Your wife would probably call it a guy thing. Regardless, most every deal pro we’ve ever encountered has a deep love for his car — a pathological love, the kind of love of which restraining orders are made. How else to explain those key chains anchored by dangling BMW medallions or leather-backed embroidered Porsche crests? Or all those car-themed T-shirts, windbreakers, caps, mugs, sunglasses, paperweights and refrigerator magnets? Clearly, the only thing more exciting to a venture capitalist than his IPOs are his RPMs.
Unfortunately, we all must eventually leave our cars — and strapping your actual vehicle to your wrist tends to hinder your mobility. Thus the allure of the car-inspired watch. Designed with many of the same little flourishes as your favorite six-figure beater, they’re built for both style and functionality,
many bearing Swiss movements and precision engineering. On the downside, they don’t offer much in the way of new-
car smell. So you’ll just have buy a new car for that.
1) Breitling Bentley Flying B No. 3
Book Value: $13,620 Prospectus: The new Bentley Flying B No. 3 is elegant and refined, not unlike the car that seemingly every well-bred Brit aspires to own. From the beveled sapphire crystal (glare-proof on both sides) and mother-of-pearl inlay hour markers
to the way the small seconds hand sweeps around the hollowed square subdial, this timepiece bespeaks class and sophistication. It also beats to a new, highly precise Breitling Calibre 16B movement, which is documented with an official COSC chronometer-rating certificate. breitling.com
2) Ritmo Mundo Indycar
Quartz Chronograph 221
Book Value: $750 Prospectus: Already the official watchmaker of the IndyCar Racing Series, Ritmo Mundo recently introduced this splashy new chronograph, which features the Rhonda 5040B movement and bold Arabic numerals around the case. The sleek styling recalls the more elegant racing eras — back when protective gear meant a pair of goggles and a leather cap. Worth a pit stop at your nearest watch shop posthaste. ritmomundousa.com
3) Cvstos Challenege Chrono Modena
Book Value: $15,100 Prospectus: Luciano Pavarotti isn’t the only notable thing to have come from the small northern Italian city of Modena — the town is also home to the Modena Racing Team, which won the Ferrari F430 Challenge in 2006. In commemoration of the city and the team, Cvstos has created this exclusive automatic model. Distinctly Italian, with decorations of red-tinted aluminum rings around titanium push pieces, it includes an instantaneous date change, power-reserve indicator and a patented screw-down crown that guarantees water resistance up to 100 meters. Comes in your choice of steel or red gold with a black rubber strap. cvstosusa.com
4) Chopard Mille Miglia
Split-Second Chronograph
Book Value: $11,360 Prospectus: Named for the Mille Miglia, one of the most prestigious car races in Italy (also known as the “corsa piu bella del mondo,” not that the Italians would ever be hyperbolic or anything), this limited edition will be produced in only 1,000 steel pieces, 250 in rose gold. Inside the large, sporty 44-mm case is a high-performance automatic self-winding movement, while a push button at 8 o’clock allows you to stop the split-second hand for measuring intermediate times — even if the only thing you ever race is your mouth. chopard.com
5) Anonimo Chronoscopio II Shelby SE
Book Value: $5,500 Prospectus: Not to be too technical about it or anything, but Shelby cars are, uh, fast. The carmaker’s new SSC Ultimate Aero, with a top speed of 256 mph, is the world’s fastest production vehicle, while its Ford Shelby GT and Shelby Cobras are hardly Pintos. This Anonimo watch was designed to evoke that speed and precision, and includes a steel case, special Shelby-edition dial and markings and an engraved Shelby Cobra logo on the back. The two available dial treatments — black with silver dial and black with gold dial — mirror the color schemes of the newest Shelby models. anonimo.com
