Riverside International Raceway

The Riverside International Automotive is proud to have Parnelli Jones as Honoree of the 2011 Legends. Parnelli is one of the most legendary race drivers of the era, starting first with championships on the dirt ovals in midgets and sprint cars, parlaying his talent to the Indy 500 winning in 1963.

His talent wasn’t limited to oval racing. He proved his road racing skills and versatility to compete in a variety of cars and series, with wins at Riverside at the 1964 Time Grand Prix taming the Shelby King Cobra; In 1967 winning the Motor Trend 500 at RIR; and in the 1970 season by winning five of the eleven Trans-Am races clinching the championship in the Bud Moore Mustang. Parnelli continued to build on his versatility and wins by pushing the limits and technology of off-road racing in “Big Ole”, his trick Ford Bronco. He further pushed on as race car builder and co-team owner of Vels Parnelli Jones Racing competing at Indy, Formula 5000 and Formula One. Parnelli is one of the true greats, from the greatest era of motor racing.

Legends of Riverside is part film festival, part gala, part reunion, and fully great memories for everyone in attendance; Legends is a celebration of the history, emotion, friendship and memory of all that was Riverside Raceway. Taking place March 25 – 27, 2011, Legends III, like the first two will feature over 50 veteran race drivers in attendance. Guest tickets are limited to 150, making the ratio of drivers to guests unsurpassed anywhere. If you enjoy the history of motorsports, there is no better spot on the planet the last weekend of March. The ratio of our racing heroes to attendee sets the stage for an environment ripe with great stories bantered around the event.

Past “Legends” honorees have included Dan Gurney and Carroll Shelby; and the list of veteran drivers in attendance reads like a Who’s Who of motorsports back in the day: Bob Bondurant, Jerry Grant, Bill Krause, Tony Adamowicz, John Morton, Toly Arutunoff, Bruce Kessler, George Follmer, Elliot Forbes-Robinson, Howden Ganley, Allen Grant, Jim Jeffords, Denise McLuggage, Lothar Motschenbacher, Scooter Patrick, Davey Jordan, Tony Settember… and the list goes on and on and 2011 is sure to build on these.

Legends is staged at the Riverside International Automotive Museum in Riverside. Guests not only enjoy a film festival, but are seated in the midst of a spectacular collection of precision-restored veteran racing automobiles, many of which had strong Riverside racing legacies themselves. Other facets of the three-day experience have included autograph sessions; experiencing Chris Considine’s super-realistic CXC Racing Simulator which gave everyone a great workout behind the wheel on a virtual version of Riverside; a small (but special) set of vendors; and both a silent as well as a boisterous auction of motorsports memorabilia.