington.

Top honors went to a 1935 Mercedes-Benz 500k, presented by Jim Friswold of Tigard. This was the first time the car was on display in Forest Grove and it took home the Best in Show award, sponsored by Barrett-Auction Auction Company. The car also took home the Best Classic Car award, sponsored by Jaguar Land Rover Portland.

The Best Non-Classic Car award, presented by Washington Trust Bank, went to David B. Smith of Medina, Washington, for his 1956 Maserati A6G 2000 Zagato.

Other notable award winners included:

• A 1914 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost Landaulet, brought by Tom Cleary of Portland, which won the Toast of the Concours Cup, sponsored by Doherty Ford.

• 1954 Jaguar D-Type, brought by Allan Law of Petaluma, California, which won the Monte Shelton Cup

• A 1961 Chevrolet Impala, displayed by Nathaniel La barre of Hillsboro, which received the Pacific University President’s Award

• A 1966 Chevrolet Corvette Coupe, brought by Doug Meyer of Bend, which won the Arnold N. Franks Memorial Sweepstakes, sponsored by the Forest Grove Rotary Club

The all-volunteer show, produced by the Rotary Club of Forest Grove since 1973, is the largest and longest-running Concours d’Elegance in the Pacific Northwest.

Like many event organizers, the club’s Concours committee canceled the in-person 2020 show, opting for a virtual Concours, instead. Last July, they hosted a much smaller “Classics on Main.”

“We had to make the difficult decision to postpone the 48th show in both 2020 and 2021,” says Ryan Garcia, a club member who chaired this year’s Concours steering committee. “Everyone I’ve talked to, from volunteers to car owners, was ecstatic to welcome the public back for the 2022 show.”

The event is the service organization’s largest annual fundraiser, with net proceeds divided equally among the club’s scholarship program and community service projects. Thanks to the Concours d’Elegance, the Rotary Club of Forest Grove has returned more than $1 million to the community.

The Concours committee was happy to welcome Jaguar Land Rover Portland as its 2022 presenting sponsor. Supporting sponsors included Sports Car Market magazine, Chubb, Bonham’s, Barrett-Jackson, Doherty Ford, Hagerty, Elk Cove Vineyards, Cars Yeah, and Dufault, Smith & Meeuwsen.

For more information on the Forest Grove Concours d’Elegance, please visit the Show Web Site.