The Madison Avenue Sports Car Driving and Chowder Society

April 2025 Luncheon
2025-04-01 11:30 - 14:00 (America/New_York) | Sardi’s, 234 West 44th Street, Manhattan, NY, 10036, United States
Our speaker will be Mark Steigerwald, the Director of the International Motor Racing Research Center in Watkins Glen. There is much happening there these days and they have come a long way since the center opened. The first Chairman of the Board of the Center was a Chowderhead. It was Syd Silverman. Chowderhead Mike Stott was also one of the leaders that helped shape it. Mark will have much to say.

March 2025 Luncheon
2025-03-11 11:30 - 14:00 | Sardi’s, 234 West 44th Street, Manhattan, NY, 10036, United States
Details as they become available

January 2025 Luncheon
2025-01-14 11:30 - 14:00 | Sardi’s, 234 West 44th Street, Manhattan, NY, 10036, United States

67th Annual Holiday Party
2024-12-10 11:30 - 15:00 | Sardi’s, 234 West 44th Street, Manhattan, NY, 10036, United States
Please join us at the usual spot, at the usual time, for our 67th Annual Holiday party.
The lunch will be the traditional buffet and we have gotten Sardi’s to keep the price to within one dollar of last year’s cost.
We aren’t certain that everyone is getting our emails yet, so please reach out to your Chowderhead friends to remind them of the party and to make plans to get together on Tuesday.
There will be presents to be raffled off – donated by some of our members as well as by a few others. Expect a few surprises as well.
When you make your reservations

We’re limited to 130-140 people, thus your timely response to the RSVP is critical to us. WE MUST GIVE SARDI’S a guarantee of numbers by the Friday before the event. We regret any inconvenience.
Please use the form below to RSVP. Do not send your RSVPs by phone, text, email or pony express. They will invariably get lost and then you won’t be on “the list” to get in.
Please do not RSVP 4 times with your name if you are bringing 3 guests. If you do, we will have to email you and ask for each person’s name. Please include the first and last name of each guest.

November Monthly Meeting
2024-11-12 11:30 - 14:30 | Sardi’s, 234 West 44th Street, Manhattan, NY, 10036, United States
We have a great program planned. Knowing that every chowderhead is likely to have a collection of automobilia – magazines, photos, paintings, models, oil cans, and a half a million other possibilities, we have as our speaker one of the world’s greatest authorities on Automobilia. Our speaker is a long time chowderhead, Marshall Buck. Marshall is the co-founder and Editor Emeritus of Automobilia Magazine. Automobilia is the world’s source for information on markets, individual types of items, their rarity and desirability. Marshall is also a most talented modeler. He will give us an overview of the various aspects of the automobilia collecting hobby, where is has come from and where it is likely to be going. He will also answer questions and help us understand better what it is we have on all of those shelves of neat stuff.

October Monthly Meeting
2024-10-08 11:30 - 14:30 | Sardi’s, 234 West 44th Street, Manhattan, NY, 10036, United States
We have an interesting speaker lined up to recount his latest motoring adventure.
Chowderhead Jim Shelly has been trying to finish in the Hemmings Great Race for a number of years now. He’s usually tried in a prewar beastie, a 1939 Buick. His breakdowns along the way have become the stuff of legend – at least among his friends. One didn’t realize there were so many ways for a ’39 Buick to leave on by the side of the road. For is latest foray he decided that reliability might be more important than the romance of running that many miles in a prewar sedan. Instead he found a rally prepared MGB-GT and he proceeded to take its original preparation to a whole new level. Jim and his navigator actually made it from the start to the finish and did it reasonably competitively. Jim will show some photos of the event and will talk about how one prepares and practices for this, the country’s longest Time/Distance/Speed/Rally. The fact of their finishing did not preclude various adventures along the way. Come to the October Chowder Meeting and hear more.

September Monthly Meeting
2024-09-03 11:30 - 14:30 | Sardi’s, 234 West 44th Street, Manhattan, NY, 10036, United States
Our September Meeting is ONE WEEK EARLY, on the 3rd of September.
We are honored and delighted to be hosting Sam Schmidt, a legend at Indianapolis for both the quality of his team, (2nd and 4th this year at Indy) and for his personal courage and leadership in overcoming the accident that took away control of his arms and legs. That would have stopped lesser mortals. but Sam continues with racing and with leading the charge for research to overcome this sort of injury. He is thoughtful and entertaining – a most inspirational man.
We shall be at Sardi’s as usual and are hoping for a big turnout. Be there

Annual Summer Picnic
2024-08-25 10:30 - 14:30 | MPAC, 16 Bedford-Banksville Road, Bedford, 10506, United States
The Annual Chowder Summer Picnic is Upon Us!!
Chowder Society members and their guests are invited to the famous Madison Avenue Sports Car Driving and Chowder Society picnic starting at 11-ish AM on Sunday, August 25th at the Malcolm Pray Achievement Center in Banksville, NY (just up the road from Greenwich).
We will run through the afternoon. The Pray Achievement Center has most of Malcolm’s collection on display so we will have delectable cars to see inside as well as what is always a magnificent collection of road cars that some of our members will drive to the picnic.
The picnic provides a perfect scene for contemplation of loud cars and interesting people.
Pack a sandwich or two and something to drink, There will be some dessert available. For those wanting to over achieve we are suggesting packing the most elegant picnic spread you can come up with. (Candelabras and even champagne in Crystal glasses ((plastic will do)) are allowed). There will be a Bridgehampton-themed award, fabricated by Board Member Susan Blackwell. There are deli’s nearby capable of fabricating a sandwich or three should that be your pleasure.
Non-members, families, children, and pets are welcome. You do not have to drive a “special” car, though you certainly may. .Other than the good natured competition for the most elegant picnic spread, it’s not a competition for the neatest car. The photos from previous picnics may whet the appetite for the mechanical beauties that might be seen.
The MASCDACS picnic is the one of the most fun ways to spend time around cars that aren’t moving — and with the people who love them, and with the picnic fare and beverages that they’ve brought.
We’d like to get a headcount in advance, so if you’re coming, please let us know by clicking the button below.

July Monthly Meeting
2024-07-09 11:30 - 14:30 | Sardi’s, 234 West 44th Street, Manhattan, NY, 10036, United States
I’m hoping the summer is treating everyone well. Next Tuesday, the 9th will be the July Meeting. We have a great speaker lined up – Marikay Satryano, the Executive Director of the Malcolm Pray Achievement Center. There is much going on there, all of it aimed at furthering the dreams and values of long time Chowderhead, the late Malcolm Pray. As usual we shall start at noon at Sardi’s.

June Monthly Meeting
2024-06-11 11:30 - 14:30 | Sardi’s, 234 West 44th Street, Manhattan, NY, 10036, United States
Speakers this month will be representing Lime Rock Park. There will be updates on some major additions to the racing schedule for the season, as well as some exciting developments for the Historic Festival, related to the racing and the Concours d’Elegance. Additionally, this year at Lime Rock Park has been designated the “Year of Skip Barber.” There are a number of activities planned to celebrate the contributions this Chowderhead has made to Lime Rock as well as to the motoring world across the United States. This meeting will be a great opportunity to to have an insight into what looks to be a most exciting season at Lime Rock.
We will also be talking about The Greenwich Concours d’Elegance this past weekend where we had a first – the awarding of the Madison Avenue Sports Car Driving and Chowder Society Trophy.

Chowder Group Photo at Greenwich Concours
2024-06-02 10:00 - 16:00 | Roger Sherman Baldwin Park, 100 Arch Street, Greenwich, CT, 06830, United States
Concours d’Elegance features 18 judged car classes including post-war American, Italian and English automobiles, plus special classes like Bertone, Pre-war & Post-war Rolls Royce, Porsche Carrera, and so many more.
10:00am to 4:00pm
Chowder photo @ 2:45 pm

May Monthly Meeting
2024-05-14 11:30 - 14:30 | Sardi’s, 234 West 44th Street, Manhattan, NY, 10036, United States
We’ve all paid some attention to Bring a Trailer, often as customers or at least dreamers. Succeeding on the platform is more complicated than many might imagine.
For the May meeting, our speaker will be Anthony Serra, the President of 1600 Veloce. Anthony’s company is one of the largest if not the largest seller of cars on Bring-a-Trailer. With him will be his general manager, Diane Bourque and his director of Marketing, Greg Coe.1600Veloce is an automotive lifestyle, media company, and one of the largest online retailers of vintage cars.
1600 Veloce is the leader in the virtual collector car marketplace and pioneered the way cars are presented and sold on-line. They are automotive enthusiasts first and foremost and proud to be an official partner of Bring-a-Trailer. They have helped hundreds of BaT community members produce a winning on-line auction listing since 2014. At @1600Veloce they provide everything an automotive enthusiast needs in-house including: mechanical servicing, restorative detailing, professional photo & video production, collection consulting, and storage.
At our May meeting, Anthony will discuss his company and Bring a Trailer. He will provide a unique perspective on the on-line auction business, his rise to prominence in the field, and the evolution of Bring-A-Trailer.

April Monthly Meeting
2024-04-16 11:30 - 14:30 | Sardi’s, 234 West 44th Street, Manhattan, NY, 10036, United States
We are pleased to announce that we have a truly fascinating speaker on a fascinating topic for the April 16 MASCDCS meeting. He’s the spark plug of an ongoing automotive venture that dates to 1903 (even older than the Chowder Society)!
Robert Selkowitz runs a thoroughly modern series of fun rallies which in part duplicate the route of an endurance event that he calls the “dawn of automobiling.”
But it all began this way 121 years ago: Imagine flogging completely open cars for 800 miles on primitive roads from today’s Lincoln Tunnel site through upstate New York and on to Pittsburgh in a rally testing the endurance of man and machine. C’mon now: Their vehicles didn’t have cup holders, much less GPS, HVAC, fuel injection, windshields, and effective brakes. And only a 20-mile stretch of the 800-mile route was (sort of) paved.
Robert, head of Historic Automobile Endurance Runs, will tell us about the 1903 auto run and the continuing rally program (four rallies this year) that he has created to memorialize it. The events traverse scenic byways in New York state and Vermont, covered bridges, forests, the Saratoga Automobile Museum, and more. These are noncompetitive tours, but a ton of fun and open to all makes for an admission price of not much more than the cost of a tank of gas!
For a look at classic and recent rally history and the cars and people who made history, go to 1903autorun.com.
Bonus: Chowderhead Jeff DeMarey will be making the trip down from the hinterlands of Massachusetts to honor us with his presence. He will be talking about the annual Wilberham Hill Climb coming up on May 11th and will have a slide presentation and a video for us to oooo and ahhhh over.
It should be a fun lunch.

March Monthly Meeting (and Birthday Party)
2024-03-12 11:30 - 14:30 | Sardi’s, 234 West 44th Street, Manhattan, NY, 10036, United States
Join us at the MASCDCS Clubhouse (aka Sardi’s) for the this very special Luncheon.
The very first meeting of The Madison Avenue Sports Car Driving and Chowder Society happened on March 12th 1957 at 12:00 noon – exactly 67 years ago to the day. That has happened only 11 times in the last 67 years: 1957, 1963, 1968, 1974, 1985, 1991, 1996, 2002, 2013, 2019, and now, 2024.
Please join your fellow Chowderheads and (other disreputable folks) for this noteworthy (and mildly historic) day.

Doors open: 11:15 am
Luncheon: 12:00 noon sharp

Our planned speaker is Pius Kayilla, and he’s the President and CEO of the Winners Circle Project, a program in New York high schools that teaches students about building a racing team by building a Factory Five Cobra Mk 4 Kit as well as putting together a marketing group and a communications group for their teams. The enthusiasm is amazing. They have even begun a racing simulator based virtual racing series. The simulators are very high tech and the series puts students from one school up against all the others. Its a fascinating program and well worth our interest.
Joining Pius will be the reigning TRANSAM Champion, Chris Dyson, who will have some comments on The Winners Circle Project as well as an update on his team and their plans for next season’s TRANSAM.

February Monthly Meeting
2024-02-13 11:30 - 14:30 | Sardi’s, 234 West 44th Street, Manhattan, NY, 10036, United States
The February Meeting of the Madison Avenue Sports Car Driving and Chowder Society will take place as usual on the second Tuesday of the month (that’s 13 February) at Sardi’s. It is the day before Valentine’s Day and a great opportunity to get a start on the holiday with a significant other in NYC. I’ll be bringing my Valentine for sure.
We will likely have a surprise speaker this month so come along to find out.

January Monthly Meeting with Greg Rickes
2024-01-09 11:30 - 14:30 | Sardi’s, 234 West 44th Street, Manhattan, NY, 10036, United States
Featured Speaker: Greg Rickes
While we’re not quite ready to get cars back on the track, Lime Rock Park will get off to a fast start for 2024 on Tuesday, January 9 as “The Voice of Lime Rock Park” Greg Rickes will be the guest speaker at the monthly luncheon hosted by the Madison Avenue Sports Car Driving and Chowder Society at the renowned Sardi’s Restaurant on West 44th Street in Manhattan.
Greg will reminisce about his half-century connection with LRP with a presentation in “sound and vision” (as IMSA Radio’s John Hindaugh would say).
The Madison Avenue Sports Car Driving and Chowder Society has a parallel history with Lime Rock Park; it was founded in 1957 as a community where automotive enthusiasts of all persuasions can share their enthusiasm in a convivial atmosphere.
In its rich history the Chowder Society’s guest speakers have included such notables as Walter Cronkite, Edsel Ford, Janet Guthrie and Lime Rock’s Jim Haynes and Skip Barber.

66th Annual Holiday Party
2023-12-12 11:30 - 15:00 | Sardi’s, 234 West 44th Street, Manhattan, NY, 10036, United States
Please join us at the usual spot, at the usual time, for our 66th Annual Holiday party.
The lunch will be the traditional buffet and we have gotten Sardi’s to keep the price to within one dollar of last year’s cost.
We aren’t certain that everyone is getting our emails yet, so please reach out to your Chowderhead friends to remind them of the party and to make plans to get together on Tuesday.
Past parties have attracted 100-160 members, but WE MUST GIVE SARDI’S a guarantee of numbers by Friday. Thus your response to the RSVP is critical to us. We regret any inconvenience. Please use the form below to RSVP IMMEDIATELY.
Our speaker will be Brock Yates Jr. He will regale us with tales of adventures with his father as well as adventures on the Cannonball and the One Lap of America. It promises to be entertaining. Don’t miss this one!
There will be presents to be raffled off – donated by some of our members as well as by Linkage Magazine and a few others. Expect a few surprises as well.
Terry Dunn is organizing a “Toys for Tots” drive as sponsored by the United States Marine Corps. You are welcome to bring an unwrapped toy to donate and Terry will ensure they get to the Marines. They will pick them up later in the day.
