The Patek Philippe Nautilus Blue Dial 5711/1A-001 Stainless Steel is now been discontinued. After years of raising market prices for this timepiece, Patek announces it has stopped producing this model in the Blue dial. We should now once again see prices go higher as it is now even more difficult to get??
The real Ken Miles of "Ford vs Ferrari Fame" rocked a Breitling AVI 765 Chronograph not a Tag Heuer.
On Ken Miles wrist can be seen a Breitling AVI 765.
Close up of the Miles’s AVI 765
The real Ken Miles of "Ford vs Ferrari Fame" rocked a Breitling AVI 765 Chronograph, not a Tag Heuer as in the movie. Ken Miles was one of those rare drivers that came from an actual “grassroots” background in racing. He started participating in club racing slowly honing his skills moving up the ladder of success eventually winning the Daytona 24, 12 hours of Sebring, and the 24hrs of Le Mans along with many other events. These days drivers are usually from rich backgrounds trained from a young age in karting and then groomed with lots of cash eventually moving to such top series as F1. It seems these days the driver needs to be good but more importantly bring “the money” with him via sponsors or rich connected parents. Long gone are the days when your hobby of competitive driving could lead to a career in racing.
The past was truly the “Golden Years” of racing. Yes, safety as far as tracks and equipment go was not nearly as good as it is today however, someone with a passion for driving could more easily make dream come true in professional racing back then. Ken Miles truly represents this great era when racing events and tracks were all over Southern California and not riddled with lawsuits and over-development of land killing off its rich car culture.
Ken looking in with his Breitling AVI 765 on his wrist.
Sean Connery who played the original James Bond actor dies at age 90
Bond with his trusty Aston Martin DB5.
Sean Connery who played the original James Bond actor dies at age 90. For many, he was the one and only Bond. In the watch world, the character he played is likely to be the most influential for many to go out and purchase a Rolex. His playing of Bond inspired and thrilled so many into dreaming of traveling the world on a secret mission, staying at the coolest hotels, having a dry martini at the bar, and for the one or two hours that we watched his films we could escape our daily lives for a moment steeped in mystery and espionage.
Architecture Coolness: The Rolex Service Center Dallas
The Rolex building designed by world-renowned architects Kengo Kuma and HDF spirals into the skyline of Dallas.
Read moreNEWS: Rolex, Tudor, Patek Philippe Leave Baselworld For New Trade Show With Watches & Wonders
Rolex, Tudor, Patek Philippe Leaving Baselworld comes as no surprise to us. We had written about this in a previous article you can read here: Baselworld Show canceled and Postponed to January 2021 following in the footsteps of the Watches & Wonders Geneva show. What is interesting though is that these Giants of the watch industry are aligning with Watches & Wonders to form a yet unnamed show. There has been unrest amongst Luxury Brands attending Baselworld for some time now. Here is a quote from Rolex CEO, Jean-Frédéric Dufour, Chief Executive Officer of Rolex SA, and Board Member of Montres Tudor SA said:
"We have taken part in Baselworld since 1939. Unfortunately, given the way the event has evolved and the recent decisions make by MCH Group, an in spite of the great attachment we had to this watch show, we have decided to withdraw. Following discussions initiated by Rolex, it seemed only natural to create a new event with partners that share our vision and our endless, unwavering support for the Swiss watchmaking sector. This will allow us to present our new watches in line with our needs and expectations, to join forces and better defend the interests of the industry.
As you can see from Mr.Dufour's comments, brands have been frustrated with the Baselworld show for some time and the COVID-19 pandemic was partly the catalyst for the “abandoning of the sinking ship” so to speak. Also, something of interest to note is that in the past Rolex has not shown much interest in what other brands do and usually has kept a distance not to align themselves with other competitors. However, this press release was drafted with sister company Tudor, Patek Philippe, Chopard, Chanel on the header. This is defiantly not a common thing for them. Rolex was also the first to release the above statement perhaps to give the impression that those other brands listed are following along with them not the other way around. There may be more going on that the Luxury watch industry is eluding to and Rolex for once feels the industry itself is threatened so needs to plan for the coming change by leading the charge. Rolex has weathered bad storms in the past (such as the quartz watch revolution of the ’70s) and I’m sure they will this storm also. It will be interesting to see what direction Rolex goes into marketing their New Novelties to the world. Let’s wait and see how this all plays out in the future.
NEWS: Rolex and Tudor to Postpone 2020 New Model Releases
Due to the COVID-19 virus this years Basel World 2020 has been canceled. As such many are wondering how to find out what New Releases will be available this year. Rolex and Tudor has now stated they will Postpone 2020 New Model Releases. They have not said how or when this year’s new models will shown to the public, most figure it will be defiantly via their websites or streaming of some sort of online event. It will be interesting to see how during this pandemic Brand will show new inventory without a physical show. It is also rumored they may not even release this year’s models until next year due to the uncertainty of the COVID-19 virus run and economic instability.