Individual people, companies and governments are constantly adjusting during the Coronavirus pandemic. Plenty of auctions have canceled outright or postponed events until large, public gatherings are allowed once again.
We’ve tracked these changes closely in the SCM Newsletter.
We’ve got another change, as Mecum has once again rescheduled their Spring Classic sale. The original, pre-pandemic plan was to start on May 12 and run through Sunday, May 17.
Then, in the early weeks of the pandemic sweeping through the U.S., Mecum kicked the sale down the calendar to June 23–28, which was looking like a loaded sales weekend but no longer is the case. Mecum moved the auction again, as last Thursday the company sent out a press release stating the sale will run July 10–18.
“After reviewing Governor Eric Holcomb’s recent release of Indiana’s ‘Back on Track’ plan, Mecum has rescheduled Dana Mecum’s 33rd Original Spring Classic for July 10-18, 2020, which will position the auction safely beyond the state’s plan for achieving a status of ‘fully open’ across the board. In addition, Mecum has expanded the event to span nine auction days, providing the opportunity for 2,500 consignments to join what is destined to become an epic return to live collector-car auctions. At-auction bidders are encouraged to preregister in advance to help determine the level of need for PPE and to accurately prepare for proper social distancing as deemed necessary at the time of the event. While Mecum invites everyone to be present at the Indiana State Fairgrounds, those unable to attend and bid in-person are encouraged to register for telephone and internet bidding, which allow for convenient bidding from the comfort of home.”
This also starts the same weekend as Mecum’s Denver, CO, sale, which only runs one weekend.
There’s no doubt that Mecum’s Indy sale is one of the biggest of any regular year. I expect that the company will pull out as many stops as they can. Early star lots include Dana Mecum’s ’67 L88 Corvette convertible, the first Shelby R-model competition car, a ’65 GT350R, and a Ferrari Classiche-certified 275 GTB/4 coupe.
Those cars could easily headline a Monterey Car Week sale.
However, the Monterey Car Week is postponed until 2021.
By now, it’s clear that this virus — and the social and economic damage — has hit us all and it will take some time to recover. The economy gets the majority of the oxygen in those conversations, but we’re at 80k deaths in the United States since this disease arrived, and over 283k people have died worldwide. One way to help people, right now, is making sure those without food security can get some, if you’re in a position to assist. Please consider donating to your local food bank through Feeding America.
Stay safe and keep washing your hands.