by Elizabeth Doerr

Armin Strom seems to have acquired quite a taste for automobile commitments these last few years. Following its Formula 1 sponsorship of the Marussia team and Formula 1 driver Max Chilton (see Formula 1 At Hockenheim With Armin Strom, Max Chilton And The Marussia Team), the Biel-based manufacture has announced that it is the official watch partner of the transcontinental, pop-culture Gumball 3000 rally, which stems from the brain of British entrepreneur Maximillion Cooper.

Cooper has managed to combine cars with music and fashion to create an extraordinary event centering around a 3,000-mile rally that crosses continents – in 2015 it heads from Stockholm, Sweden to Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.

If you win the Gumball 3000 charity bid, you can design your own Armin Strom watch

Additionally, Christie’s runs an online charity auction during the course of the rally from May 23 through 29, 2015. The Armin Strom lot is sure to be a highlight: the winner gets to create his or her own unique Armin Strom timepiece as part of an immersive horological experience at the company’s manufacture in Biel, Switzerland.

The auction winner will collaborate with head watchmaker Claude Greisler and CEO Serge Michel to customize a Skeleton Pure model, including special engravings and PVD colorization of the base plate and bridges. The Skeleton Pure is powered by the brand’s own double-barrel Caliber ARM09-S, which boasts an eight-day power reserve. It recently earned the prestigious International Red Dot Award for Excellence in Product Design.

Proceeds from the auction go to benefit the Gumball 3000 Foundation, which was founded in 2013. It supports youth-related charities such as the Tony Hawk Foundation, When You Wish Upon A Star, the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund, and the Sir Simon Milton Foundation.

Armin Strom Gumball 3000 collection watches

Cooper has collaborated with Armin Strom’s head technician Claude Greisler to design three new watches for Armin Strom’s standing collection. The trio was introduced at Baselworld 2015.

Gumball 3000 organizer Maximillion Cooper (left) discussing designs with Armin Strom’s head watchmaker Claude Greisler

Cooper basically made the designs while Greisler ensured they would not hamper the watch’s timing capabilities. Naturally, all the timepieces are Armin Strom through and through, even if the designs reflect Cooper’s boisterous attitude with special engravings and color treatments. They also retain their contemporary skeletonization – an Armin Strom signature element.

Manual Gumball 3000 by Armin Strom

The Manual Gumball 3000 is housed in a 43.4 mm PVD-coated black stainless steel case powered by hand-wound, five-day Caliber AMW11-GB.

Manual Gumball 3000 by Armin Strom

Double Barrel Gumball 3000 by Armin Strom

The Double Barrel Gumball 3000 is housed in a 43.4 mm PVD-coated black titanium case and powered by hand-wound, ten-day Caliber ARM12-GB. These two timepieces come on black leather straps with PVD-coated black buckles and an additional rubber strap for those really sporty moments.

Double Barrel Gumball 3000 by Armin Strom

Tourbillon Gumball 3000 by Armin Strom

The Tourbillon Gumball 3000 is housed in a 43.4 mm red gold case and powered by hand-wound Caliber ATC11-GB. This whirlwind-outfitted, in-house movement sees its tourbillon located at the 9 o’clock position while a ten-day power reserve is achieved by use of twin spring barrels.

Armin Strom Tourbillon Gumball 3000

A signature element of Armin Strom’s watches right from the beginning has been the inner mechanics exposed for the wearer to see as generally these are decorated in some aesthetic way – normally very contemporary in style. Since Armin Strom’s in-house caliber was introduced in 2009, the brand has promoted more modern forms of skeletonization, with designs integrated into the layout of the movement right from the early development stages. The attractive new Tourbillon Gumball 3000 profits greatly from this.

The Armin Strom Porsche driven by Serge Michel and Claude Greisler in the 2015 Gumball 3000

On Sunday morning, May 24, 2015, Armin Strom CEO Serge Michel and head watchmaker, movement designer, and product manager Claude Greisler will start their rally journey from Stockholm in a special Tech Art Porsche Turbo. Both will be wearing the brand-new Armin Strom Skeleton Pure Team 78, a watch they created especially for the rally. Powered by Caliber ARM09-S, a manually wound movement with an eight-day power reserve, it is housed in a black PVD-coated stainless steel case.

Armin Strom Double Barrel Gumball 3000 on the wrist

The sponsorship will include other Gumball events scattered through the year such as concerts and car shows.

For more on Armin Strom, please visit www.arminstrom.com.
For more information on the Gumball 3000 rally, please visit www.gumball3000.com.

Quick Facts Manual Gumball 3000
Case: 43.4 mm, PVD-coated black titanium
Movement: hand-wound Caliber AMW11-GB with five-day power reserve
Functions: hours, minutes, subsidiary seconds
Price: 14,800 Swiss francs

Quick Facts Double Barrel Gumball 3000
Case: 43.4 mm PVD-coated black titanium
Movement: hand-wound Caliber ARM12-GB with ten-day power reserve via twin spring barrels
Functions: hours, minutes, subsidiary seconds
Price: 30,000 Swiss francs

Quick Facts Tourbillon Gumball 3000
Case: 43.4 mm red gold
Movement: hand-wound Caliber ATC11-GB with one-minute tourbillon and ten-day power reserve via twin spring barrels
Functions: hours, minutes, subsidiary seconds
Price: 135,000 Swiss francs