The Truth about Spiders
By Gijsbert-Paul Berk
The Attraction of Spiders
This is not about the eight-legged arachnids – of which some species can be poisonous – but about four wheeled automobiles that appeal to the instincts of sporting men and women.
Driving an open sportscars without a roll bar can of course also be dangerous. But, as someone once remarked “driving a low and powerful machine with the wind blowing over your skull, is one of the most exhilarating sensations you can have with your pants on”. It is also one of the best ways to stop smoking.
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Interview with Marc Sonnery
Marc Sonnery
By Wallace Wyss
[We’ll have a review of the latest book by Marc Sonnery next week]
Marc Sonnery, age 48, half French and half Swedish, is a fit and well-groomed author who is ready to travel the globe in his quest to write about his favorite marque, Maserati. His name was seen in CAVALLINO for ten years, where he wrote about Ferraris, but in the 1990’s he began researching Maseratis and now spends most of his waking hours researching the history of various models. So it is that he recently authored a book on the Maserati models built when Citroen owned Maserati as well as the Citroën SM. I met with him during Sonnery’s California publicity swing and had an opportunity to do a short interview.
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InterEuropa 2013, In English and Italian
Story and Photos by Roberto Motta
Over the weekend of 31 May to 2 June, the Autodromo di Monza played host to the 61st edition of the Coppa Intereuropa. More than 350 racing cars were involved in dozens of races, as well as a series of events and parades to celebrate the 50th year of the 911th Porsche and the 50th year since the founding of Autodelta.
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San Marino Concours: Classy
By Wallace Wyss
Photos by Richard Bartholomew
San Marino is a toney area of town near Pasadena but redolent of gentler times where there are no loud noises and no graffiti; a town that presents a kind of isolated feeling like nearby Santa Anita racetrack which makes you feel like you are back in the 1930s.
30th Annual Fiat FreakOut
A Special Announcement from the Fiat Club of America
Fiat Club America cordially invites all Italian Car enthusiasts attend to the 30th Annual Fiat FreakOut national convention in Long Island, July 18-22nd at the Hyatt Regency, Hauppauge, NY.
Celebrate our great tradition of Italian Motoring with us this summer! Hundreds of vintage Italian cars will be there! All Italian cars welcome, including the concorso and drives. Join us for a weekend of activities and register your car today! Sponsored by Fiat. See and drive the new Fiat 500L 4 door, Abarth Cabrio and learn more about Alfa Romeo’s triumphant return to North America! Fiat/Alfa dealers will be on hand to answer questions about the Alfa 4C and upcoming Alfa models.
The Convention will be held at the Hyatt Regency, 1717 Motor Parkway, Hauppauge, NY 11788 USA. Call 631-784-1234 to reserve a room at Fiat Club America rates! Mention “Fiat” and get a special $119 per night! Pricing ends June 29.
Features This Week, June 13th
Sir Stirling got his, Gonzales got his, and you could be next…
Left, Roy P. Smith gives Sir Stirling Moss his copy of AmédéeGordini-a true racing legend. Photo by Pete Austin. In a few weeks, we will have a drawing to see who will win this book (retails for £55, $85.41 USD).
To get your name in the hat to win, you MUST be a Premium Subscriber before the contest begins. Subscribe now for one year at only $4.95 per month to become eligible to win this book when the contest begins.
Free shipping worldwide for our contest only!
Bernard Asset: The Man Who Changed the Pictures
By Graham Gauld
At a recent race meeting I met up with an old friend of over 25 years, the famed French Formula 1 photographer Bernard Asset. You may not have heard of him, but he completely changed the style of motor racing photography back in the 1970s.
When the French-based magazine Grand Prix International was founded in 1978, it devoted an entire issue to each Grand Prix and selected other events, notably Le Mans. This created a demand for variety and multitude of photos and Asset was ready to comply with his own unique vision of F1 racing.Born in 1955 Bernard Asset was brought up in Paris; his father was a keen and talented amateur photographer. From the age of 14 young Asset wanted to be a photographer, and as a young teenager at the photography school the teacher asked him what he wanted to do. He said he wanted to be a sports photographer and cover the Olympics. The teacher told him to forget it as they were training commercial photographers. the Olympics, including the 1992 Summer and Winter Olympics at Barcelona and Albertville. “You know, ski photography is very similar to photographing Formula 1,” he remarks. [Read more…] about Bernard Asset: The Man Who Changed the Pictures
Gordini, Driven!
By Ed McDonough
Photos by Mike Jiggle
As it happened, I test drove the Gordini at Silverstone on the same day as I had driven an F2 Ferrari 500, both cars having been raced by some of the most charismatic drivers ever to get behind the wheel of any racing car. Both cars had Maurice Trintignant connections, but the Gordini had led Le Mans with Jean Behra in this very seat…can you get your head around that?!
La Vie En Bleu French Weekend at Prescott
Text by Jonathan Sharp, Photos by Jonathan Sharp and Roy P. Smith
Just back from a long day (June 2) at the Bugatti Owners Club’s Prescott Hill climb for their La Vie en Bleu event where there were 32 Bugatti’s entered. The annual International Bugatti rally was being held in the UK at that time with Prescott being one of the ports of call. A very impressive lineup they made, especially Jim Hulls Type 57 SC Electron reconstruction which he had brought from California.
Prescott is all about atmosphere. The location is as it must have felt in the 1930s, and to add to the atmosphere this year the local Steam Preservation railway was running great steam-driven trains. The sounds of the various Bugattis, blown and unblown, were mixed in with the sound of steam whistles and chuffing trains that enhanced the nostalgia.
As usual the French make car clubs put on a fantastic display. A rare favorite was the Peugeot 504 Pininfarina Coupe, just imported from the South of France. It had been owned by the proprietor of a Peugeot garage who had used the car during the summer, but had kept it in a heated garage in the winter. Its new custodian was justifiably proud of it. At various times during the day the works Bugatti test driver powered the 1200 BHP Veyron Vittesse up the hill and one lucky ticket winner got a ride up the hill with him at the end of the day.
Also demonstrated was the 1990 Benetton B190 F1 of John Reaks. This car was driven to victory at Suzuka, Japan in 1990 by Nelson Piquet. The first time I saw the car in the paddock after one of its runs it was without a nose cone. I understandably thought it had been involved in an accident but no, the cars mechanics had to remove the nose cone and then man- handle the car at the top of the hill to allow it to return to the paddock using the return road. Such dedication just to allow the spectators the chance to witness a 650 BHP Grand Prix car being driven up the hill in anger is worthy of praise. I do think it was a bit of a handful around the wonderfully named ‘Pardon Bend’ though.
Lion in the Clouds; Peugeot at Pikes Peak, 1988-89
By Roberto Motta
Photo courtesy by Peugeot Sport
It’s been over 100 years since the epic victory at the Indy 500, and 25 years after the first victory at Pikes Peak. Now Peugeot returns to Colorado with only one goal: to win the famous Pikes Peak event once again. Previously, we described the new Mountain car. Here, we will put this in perspective and review the previous two wins at Pikes Peak.
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Alfa National Convention, July 8th-12th, Sign up NOW!
A National Convention of Alfa Romeo Owners Converges on Northern California in July
By Mary Ann Dickinson and Steve Davis
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