Words: Nathan Chadwick | Photos: ICE St Moritz/Maserati
As a concept, it might be something to send shivers down the spine of many a collector – some of Europe’s most exquisite classics and modern hypercars being thoroughly ‘used’ on the frozen Engadine lake. However, for the hardy exhibitors and visitors, The ICE St Moritz has already become one of the must-attend events on the classic car scene – and 2023’s staging kicks off on Friday February 24 and continues into Saturday February 25.
Now in its second full year (taking a break in 2021 for Covid, and following two test showings in 2019 and 2020), the event is inspired by a group of British and Scottish sports men who drove to St Moritz in 1985. Using vintage Bentleys, they embarked on the journey to mark the Cresta Run’s centennial; however, part of the celebration was taking their cars around the horse-racing track on St Moritz’s frozen lake. Watching them was the ICE’s founder and patron, Marco Makaus; fast-forward several decades, and the event has become one of the most prestigious on the concours calendar.
The concours will be judged based on the cars’ narrative, originality, authenticity and condition, with a panel consisting of Vanessa Marçais, Frédéric Brun, Klaus Busse, Massimo Delbò, Michele Lupi, JP Rathgen and Augustin Sabatié-Garat. The organisers describe the concours as having a sportier and ‘down-to-ice’ atmosphere. The event is split into two sections: the concours d’elegance on the Friday, as part of a larger static display, where the cars will be exhibited to the public and jury, while on the Saturday the vehicles are exercised on the lake, allowing the judges to assess both them and the skills of their drivers.
The classes for this year are Open Wheels, Barchettas on the Lake, Le Mans 100, Concept Cars & One Offs, and Queen on Wheels.
Manufacturers such as Maserati, Mercedes-Benz, Ferrari and Pagani will also be in attendance. Maserati is bringing along the 420M/58 Eldorado – a one-off single-seater race car purpose built for the second edition of the 500 Miles of Monza in 1958 – as well as a Mistral, a Touring-bodied 3500GT and a one-of-a-kind MC20 Cielo, along with EV and ICE versions of the new GranTurismo.
Mercedes-Benz will be showing a 1958 300 SLS Touring Sports Car, a racing version of the 300 SL, the 1970 C-111 II concept car, a 1958 300 SL Roadster and a 1963 600.
Pagani will be celebrating the 25-year anniversary of the company by bringing along Zonda C12 Chassis 001 and a Zonda F coupé, one of 25 in the world, while a new Pagani Grandi Complicazioni will be debuted. The Pagani Puro programme will also be unveiled; it’s the Certification of Authenticity and Warranty Extension, which Pagani says “preserves and protects the essence of the vehicle through the work of highly specialised and certified mechanics.”
Away from the cars, there’ll be plenty of live music, fine food and lifestyle shopping – and we presume the opportunity to buy some stylish warm clothing. See you on the ice – more details here.
