Bob Shaw, an extraordinary man, in memoriam

Bob Shaw discussing his Excalibur RS one-off roadster with Jay Leno

This past Tuesday (10/20/2020) the world lost a hero of mine, our family friend Bob Shaw.

Bob was an entrepreneur, car collector, and noted expert on pre-war Bugatti's. One of the most formative experiences in my life was when I was maybe 8 years old. Bob came by our family home with the original Alpine Renault A310 prototype, which he'd purchased right off the Geneva Auto Salon's show floor. Getting a ride in it and going over every detail was life changing.

Alpine Renault A310

He also created a beautiful Ferrari Testa Rossa replica, through his company VIP, called the TR350. He even commissioned his own "Special", based on the Brooks Stevens designed Studebaker Hawk GT racecar (featured in this video). His car collection was enviable by any standard. He owned a Cisitalia, a number of Bugatti's, 2 Alpine Renaults, a Saab Sonnet, a Morgan Aero 8, a number of Bentley's, and one of a handful of street prepared Ford GT40 homologation cars. The man was legendary.

VIP TR350 '57 Ferrari Testa Rossa replica

He was always a pleasure to talk to and had a certain kind of boundless optimism about him. He made a huge impression on me growing up.

He appears in this video with Jay Leno discussing a custom car he had built in the latter years of his life. Sadly, strokes he'd suffered in the late 90's rendered him somewhat frail and it shows in the video but you can still get a sense of the man and his enthusiasm and automotive knowledge. I feel blessed to have known the man and my condolences go out to his family and all who knew him, including my father who was a close friend as well. Bob lived one heck of a life.

He will be missed.

Here's a selection of pictures, featuring the Excalibur RS one-off custom roadster which was built to Bob's impeccable taste and specifications.