A famous German expression is “KLEIN ABER FEIN” translates most literally into “small but exquisite.” It describes that not always the biggest and boldest is the best, but that sometimes the sophistication comes from attention to detail and the refinement of bringing the right elements together with style and taste, rather than through scope and spectacle. In the world of automotive concourses “The Turtle Invitational” expresses these qualities.
It’s founder, Philip Richter is an interesting man who grew up on his family’s horse farm in Bedford, NY, one of the rather affluent towns in Westchester, just an hour drive north of New York City.
And that very same horse farm now also functions as the most picturesque venue for this exclusive event.
With his mother Judy being a well known horse trainer, judge and instructor, Philip started riding competitively very young and subsequently won later in life championships in Amateur-Owner jumper divisions at major shows.
At the same time he followed a classical carreer in finance which led him to be today the founder and president of Hollow Brook Wealth Management, one of the two premier sponsor of this incredible automotive event (the other premier sponsor being prominent vintage car dealer 1600 Veloce, who brought this rare dark-green Ferrari 275 GTB/4 N.A.R.T. Spyder).
The third important ‘Philip-Richter-ingredient,’ relevant for this story here, is his big passion for vintage cars and motorcycles, particularly those that align with his German heritage, such as young-timer Mercedes cars and old-time BMW bikes (but not only).
But his passion does not stop there. Despite Philip’s youthful appearance he has been deeply imbedded in the automotive enthusiasts’ world for quite some time and is a veteran writer for publications such as Sports Car Market since about a decade.
Around that time (a decade ago) he–one day–walked out of the stables, on the horse farm that is his home, looking at the beautiful rolling meadows and thought to himself: “This should be a great place for an automotive show.”
At first he just invited some of his friends from the collectors’ car world, asking them to bring their favored cars. But that inaugural event turned out to be so wonderful that Philip decided to repeat it. However, at that point in time he was not necessarily envisioning to run it as a fulltime, professional project. Hence he took his time to do another and so the bi-annually rhythm for “The Turtle” was organically created.
Now, a decade later, arriving at “The Turtle Invitational” number 5, this distinctive event has grown into the aforementioned exquisite sophistication that other major car-events with tens of thousands of visitors just cannot maintain.
The atmosphere is one of a kind: On the one hand, incredibly rare and high value cars that one would have a hard time finding at Amelia or Audrain, on the other hand, so cool and much more approachable collections such as 1980s/90s Mercedes special edition cars that attract a much younger crowd.
A perfect, well-balanced mix and all with an air of relaxedness and easy late-summer-breeze that wants you to just stay there forever and hang out. Add to this a spectator-parking lot that could double as its own high-brow car show and you get the idea of the specialness of this get-together.
While today “The Turtle Invitational” is a well-oiled and executed pro-operation, the flair of friendliness and goodwill is maintained. Even more so, since the beneficiary of proceeds is the Malcolm Pray Achievement Center, a non-profit that inspires through its own world-class automobile collection and the entrepreneurial spirit of its namesake, the late Malcolm Pray, who had a lifelong friendship with Philip.
My kind of event: Plenty of motor vehicular rarities of the highest order, some of which I had never seen before in the metal, but without the attitude you find at times on a certain Monterey lawn. Just a well-rounded gathering that lets your motorists’ heart smile for days…
The star of the show for me was this Maserati 450 S V8, one of only 10 ever made and the fastest race car at the time, brought by Nick Soprano of Motor Sport Competition. Nick owned this car for a very long time and even raced it against legendary drivers. In correct period-spirit he naturally drove the Maserati to the Turtle Invitational and back home. No trailer queen here…
Hear about the Turtle Invitational from the horse’s mouth, so to speak (excuse the pun):
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More about the connection to the Malcolm Pray Achievement Center from Malcolm’s daughter Lilly Pray:
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Make sure you put The Turtle Invitational on your calendar for 2027. In the meantime check out much more information The Turtle Invitational You will not only go for the sights but also for the sound:
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A few more impressions below:
Text, pictures and video by Alexander Davidis
