Lost Circuits: A History of the Pebble Beach street course
Pebble Beach
Between 1950 and 1956, the Pebble Beach road course established itself as the premier street circuit on the United States West Coast. Positioned between Monterey, Pacific Grove and Carmel-by-the-Sea, the track was located on private forest land owned by the Del Monte Properties Company.
The president of Del Monte Properties, John Morse, wanted to sell vacant property lots and attract tourists to the Pebble Beach Lodge with its stunning 18-hole golf course.
His friend, the wealthy amateur driver and specials builder, Sterling Edwards, suggested a race meeting held within the Del Monte forest and a Councours d’Elegance at the Lodge.
1950
For the inaugural event, which took place on November 5th 1950, a 1.8 mile circuit was laid out.
The narrow and twisting course ran along atmospheric roads packed with pine and cypress trees. It was quite bumpy, difficult to overtake and had a couple of blind bends.
During this first year, the track also took in a short stretch of unmade dirt road.
The races were organised by the San Francisco region of the SCCA and over 10,000 spectators attended in 1950. The combination of a great circuit and a concours overlooking the Pacific ocean instantly established the Pebble Beach weekend as something special.
Thereafter hosted annually, the race card typically comprised four to five events.
Subsequent Years
For 1951, the circuit was lengthened to 2.1 miles, all of which was now fully paved. Several trees had been felled to make the racing safer and the event was moved from early November to late May.
After the success of 1950, no less than 25,000 spectators turned up - a figure that would be repeatedly matched for the next few years.
Local favourite, Phil Hill, went on to become the most successful driver at Pebble Beach. After taking the first major victory of his career with a modified 3.8-litre Jaguar XK120 in the 1950 Pebble Beach Cup, he went on to win another five times.
Perhaps Hill’s most famous victory came in 1955 when, on a soaked track amid heavy rain, he famously won the main event by lapping the entire field in Allen Guiberson’s Ferrari 750 Monza.
That same weekend, Hill’s 1931 Pierce Arrow won the Concours d’Elegance with the judges describing it as “probably the most beautifully restored car ever seen in the United States”.
End of an Era
Despite the hazard posed by the abundance of trees, most accidents at Pebble Beach weren’t too serious and racing continued until 1956.
However, that year, hot rod legend, Ernie McAfee, fatally crashed a Ferrari 121 LM he was driving for William Doheny who was heir to the Union Oil Company.
Coming into turn six, McAfee had been trying to lap John von Neumann's Ferrari 500 Mondial, but missed a downshift and braked hard locking the wheels. The Ferrari veered left then right and struck a drainage ditch that pitched it into the air. A tree impacted the driver’s door, killing poor Ernie McAfee instantly.
The fatal crash marked the end for the picturesque Pebble Beach road circuit. Over the winter of 1956-1957, arrangements were made that saw a parcel of government land set aside for a permanent track around five miles away.
In November 1957, the new Laguna Seca circuit was opened.
Sadly, today, many of the old roads that formed the original Pebble Beach track have either disappeared or been rerouted.
Text copyright: Supercar Nostalgia
Photo copyright: Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance - https://www.pebblebeachconcours.net
