Steven Aghakhani is a 15-year-old racer who started racing go-karts, when he was just seven years old, after spending time at the racetrack with his father. When Steven was ready to move from go-kart racing to exotics, he began training with Michael Essa, the 2013 Formula Drift Champion. Steven was named US RaceTronics’ development driver at the age of 13 and has set record speeds for his age and he just secured an FIA Pro license scheduled to be active for his 16th birthday next year. His racing this year included first place titles at the NASA and SCCA pro series southern region championship. Steven currently drives the Huracán Super Trofeo Evo.

Sam Schmidt is a former IndyCar driver and the current co-owner of Schmidt-Peterson Motorsports in Indianapolis, Indiana. He grew up working on racecars and his father was a drag racer. At the age of 32, he embarked on his first season of IndyCar competition and he became a pole and race winner in 1999. Sam was severely injured in a testing accident at Walt Disney World Speedway and was later diagnosed as a quadriplegic due to a severe injury to his spinal cord. Sam was not deterred and he forged on to create The Conquer Paralysis Now Foundation and Sam Schmidt Motorsports, just 14 months after his accident. Despite Sam remaining paralyzed from his chest down, he has been granted a drivers license, the first of its kind, which allows him to drive a semi-autonomous vehicle.

Peter Higham has been working in the British Motorsport Press since 1986 when he joined Autosport. His time with Autosport spans 28 years and includes running the annual Autosport Awards, a little party for 1,200 guests ranging from Ayrton Senna to Richard Petty, Lewis Hamilton, and Mario Andretti. Peter managed their photographic archives for 17 years and was Autosport and F1 Racing Magazine’s Publishing Director before going freelance in 2014. His first book, The Guinness Guide to Motor Racing came out in 1993 and was updated as the International Motor Racing Guide a decade later. His three-volume World Encyclopedia of Racing Drivers was published in 2013 and he is currently working on a decade-by-decade history of Formula 1–F1 Car-by-Car, with the 1960s and 1970s, already published. 

Chris Corrado is an automotive artist from Boston, Massachusetts. He studied at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, and Art Center College of Design and Concept Design Academy in Los Angeles. He loves to draw hot rods and concept cars in a loose and colorful style.

Jim Osborn, MD, is an orthopedic spine surgeon, Assistant Professor at UT College of Medicine and the Chairman of the Board and Co-Founder at the Austin Hatcher Foundation. The mission of the Austin Hatcher Foundation is to erase the effects of pediatric cancer and to optimize each child’s quality of life through essential, specialized intervention beginning at the time of diagnosis and continuing throughout survivorship. So what does this have to do with cars, hot rods, and racing?  Their new Education Advancement Center includes programs available for individuals along with families in which to participate including the Hot Rodders of Tomorrow Engine Building Challenge and Driving Performance Improvement Programs in simulators. They are also the Proud Charities recipients of the International Motor Sports Association, (IMSA).

Ryan Truax is the President and Founder of Advanced Fuel Dynamics, a company that manufactures performance flex fuel systems that bring E85 to the bolt-on world. E85 ethanol is used in engines modified to accept higher concentrations of ethanol. His systems unlock performance that is unattainable when running on gasoline and allow performance enthusiasts to safely and reliably make big power with E85. Ryan has been a gearhead all his life and he was an early pioneer in using E85 as a race fuel. He’s a foremost expert on E85 and flex-fuel technology.

Tom Perazzo is a Porsche enthusiast who enjoys wrenching on old cars as much as he loves driving them. His passion to share his enthusiasm spurred him to launch a YouTube channel he calls Ahhgaragetime, where he shares his car restoration tips and tricks geared toward DIY’ers. Tom has designed and manufactured a handful of car-related products that support his ongoing restoration addiction which include VW/Porsche engine test stands, custom Porsche 356 toe boards, and some rust repair parts. After tackling a Porsche 356 restoration, he dove into a Porsche 911 and Ahhgaragetime became a weekly restoration vlog. Cars don't need to be a money pit if you’re willing to learn to do it yourself, and as we all know, the journey is often more fun than the destination.

Her Royal Highness, Vidita Singh of Barwani started her career as a professional automotive artist about 15 years ago. Her passion for automobiles has been passed down for generations from her great-grandfather onward. He was the Maharaja of the state of Barwani in Central India and one of the first people to bring the steam locomotive and paved roadways into Central India. Her father, past Cars Yeah guest, His Royal Highness Rana Manvendra Singh, is a renowned figure in the automobile industry and was responsible for bringing a magnificent collection of the Cars of the Maj to Pebble Beach this summer. Vidita works in a range of mediums including oils, charcoals, and watercolors. She alludes to the novelty automobiles that were in the bygone era and the artistic and mechanical masterpieces they are today.

I had the distinct pleasure of meeting Vidita at the AFAS event on the lawn at Pebble Beach during the Concours last month.

Mark Nureddine is the CEO of Bull Outdoor Products, a company that provides grills, islands, and grilling components to over 900 dealers and distributors within North America and an additional 15 other countries and growing. For most people, tinkering, and testing on open flame grills in your garage is not advised but Mark is not most people. His efforts with developing grills in a closed environment led to his success. He grows his own grapes in his vineyard in Lodi, California, and is a hobbyist winemaker along with having a passion for international culinary endeavors. He is a Certified Barbeque Judge for the Kansas City Barbeque Society and served as a judge for Bull Outdoor Products and their Bull Burger Battle. Mark is also an enthusiastic car collector and international auto enthusiast having traveled the world attending car events. His company is also the Ironstone Concours Tour Sponsor for 2018.

Karl Ludvigsen lives in Suffolk, England, and is respected as a close and knowledgeable observer of, and participant in, the world of motor industry. In addition to his activities as an executive at GM, Fiat, and Ford, and head of a consulting company, he has been active for over 60 years as an author and historian. As an author, co-author or editor, he has some five dozen books to his credit, most concerning cars, drivers, racing, and technology, which is his life-long passion. Many have been garlanded for their high standard of writing and research. His newest book, Reid Railton: Man of Speed, is a two-volume set that tells the story of Cheshire-born, Reid Antony Railton, an engineer par excellence and his life creating an extraordinary range of cars.