Leonardo DiCaprio, Jack Heuer and Jean-Christophe Babin
Leonardo DiCaprio, Jack Heuer and Jean-Christophe Babin

DALLAS, Mar 19, 2010 / FW/ — Kicking off its 150th anniversary celebration today in Basel, TAG Heuer honored actor and climate change activist Leonardo DiCaprio for his dedication to saving the environment in an invitation-only event for more than 600 guests.

DiCaprio, who has an ongoing partnership with TAG Heuer that benefits the NRDC and Green Cross International, wearing the new Carrera 1887 remarked, “I am excited to be here to celebrate TAG’s 150th birthday. Our partnership, which enables people to buy a quality timepiece and help save the planet at the same time, is a model I hope other brands will follow.”

The evening – dedicated to the pioneering spirit of innovation – also served as the launch for the Odyssey of Pioneers – a unique travelling roadshow that will showcase TAG Heuer’s finest timepieces of past, present and future in 15 cities, between March and October 2010.

tag_heuer06As an Olympic flame, the tour will be lead by the new TAG Heuer Tesla Roadster, an exclusive model introduced by electric carmaker Tesla Motors at the Geneva Motor Show in early March 2010. This one-of-a-kind collector’s car incorporates the defining TAG Heuer avant-garde design elements, and celebrates the core values of both brands: innovation, precision, prestige and performance.

Starting in Basel, “The Odyssey of Pioneers” will be the first round-the-world tour by a zero-emission GT car: 37,000 km/24,000 miles; six-months; 15 stops; 18 watches on show, one record to be scored.

The night also served as the premiere of the Grand Carrera Pendulum, a 2010 concept watch that turns an immutable principle of mechanical watchmaking on its head – it is the first movement without a hairspring.

tag_heuer08Jean-Christophe Babin, president and CEO of TAG Heuer, explained how it works : “In the regulation system, we simply replaced the traditional hairspring with magnetic fields. TAG Heuer invented the oscillating pinion in 1887; the Mikrograph, the first counter that was accurate to a 100th of a second; and the V4, with its belt-driven transmission system. Now, we are introducing another major innovation, and another example of the pioneering spirit that has imbued us for a century and a half.”

“Mastering time, this has been our challenge since 1860,” said TAG Heuer Honorary Chairman Jack Heuer as he opened the celebration.

At dawn on Friday, March 19, the TAG Heuer Tesla Roadster left Basel to carry out its task of taking 150 years of heritage around the world and write a new page in this wonderful story.

To chart the Odyssey in real time and read about the drivers and events, please visit
www.odyssey.tagheuer.com
www.teslamotors.com/odyssey  

One Response

  1. Julie

    March 20, 2010