Tuesday 16 March 2010

The Great Race: the Mille Miglia

Italy and luxury cars and inextricably linked. The Mille Miglia (thousand miles) celebrates this tradition by selecting the most beautiful vintage cars in the world to participate in an endurance rally around the country. The 2010 edition (May 5-9) departs from Brescia and journeys through Bologna, Urbino, San Marino and Rome (with a stopover at Castel Sant'Angelo) and then back to Brescia via Viterbo, Siena and Florence.

This history of the rally goes back to the 1920s when Brescia was furious at losing Italian Gran Prix to Monza. It soon became very popular, attracting drivers from all over Europe and forging the reputation of ‘grand touring’ cars such as Alf Romeo and Maserati (it generally ended in a stand off between an Italian-made car and a Mercedes). The race was banned in 1957 when a Spanish driver, his co-driver and many spectators were tragically killed in a crash.

In 1987 the Mille Miglia was revived and downgraded to a road rally as opposed to a race. Vintage cars from all over the world participate, and guidelines are strict. Their year of manufacture, for example, must be between 1927 and 1957 (the period of the original Mille Miglia) and are personally selected by the organisers as sterling examples of classic racing cars, ensuring the Mille Miglia is equalling as enthralling for spectators as it is for participants. No wonder it has been called ‘The Most Beautiful Race in the World.’

Looking for Rome City Breaks? There are some good options and I recently went with Low Cost Holidays and this is a viable option for packages.