Nobles' Collection

I woke up to rain filled skies on the morning of the FOC multifaceted Beach City Cruise and Nobles Family Museum event and realized that the cruise phase of the event probably wasn't going to happen. However, my 1990 Testarossa is a driver with 60,000 miles on the odometer and since our Club motto is 'We Drive' I wasn't going to let a little rain spoil my day.

I started as originally planned by driving over to the Aliso Viejo, CA 'Cars & Coffee' gathering, where I met up with my guest and passenger for the day Emilio, Manager of the wonderful local San Juan Capistrano restaurant The Vintage. Of course there were many other like-minded car aficionados there, that weren't going to let a few raindrops ruin their morning, as well. There were vehicles of every sort, rat rods, antiques, new and old muscle, off road, and exotics. You get the idea. There is nothing better than getting a bunch of like-minded car guys (men and women) together on a Sunday morning and jawing about their cars. Everywhere you looked there was a smile and a look of appreciation.

One of my favorite things to do is to look for the young children/teenagers that start to walk by my car, and stop when the bright yellow Testarossa wedge catches their eye, and swing around to take an appreciative look at it. When I see the instant WOW expression on their face I ask them, 'Have you ever sat in a Ferrari?' They say, 'No' and I offer them the opportunity to sit in the driver's seat. You can tell by the expressions on their faces that this will be a moment in their lives they will never forget.

Next came the hour and a half cruise up the Pacific Coast. Emilio and I headed through the beautiful green and winding parkways of the city of Laguna Niguel toward the beach. When we got to PCH (Pacific Coast Highway), we rolled down our windows and dropped down into the city of Dana Point's picturesque harbor. After a short drive through the quaint beach town of Dana Point we headed north through South Laguna Beach where you get beautiful glimpses of the Pacific Ocean. We then continued north on PCH through the art colony of Laguna Beach followed by the area known as Crystal Cove State Park, which provided us more panorama scenic views of local beaches and the Pacific Ocean. Emilio's senses were filled with beautiful beach and ocean sights, the fresh smell of the ocean, and the rich cacophony bark of the Testarossa's twelve cylinders, like he had never sensed before.

At that point in the drive it was time to head inland to Fountain Valley to the very special Nobels' Family Museum. We were greeted by our gracious host, Tony, who had laid out a wonderful European style breakfast. Selections included orange juice, champagne (Mimosas), coffee, cheese, crackers, fresh fruit and prosciutto. The 100+ car collection, over half of which are Ferraris, includes Ferraris of almost every model since the 250 GTE. Some are quite unique and many are white, as Tony has a penchant for white cars. For example Tony's white GTE was owned/driven by Enzo and his light metallic blue 275 GTS is one of the four rare 3 seaters. In addition to the Ferraris are many other interesting marques including Lamborghini, Mercedes, and Rolls Royce. You get the idea. Oh, and did I mention the racecars? It just so happens that Tony is a very accomplished race care driver and his Michael Schumacher Ferrari F1 is once again on its way home from Europe. Toward the end of our tour of the museum, Tony cordially answered a number of personal questions. It was at this time that the FOC presented this warm, friendly, genial, gracious and hospitable host with a limited edition portrait drawing of Enzo Ferrari by the talented artist Dave Maestrejuan (Dave was named the first artist-in-residence at the well known Peterson Automotive Museum located in L.A. in 1997).

And then there was more. Members of the group were joined by Tony at the Newport Rib Company restaurant in Costa Mesa for lunch. We devoured the deliciously prepared choice of French Dip Prime Rib or Beef Brisket sandwiches with BBQ baked beans, or the equally delectable South West Chicken salad with fresh fruit, and of course the entertaining conversation between Tony and the FOC members continued. The event was delightful and enjoyed by those that attended.