Legends 2022 already this weekend at the Prague Exhibition Grounds!
Some visitors have been buying tickets for two years and are looking forward to Legends, what will make the eighth year pleasing them and compensate for the long wait?
I am very happy that the visitors supported us and returned the bare minimum of tickets. I want to thank them very much for that. This year it will be a restart year after two years of hibernation and the fact that Legends will be more minimalist. Due to the fact that major reconstruction works are taking place at the Exhibition Center, we will have to regret two activities – freestyle motocross and any rides. Unfortunately, the area no longer allows it and will not allow it in the future. Legends is gradually becoming an open-air gallery and we will work harder to make it a socio-cultural event. As for the main theme, we stick to the original concept from 2020, Italian passion. An extensive exhibition of Italian cars is being prepared – Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Maserati, Lamborghini, De Tomaso, Pagani. And most of all, it will be a unique Ferrari show, which we are preparing in cooperation with Scuderia Prague. I think that visitors really have something to look forward to, such a show has never been here before and probably won’t be. 15-20 cars from historical to exclusive ones from both limited editions and top machines.
Can you tell us a little more?
La Ferrari and Monza will be among the biggest jewels. But they will still not be the best Ferrari to see on Legends. Let me reveal that the biggest star should be a car belonging to the era of youngtimers.
I will ask differently, will there be a Ferrari whose designation ends with the letters GTO?
One definitely arranged is the Ferrari 599 GTO…
What about the next exposure?
Mercedes and AMG will have a traditionally large presentation, and they also have a hot new product, the new generation of the SL model, so there will be a large exposition of the history of the Mercedes SL. Shell will present the new product and it will be possible to watch the F1 race in Monaco at their stand on Sunday, which will take place at the same time. Legends will also have a charitable dimension and there will be an auction of two very exclusive cars that have never been on Legends before and will not only be seen on Legends.
You mentioned that there are no rides or any short special stages in the future. But this goes a bit against the original idea that Legends should be Czech Goodwood, where rides are part of the program, even very sharp on time… Is it a shame to deprive you of ten roar of engines, adrenaline, the smell of burned gasoline and whirling dust?
When I look to the distant future, we are working on a concept with the provisional label Legends on the road. Unfortunately, there is no complex in the Czech Republic where it would be possible to organize a festival. It is not possible to return to Bohnice for many different reasons and the Prague Exhibition Grounds cannot be continued. After the repair of the industrial palace, I can imagine that the Grand Tour would return, ie a slow slow ride through the area. In order to create exhibition rides with speed test parameters, there is no room or surfaces for that. Where we drove in the past, there are now paving that would be torn off by powerful racing cars, and it is very expensive to restore it to its original condition.
From the very beginning, Legends were also about interesting personalities from the automotive world. Will there be any interesting personalities on Legends this year as well?
Unfortunately, it won’t be, we have to regret this in the restart year, we can’t budget us. But even so, I think that there will be a number of interesting personalities from the Czech car scene, the invitation was accepted: Ondřej Klymčiw, Martin Macík, Buggyra pilots, Dominik Střítecký, Richard Chlad, Radim Passer, Filip Turek, Vojta Štajf, Tomáš Ouředníček and many others . I believe they will not be disappointed.
What accompanying program is prepared for visitors?
Because we are trying to move Legends higher overall, the organizer of the Burger Fest will take care of catering and you will be able to choose from vegan and vegetarian dishes, there will be Italian cuisine and of course burgers. The catering should definitely be better than it was. There will be a large children’s zone, which grew naturally within the Exhibition Center, as well as a quiet zone for adults. At this point I must point out that I am six to visit Legends came with children under the age of. From a survey among visitors, we found that for young children, cars of all the same colored boxes are exposed, for parents it is more stressful for a small bored child to take care of it and they will not really enjoy the party. I also see visitors taking prams to the party.
When it came to the fact that Legends should be Czech Goodwood, there is also a recommended dress code, are Legends planning something like this?
That’s right, we want to go back a bit to the original idea of Legend, and that’s why we recommend a casual casual dress code for this year’s celebration. During the two years of covid in sweatpants and pulled-out sweatshirts, we all got so wet that we should dress nicely again and come to Legends slightly chic. It’s not a complicated holiday, smart casual are casual linen trousers, a T-shirt with a collar, or a time jacket. It’s not a dogma, when someone comes in different clothes, we won’t terrorize them at the entrance, but it’s a recommendation, and in the end we don’t go to the theater in torn jeans either.
It cannot be overlooked that Legends are again a two-day instead of a three-day format…
All these “slimming down” result from the fact that this is a restart year after two covid years, currently influenced by what is happening in Ukraine, etc. Exhibitors have a cheap budget, so unfortunately the exhibition must be slimmer. However, this does not apply to exhibits, again we will have over 1000 of them, and due to the fact that we have announced a competition of beauty and elegance, the interest is high. They will even be prize money for the most successful in each of the three categories, making Legends unique in the Czech Republic.
Nowadays, everything is becoming more expensive, what about Legends? Won’t a visit to Legend be too expensive for the whole family?
The basic entrance fee for an adult over 18 years of age for one day is set at CZK 599. Due to the fact that prices have risen by up to 30% everywhere, we have risen in price from 499 to 599 CZK. On the other hand, children and young people under the age of 18 accompanied by an adult have free entry, so we are ultimately cheaper. For example, when a 20-year-old boy takes his 17-year-old girlfriend to Legends, his girlfriend has it for free. (laughter)
Thanks for the interview.