VeloceToday.com

The Online Magazine for Italian and French Classic Car Enthusiasts

Angoulême, Circuits des Remparts, 16-18 September

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Heavenly vintage racing at Angouleme France.

Story and photos by Ian Wilson

The city of Angouleme hosts many superb festivals and colourful events throughout the year, and the third week in September is no exception seeing the annual Circuits des Remparts return to the town. Weeks of preparation have seen crash barriers put in place, marquees erected, local people reminded, and shop windows decorated with a race theme. Race weekend is here, and the place will again ring to the sound of engines. [Read more…] about Angoulême, Circuits des Remparts, 16-18 September

Rally France: The WRC Gets Hot: English and Italian

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Latvala hustles through a village on his way to fourth place.

After an incredible WRC in France, an increasingly tight battle in the WRC

By Roberto Motta
Photos courtesy of Citroën Communication, Abu Dhabi World Rally Team, Ford Motor Company, BMW Claude Saulnier Press and Agence Presse

September 30-October 1The Rally France was the eleventh round of the WRC and one of the most exciting, with a number of plots and twists. The first surprise was that the John Cooper Works WRC Mini took command of the first day, followed by a Citroen…but that of Petter Solberg, a non factory entry. Sebastien Ogier was third. Not exactly the expected results. [Read more…] about Rally France: The WRC Gets Hot: English and Italian

Giro d’Italia is Reborn, English and Italiano

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Pregliasco, Alfa-Romeo-GTV

Pregliasco, Alfa-Romeo-GTV taking part in the 1979 Giro d'Italia.

By Roberto Motta
Photos: Archive GGRM-Motta and Roberto Giro d’Italy Car-media

Giro d’Italia Reborn
110 years after the very first Giro d’Italia this classic event returns to the Italian peninsula, departing from Turin and reaching Rome after five days of competition and nearly 1600 kilometers. The Giro d’Italia will bring together the cars from both the world of rallying and track competition in a unique and grueling test.
[Read more…] about Giro d’Italia is Reborn, English and Italiano

This Week, of Interest

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VeloceToday’s Michael T. Lynch to speak at Watkins Glen

Michael T. Lynch

Michael T. Lynch

Two award-winning motorsports authors will be the featured speakers at the International Motor Racing Research Center’s October 8 celebration of the 50th anniversary of the first Formula One race at Watkins Glen. The talks begin at 1 p.m. Authors Michael T. Lynch and Gordon Kirby will discuss America’s World Champions, Phil Hill and Mario Andretti. Lynch, co-author of “American Sports Car Racing in the 1950s,” will focus on Hill, World Champion in 1961. Kirby will speak about 1978 champion Andretti, subject of his “Mario Andretti: A Driving Passion.”

Art Show at the IMRRC.

Several regional artists have been gathered to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first Formula One race in Watkins Glen at the International Motor Racing Research Center (IMRRC). On October 8th an art exhibit titled ‘The Art of Formula One’, will commemorate this occasion featuring the beauty and power of Formula One racing. The exhibit will spotlight images created by artists who have a unique personal history of attending the racing events at the Glen, bringing to life to the stories and the data that were part of this era of world class racing in Watkins Glen. The ‘Art of Formula One’ will open with an artist’s reception on October 8th from 4:00PM to 6:00PM and will remain on display until November 19th. For further information please contact Cynthia Hill or Jon McKnight, Director of Marketing at the International Motor Racing Research Center at (607) 535-9044 or by email, oldracerjon@gmail.com

Fangio Tribute at Goodwood by Hugues Vanhoolandt

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Juan Manuel Fangio impressed the European racing scene the second he stepped foot in the Old World in 1949. In his first season with the Maserati 4CLT/48, he won the San Remo, Pau and Roussillon Gran Prix. In 1950, he won the Gran Prix of Pau again, with a Maserati 4CLT/50. But it was at San Remo where Fangio truly proved his worth as both a driver and mechanic. A big end went the day before the event. That night he removed the sump, found the bad bearing, and polished the crankshaft with a piece of emery cloth. This alone took him two hours. Then he installed a new bearing and fixed it so it wouldn’t spin. Finally, “I told the mechanics to put the sump on while I went to bed. And the next day I won the race.”

[Read more…] about Fangio Tribute at Goodwood by Hugues Vanhoolandt

Alfa Giulietta Berlina Portfolio

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Photo by Hugues Vanhoolandt

All photos below © Alfa Romeo Automobilismo Storico, Centro Documentazione (Arese, Milano)

The Alfa Giulietta Berlina was one of the most advanced sedans of the mid 1950s. Below are the factory photos which provide a detailed look at the evolution of this landmark Alfa.
[Read more…] about Alfa Giulietta Berlina Portfolio

2011 Supaloc Classic Targa Adelaide

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Guy Standen and Andrew Coles, 1974 Fiat 124 Sport CC on Montacute stage.

Story and photos by Vince Johnson

The 2011 Supaloc Classic Targa Adelaide, held from 14-17 September, marked the return of classic rally cars to the hills around the South Australian capital. Covering over 200 kilometres of special stages on closed roads, this first round of the 2011 Australian Targa Championship revived memories of the Classic Adelaide Rally, last run in 2009. Outright winner in that event, Kevin Weeks, has signed his company, Supaloc Steel Building Systems, to a four-year deal as naming rights sponsor. [Read more…] about 2011 Supaloc Classic Targa Adelaide

Grand Prix of Singapore 2011

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Fernando Alonso, Mark Webber, Nico Rosberg, Felipe Massa

By Erik Nielsen
Photos courtesy and copyright Ferrari Media

This weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix was more or less the end of the season. Sebastian Vettel has for all practical purposes clinched the title. Yes, there is a mathematical chance that Button could catch up, but it would involve the Brit winning every race and the German gaining no points. And quite possibly, requiring a particle to move faster than the speed of light. [Read more…] about Grand Prix of Singapore 2011

This Week, of Interest

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Mystery car no more.


Last week reader Bill Spear emailed a photo taken from Life magazine back in the 1950s. We don’t know when or where the photo was taken, but while Spear has always thought it neat, he had no idea what the car is, who built it, nada.

So of course he sent it to us. After doing a bit of searching, we could find nothing definite. It was time to call in the real experts. We turned to Dino Brunori, author of “Enrico Nardi, a Fast Life”, who replied:

The car is a Fiat 1100 body by Carrozzeria Ala d’Oro from Reggio Emilia, built in 1948. Carrozzeria Ala d’Oro was founded in 1946 by Franco Bertani, a gentleman driver italian champion in 1938 1100cc class, and Officine Reggiane in Reggio Emilia.

Officine Reggiane was a small factory that grow up during the war, manufacturing parts for airplanes, mainly wings and cockpits, and therefor had nothing to do at the end of the war.

The workforce was rescued by Bertani with the set up of Carrozzeria Ala d’Oro. The Ala d’Oro bodied most part of the first Stanguellini production cars and several sports models, plus artisans cars and trucks. This 1100 was originally fitted with an hard top very similar to an airplane cockpit (see picture). The design was an in-house work. The car still exist in the hands of an italian collector.

Our thanks to Bill Spear for the question and Dino Brunori for the answer!

Photo courtesy Dino Brunori.

Lynch on the First Ferrari GTO

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When Pebble Beach announces a special display, the enthusiast community immediately comes to life. No one who saw the six Bugatti Royales at Pebble Beach in 1985 will ever forget the spectacle. A class for Bugatti Type 57s with coachbuilt bodies in 2003 was extremely impressive, with a large entry and car histories on placards mounted on standards. (This article originally was published in September 2011.)

Ferraris also have had their days at Pebble. An exceptional turnout was guaranteed every ten years when Ferrari was the featured marque at the Monterey Historic Automobile Races and Pebble Beach added more classes for the products of Maranello. Hopefully, the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion will continue this tradition. Other years have yielded some gems as well. In 2009, there were Pebble Beach classes for ten Ferrari 166 Barchettas and all four remaining 250 TR/59s. Last year, there were eight iterations of the 250 Short Wheelbase on the field.

A contemporary image of 3223 GT at the 1966 Daytona 24 Hour. This is the livery as it appeared at Pebble Beach this year.

This year provided one of the best, if not the best, Ferrari entry ever, and the highlight was a 50th Anniversary class for 250 GTOs. It had 21 cars aligned along the shoreline. Heading the line on the right was Bruce McCaw’s 250 Sperimentale, one of two SWBs used in developing the GTO. There were also two four-liter GTO variants with hopped up Super America engines. [Read more…] about Lynch on the First Ferrari GTO

Alfa 4C Appears at Frankfurt: In English and Italian

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Good retro-styled Alfa grille, front is pugnacious in the extreme. This is a short car and you can't scrunch together most of the design cues of a classic like the 8C into a shorter package and expect it to look good. Marco Tencone of Alfa styling should know better—Wallace Wyss.

By Roberto Motta
Caption critiques by Wallace Wyss

Photos: fiatautopress

At its world premiere last April in Geneva, the Alfa Romeo 4C was voted the “most beautiful concept car of the year” by readers of German magazine Auto Bild. Now, the Alfa Romeo 4C Concept is on display at the Frankfurt Motor Show now open from September 15 through 25.
[Read more…] about Alfa 4C Appears at Frankfurt: In English and Italian

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