Dave,
I've been to both events (last year being my first time at Elkhart), and by far the best place to watch real live, wheel-to-wheel, tradin'-paint racing is at Elkhart. Monterey is nice if you like watching cars with wooden wheels from 1910 or a bunch of pristine Ferarri's taking some spirited parade laps in California's very beautiful northern coastal area, but for my time and money, Elkhart is as close as you will get reliving the 50's, 60's and more. None of this pre-WW1 stuff, just thundering vintage racecars with battle scars. You might even see a circus act, as we saw what looked like a bunch of guys impersonating Circe-de-Sole on a golf-cart!
In addition to the three guys mentioned above, there is a pretty good chance that we will have our own special guest as a tour guide. Keep your fingers crossed.
You certainly won't see this type of racing at Monterey:
