The 2009 Wine Country Classic Celebrates Morgan

The Morgan celebrates its 100th anniversary in 2009, with many large gatherings planned, both in the United States and in Europe. One of the biggest celebrations will take place at Infineon Raceway as the Morgan takes center stage as the featured marque at the Wine Country Classic Historic Car Races. This Wine Country Classic weekend already features the most extraordinary collection of cars we see all year and to add a fleet of Morgans to that mix will only make it more special, said Steve Page, president and general manager of Infineon Raceway.

The Morgan was officially born in England in 1909 when founder H.F.S. Morgan bought a seven-horsepower twin-cylinder Peugeot engine and mounted it into a light three-wheeled tubular chassis, producing the first Morgan Runabout. The rest is history, and that history will be on display in Sonoma in May. One of the planned highlights of the race weekend will be a Baby Doll reunion. Lew Spencer, a well-known Southern California Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) member, ordered these Morgan machines and named them Baby Dolls I-V. It was the ultimate Morgan racecar and a giant killer in racing circles in the 1960s, routinely beating small-block Corvettes, Porsches and Jaguars, among others, despite its smaller-displacement engines. The Baby Doll IV actually won the 1962 SCCA C-Production National Championship.

Event officials are hopeful Spencer will attend the Morgan celebration at the Wine Country Classic in May, as well as take part in a ceremonial parade lap of several Morgans around the world-famous 12-turn, 2.52-mile road course. There will also be a large display of Morgans so that race fans can get an up-close look at these incredible machines.

It will make for a memorable weekend as more than 250 historic racecars in all will converge on the Sonoma Valley. In addition, the event will also feature the Wine Country Pavilion, boasting sumptuous food and wine samplings from Sonoma and Napa valley purveyors, headlined by notable Bay Area chef Victor Scargle, as well as Q&A sessions with competitors and a Champagne Celebration in the Wine Country Winners Circle.

2009 results + extensive photo gallery here, courtesy of our friends at sportscardigest.com