THE FOUNDERS

Living and working in Riverside, California during its heyday as the centre of motorsports in southern California, Ray and Douglas Magnon have always held a great passion for sports cars and motor racing. Their success in lifetime careers in commercial real estate development has fueled the resources needed to fulfill this passion through their collection of various sportscar and racing vehicles, memorabilia, and literature.

As an outgrowth of this collection, the Magnons have relocated their corporate headquarters into a new 20,000 square foot facility. The majority of this new constructed facility has been dedicated to the exhibition and housing of a sportscar and racing collection, as well as a new automotive museum.

THE MUSEUM

Driven by a desired to be more than just a home to display a an ever growing sports and race car collection, this new museum has been envisioned to be a true working museum. The main focus for which is to be a center for the remembrance, archive, interpretation and display for the golden era of racing in Riverside and the surrounding region of southern California as a whole.

Besides the housing a permanent collection, the museum will produce interpretive shows and displays created by the museum itself. These shows can have a further life by being made available to other museums for run out exhibits.

The museum’s concepts and collections are evolving and therefore flexible. Envisioned among the many rotating exhibits are: interpretive shows on specific race series that were held locally; exhibition of photographs and artwork depicting regional race heritage; retrospectives on local race car drivers; history and presentation of race cars that made their mark here in the southland; as well as many numerous other exhibits.

The museum will house a library and archive with both vintage print as well as digital materials including audio and video presentations, photographs, posters, programs, etc…; all from the area’s rich racing heritage. Special projects may include digitizing photo and text archives from regional newspapers and magazines.

Riverside and its surrounding burgeoning Inland Empire, houses only the NHRA Museum in Pomona. No other car collections or museums available to the public exist in the region. With the rebirth of racing in the region at California Speedway in Fontana, the Perris Auto Speedway, and the Moran Raceway karting track in Beaumont, the museum is a natural venue for attracting corporate events, industry functions; political fundraisers, and car clubs events.