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The Online Magazine for Italian and French Classic Car Enthusiasts

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Making Tracks: My Love Affair with the California Circuits of the ’50s

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Once again, I bring pixels to the screen with the hope that these images or text will tweak some memories from your bygone youth and bring a smile to your face. “I was there” is a favorite one I like to hear. Any idea of which track this is? I’ll give you a hint, it’s at Turn 5. The parties behind the wheels are: #69 Dan Gurney Ferrari 375 Plus, #59 Bob Oker Aston Martin, and #21 Hal Dolden Sparks-Bonney Special. Dan won and Bob was second. But, where?

Story and photographs by Allen R. Kuhn

In the next few months I will chronicle some of the 13 race tracks where I photographed the world of sports car racing in Southern California from 1955 to 1965. In this issue, I am featuring the wonderful world of the Paramount Ranch Race Track itself, my favorite shooting gallery. I will try and capture some of the topography of the landscape there in the following images. [Read more…] about Making Tracks: My Love Affair with the California Circuits of the ’50s

French Post Cards With Our Cars

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By Pete Vack
All photos courtesy Erik Verhaest

From the VeloceToday Archives, April, 2018

Many years ago I put away my copy of Erik Verhaest’s amazing booklet of post cards with an Italian car theme. It’s a small booklet, and went unnoticed in a large stack of books stored in a corner until the inevitable clean up revealed it once more. And again I was amazed and delighted with the postcards, most of which were in color and from the 1960s. And so I went to the huge archives of VeloceToday.com and retrieved the below article, updated it, and made contact again with the delightful Mr. Verhaest.

After a few days of enjoyable email discussion about his postcard collection and helping to identify some cars in the gorgeous locations, Erik Verhaest, aka “M.carpedi”, reflected a bit on the fun we had guessing the cars. “What a wonderful hobby!” he said. We couldn’t have agreed more.

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Kadoorie’s Perfecto Balilla

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The little winglet on the rear of the coachwork and the superb finish to the car.

By Graham Gauld

To me the Fiat Balilla 508 has always been one of the most stylish small sports cars of the 1930s and it was certainly a very successful model for Fiat.

The model I want to talk about, however, is a particular “Coppa D’Oro” model owned by the Hong Kong-based businessman Sir Michael Kadoorie, owner of the Peninsula Hotel Group and, incidentally, the Quail Lodge Golf Club at Laguna Seca, California.

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Juan Peron’s Alfa Romeo Boano

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The Ex-Peron Alfa when owned by J. M. Ahumada in Argentina. Photo courtesy of the Iacona/Bertschi collection.

By Cris Bertschi

From the VeloceToday Archives, March, 2002

This is a brief history of a very special car, known in Argentina as Peròn’s Disco Volante. But to be more accurate, it is not a Disco Volante. In addition, during its 49 years of life it was owned by the dictator just for a couple of months. There is more irony to the story as well— [Read more…] about Juan Peron’s Alfa Romeo Boano

London Classic Car Show, February 24-26 2023

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Purposeful from any angle, Alpine A110.

Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp

The last weekend in February offered a lot of choice for those of us in need of an old car fix. Should I go to St Moritz for the ‘ICE’? (Created to enjoy driving, showing and watching exciting motor cars on the frozen lake!) But have you seen the hotel prices? Maybe Stuttgart for RetroClassics? No more direct flights from my local airport! Madrid for Autoclassica? I do not speak Spanish. Race retro in Stoneleigh in Warwickshire? Been there before. Then how about the London Classic Car Show? Ideal, just a train ride away. So it was off to Olympia in Kensington that I headed.

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Jack Deren, from Hot Rods to Can Am, P2

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Jack Deren with driver Oscar Koveleski in the McLaren.

By John R. Wright

JW: Tell us of Oscar and your involvement in the CanAm years.

Deren: I was Oscar’s chief mechanic for the team from 1969 to 1971, when he decided he could no longer afford the time and expense of the CanAm season. Because Oscar knew Teddy Mayer – they both lived in the same area – he bought a 1969 McLaren M6B, right off the floor at the London Race Car Show. It was Oscar’s first CanAm car after the Cooper.

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Greatest Car Movies Ever

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Sorry, The Racers didn’t make the grade!

At the tender age of 19, Harry Hurst was track photographer for the Sebring 12-Hour race in Florida. Hurst also photographed races at Daytona and Road Atlanta during, what many think, were the “glory days of racing.” Hurst has published two books on the Sebring 12-Hour endurance race. In 2007, he helped Dr. Fred Simeone launch the Simeone Foundation Automotive Museum, twice selected as the best automotive museum in the world, and still assists the museum with communications and special events. Most recently, Hurst created the Glory Days of Racing Facebook group, and asked his audience to select the top racing movies of all time. We are pleased to republish the results in VeloceToday with permission from Harry Hurst. The direct link to Harry’s Group is https://www.facebook.com/groups/527146584145263
Ed.

Philadelphia, February 28, 2023 — The members of the Facebook Group, Glory Days of Racing, have selected the top racing and car movies in a poll that included 100 overall nominees. The group, with 75,000 members from all over the world, chose their top five favorite movies from 25 nominees in each of four categories: Racing Theatrical, Racing Documentary, Car Centric, and Car Chase.

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Brandes, Stan, and the Big Snow

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Brandes and Stan in warmer times. Stan was adopted from a local animal rescue organization in Sacramento called “Hearts For Paws”

Brandes Elitch needs no introduction here. But you may not know that he lives in Yuba county California, in a rather remote town. Last week, when the big storm hit California, he was in the path of the historic snow. On Friday March 3 I emailed him to ask how he was doing. Of course we had heard about the snow, but didn’t realize how devastating it was until Brandes emailed me with this response. Ed.

By Brandes Elitch

Saturday, March 4, 10:50 P.M. You have probably heard about the famous film “Lost Weekend,” but since I have given up drinking, this is not about a Lost Weekend in that sense.

It is about the fact that I had no internet last Saturday, February 25, all day and finally by 7 PM I was so frustrated that I just went to bed. Immediately thereafter, the power went out. We were without power Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and it finally came back on Friday, around 3 PM. [Read more…] about Brandes, Stan, and the Big Snow

Who was D.M. Bartley Part 2

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Bartley talks with Pat O’Connor at Trenton, N.J. She was reportedly the first woman journalist to obtain a media pass at Indy. Photographer unknown.

This week we learn about D.M. Bartley from Denise McCluggage, Karl Ludvigsen, and the Editor.

Read Part 1

Denise McCluggage:

Diana Bartley wanted to be accepted for what she was, a hard-working, professional journalist when there simply few women doing that. People today cannot believe how rare women were even on large newspapers. Women might do interviews involving food or fashion or kittens-up-a-tree rescue stories but never hard news. [Read more…] about Who was D.M. Bartley Part 2

Jack Deren, from Hot Rods to Can Am P1

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Jack Deren with Penske in the center.

By John R. Wright
Photos from the Jack Deren collection

Jack Deren has packed more restorations, race prepared cars and time at race tracks all over the country than anyone I can think of off the top of my head. Over the years I have been going to the vintage weekend at the Glen I have talked with Jack off and on but he’s always been too busy to sit down for long. However, on a Glen vintage weekend in September of 2022, I sat down with Jack at breakfast. Our breakfast turned into lunch, and while he talked I took notes. What an interesting racing career he’s had with ups and downs but mostly interesting times. [Read more…] about Jack Deren, from Hot Rods to Can Am P1

1:12 Model: 1927 Fiat Type 806

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Story, color photos and model by Aldo Zana

From the VeloceToday Archives, August, 2019

It is quite unusual that a particular model car exhibits so many unique values: the only three-dimensional image of a racing car 1) built in a single unit, 2) raced only once, and 3) then destroyed for good.

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