Shelby and Baume & Mercier stay the course at Monterey Car Week

The two 44-millimeter chronographs presented by your webzine, Watchonista (see the article by Simon Burton reporting live from Las Vegas) were flying cobra colors and drew the interest of collector and pilot alike. The more affordable series is in a limited and numbered edition of 1965 pieces, while the other comes in a series of 98 pieces only, but in a red gold case and with a flyback caliber inside.    

From an esthetic standpoint, these chronos left their mark, and commercially they went beyond anyone's wildest dreams. These two models developed from the Capeland line celebrate the 50^th anniversary of the 1965 victory of the legendary Shelby Cobra at the FIA World Championship. This sports car, which is as good on the road as it is on the racetrack, can reach speeds of 300 km/h.

The Capeland line celebrate the 50^th anniversary of the 1965 victory of the legendary Shelby Cobra at the FIA World Championship

And now, the two watches are joined by a third one. The new timepiece, on a leather strap with blue stitching, is clearly headed for collector's item status.  This unique piece, which we are sneak previewing from the famous Monterey Car Week (August 11 to 16), will go under the hammer during the famous auction at Antiquorum in New York in September 2015.

Baume et Mercier during Monterey Car Week

The dial features a very identifiable light-blue stripe on a white backdrop. Like its predecessors, the chronograph has a 20-minute counter and houses a flyback caliber. It also boasts a handful of subtle references that suggest racing, such as the second hand pointing to the tachymetric scale. It emerges from the neck of a cobra ready to pounce and its tip is dipped in a red color that could be imagined as the snake's venom. More to come…

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