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The Online Magazine for Italian and French Classic Car Enthusiasts

This Week, of Interest

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This week, we first make proud note of the fact that our hard working Italian Editor Roberto Motta was among those awarded at the traditional “Ceremony of Alfa Romeo Champions”. Motta also covered the fantastic weekend of racing at the Coppa Intereuropa, which resulted in an unusual but worthy four segment feature for this week’s VT and answers reader’s pleas for more Alfa photos. And don’t miss the Canadian GP report. Scroll down, please!

Scuderia Portello Awards Its Champions at Coppa Intereuropa  

Motta, center, accepts the Scuderia Portello Award.

June 3-5 2011. During the Cup Intereuropa, Scuderia del Portello met for the traditional ‘Ceremony of Alfa Romeo Champions’. The award ceremony was held in the press room of the circuit of Monza, in the presence of more than 150 guests from all over the world.

There were representatives of the Alfa clubs based in Japan, Brazil, Britain, Germany, Switzerland, and Portugal as well as drivers, partners, journalists, employees and sponsors.

At the table were the following speakers: Marco Cajani, President of the club, Stefano Agazzi, head of Alfa Romeo Automobilismo Storico (Alfa Romeo Historic Motoring), Arturo Merzario, Honorary President, and Bruno Longoni and Mario Colelli, who represented the CSAI. The winners received the sculptured trophy for 2010 sport season, which was dedicated to the Giulietta.

One of the recipients of the sculptured trophy (designed by Cajani, an architect by profession), was VeloceToday’s Italian Editor Roberto Motta, who was honored for his many articles written for Italian magazines about Alfa Romeos. Motta is a busy and dedicated journalist—in the past eight years he has received six awards for his work. Congratulations Roberto!

Special prizes were awarded to former Alfa Romeo drivers Nanni Galli, Luigi Colzani, and the driver/journalist Eugenio Mosca.

During the ceremony, after watching a movie on the 2010 season, Cajani thanked those present and explained the future plans of the Scuderia, which include the Brotherhood and Peace raid from Toronto to New York with a 1973 Alfa Romeo Giulia TI and the participation in the Goodwood Festival and Revival with the 1971 Alfa 33TT/3. President Cajani officially announced the 2012 program of the ‘Tour of Italy for Automobiles’.

Coppa Intereuropa: Overview in English and Italian

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COPPA INTEREUROPA STORICA

Over 350 cars entered in more than 16 races, 1500 show cars and the presence of about 20 thousand spectators marked the success of the 2011Coppa Intereuropa, eagerly awaited by lovers of classic cars. Below, Roberto Motta describes this year’s event in both English and Italian (Italian text below photos)

Last weekend, the legendary Monza circuit hosted the 59th Coppa Intereuropa. For three full days drivers from around the world danced between the curbs of the historic Monza circuit. The Coppa Intereuropa is the most important race series for historic cars held in Italy, and one of the most important worldwide.
[Read more…] about Coppa Intereuropa: Overview in English and Italian

Canadian Grand Prix

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Fernando Alonso

By Erik Nielsen
Photos courtesy and copyright Ferrari Media

Weekends in the late spring are usually spent on one of two main activities. There is the productive side, endless honey-do lists, grass that needs cutting, brakes that need changing, and any other activity that can only be done on the weekend as work precludes either the time or the energy to needed to tackle the list. And then there is the non-productive side, loafing on the couch, having an adult beverage (or seven) with friends and turning on the selective hearing when it is suggested to move one’s “fat ass” off the couch.
[Read more…] about Canadian Grand Prix

This Week, of Interest

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Below, some articles you may enjoy reading.

Doing Villa d’Este
Some guys just dream, other guys dream and do. Oliver Collins is one of the latter. But better yet, he not only lives his dream but comes back and is glad to tell the world (via VeloceToday) what and how he became a contestant in the Concorso d’Eleganza at Villa d’Este.
Click here

Etceterini Books
What is surprising is that there are so many books about Etceterinis. While most books on the subject are in Italian, increasingly, more are being printed in both English and Italian. This article lists many of the books available on or about small displacement Italian cars.
Click here

This week we have a real gem: the Paul Farago story as written by Eric Davison. Plus we catch up on some of the events of May via the striking photography of Hugues Vanhoolandt.

The Paul Farago Story

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Watkins Glen, 1949. Paul Farago parades his Farago Fiat in streets. Color photo by Eric Davison.

By Eric Davison

The entry list of racing cars for the 1948-1950 events at Watkins Glen was a mixed lot and most were cars produced before WW2. One of the few new cars and arguably one of the most attractive was the Farago Fiat.

Paul Farago was an Italian from Calabria, Italy who immigrated to Detroit with his family in 1930.  Paul’s father operated a bus line and Paul was a skilled mechanic by the time the family arrived in Detroit. He quickly established himself as an expert on foreign car repairs as well as a race car driver on local Michigan dirt tracks.

When WW2 broke out Farago served in the Army Air Corps.  When the war ended he established Farago Auto Service at 18725 John R. Street between Detroit’s Six and Seven Mile Roads.  His business flourished as the private garages of Detroit and its suburbs spilled out all the wonderful cars that had been put on blocks for ‘the duration.’

Farago was also a charter member of the Detroit Region of the Sports Car Club of America.  The Region had been formed when Bill Woods and his brother Jack placed a classified ad in a Detroit newspaper.  The Woods brothers were sports car enthusiasts and were the owners of Woods’ Motors on Detroit’s east side.  They sold MGs, Hillmans and other miscellaneous imports. [Read more…] about The Paul Farago Story

Spa Classic 2011

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Small turnout at the first Spa Classic didn't deter our man Vanhoolandt from bringing back great shots. The Raidillon corner, pictured here, is the landmark of the circuit, a right turn uphill that F1 cars take flat out.

Photos and Captions by Hugues Vanhoolandt

Belgian Vincent Gaye always spectacular in his Ferrari 250 GT SWB s/n 2069GT, winner of the race for pre-66 Italians Sports and GTs.

The first Spa Classic was held at the end of May on a circuit called by some ‘the most beautiful circuit in the world’, Francorchamps in the Ardennes region in southern Belgium.
It is certainly one of the most challenging racetracks with fast corners, climbs and descents.
[Read more…] about Spa Classic 2011

This Week, of Interest

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Ferraris on the Big Screen?
It could happen, but they may have to share track space with Fords…

By Wallace Wyss


According to a story disseminated by Reuters last week, director Michael Mann is in talks with 20th Century Fox to develop and potentially direct “Go Like Hell,” the real-life story of the famous competition between the Ford Motor Co. and Ferrari that led to Ford winning the Le Mans in 1967. (Ironically the Reuters reporter must have forgotten that Ford first won in 1966.)

The Reuters story says that Ford ” was the first American car maker to win the world’s oldest car race, held annually in France. For years, Ferrari had dominated the contest.”

20th Century Fox plans to base their film on A.J. Baime’s (a Playboy editor) book of the same name, which they describe as the story of when “a young Henry Ford II — determined to infuse new life into his family’s company — decided to get into the European racing scene. With the help of racer Carroll Shelby and Lee Iacocca, Ford built and designed a car that could take on Ferrari cars, known for their speed and style. They ultimately won the Le Mans.”

In actuality, Ford pretty much designed the GT40 without Shelby’s help and ran their first season in endurance racing–1964–without his help but in the winter of ’64 sent the Ford GTs to Shelby to sort out since they had failed so miserably in ’64.

The Reuters story says “Insiders say the initial idea was for Mann to develop the script.” Various stories in the last few days say a script already exists, penned by Jason Keller. He has sold several scripts and is also developing “The Devil’s Throat” with Josh Brolin attached to star, as well as being in pre-production on “Snow White.” Coincidentally Brolin has been reported in being interested in the film, as well as Brad Pitt, though no stars are attached as yet.

Mann is a great friend of Ferrari. He, of course, is famous for featuring the Daytona Spyder in the pilot of the TV show Miami Vice though in the TV series itself it was a replica, later replaced by a Ferrari Testarossa replica. In the later feature film of Miami Vice, he features a Ferrari 430 Spyder. In 2009, Mann produced and directed a 3-minute promotional film on the new Ferrari California Spyder which was played at the American preview in Santa Monica to a Ferrari-owning crowd of invitees. Mann also once displayed his own modern Ferrari 599 GTO at a concours at the Art Center College of Design.

Wallace Wyss, a prolific non-fiction book author, has just signed with an agent to promote his unpublished suspense thriller set in the world of Ferraris.”
[Ed.]

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