The Mille Miglia Car Race: History on wheels
Quite simply, the “Mille Miglia” (or Thousand Mile) Race is history on wheels. It is a tribute and homage to the original and glorious MM which ran for 30 years from 1927 to 1957, an all-out, “ninth-tenth”-road rally race made up of the world’s top Italian drivers—such legends as Biondetti, Ascari, Villoresi, Castellotti, Taruffi—who fiercely competed among themselves, occasionally with foreign champions.
The battlefield was on the Italian public roads, in one big loop starting in Brescia down to Rome and back again, running over a total distance of 1000 miles.
The record-winning race at the time, (Stirling Moss, 1955), was completed in just about 10 hours at an average speed of 100 m.p.h. with a top speed of 170 mph. It was a one-lap race of approximately 1,000 miles. Top driver with most wins was Clemente Biondetti and he drove the top car with most wins: Alfa Romeo.
Today’s Mille Miglia is a celebration of the Italian history of success in motorsports. It runs over the same route (and then some!) but today, spans several days. And in keeping with tradition, all kinds of cars from the humble everyman’s car, the Fiat Topolino, to the fastest Maserati are allowed to run, provided the same model car had run in the years 1927 to 1957; and provided, it is in pristine and original condition. Today’s race is also a more leisurely “regularity run” of 50 to 60 kph.
Some people have called it the most beautiful race of vintage and classic cars in the world, driven by their proud owners in matching period-correct racing memorabilia; the best show cars driven as race cars in open roads for the viewing public to enjoy. Many of these are priceless— Alfa Romeo, Lancia, Maserati, Ferrari, and also Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Porsche, as well as Jaguar, Aston Martin, and Austin Healey; but all of them are breathtaking.
And not to forget, there are the traditions and rituals, of painstaking scrutiny of mechanicals and interior/exterior trim and finishes done by experts of the “marques” from the traditional warehouses. Also a must-see is the fabulous Mille Miglia Museum housed in a medieval monastery.
For cars that have passed the scrutineering, there is the reward of “sealing” the cars in an elaborate party atmosphere of red carpets, accompanied with live band music, in dressage style on the eve of the race. Next comes the ceremonial start of the race on stage platform in the presence of MM race officials.
It was on that pedigreed pavement that I found myself last year, absorbed in a dream come true for every car enthusiast, to finally witness for myself the Mille Miglia.
Our base was the ancient town of Sirmione on the shore of Lake Garda and we would drive every day to Brescia to witness the scrutineering and the sealing. We had selected this outpost knowing that after the flag-off, the cars would drive along this scenic route, the lake behind us and the forest in front, as we watched and cheered the cars as they went by.
We also travelled to other places on the MM’s four-point route, including Siena, Rome, Parma. At Verona, we found that crowds continued to throng the balcony made famous by Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.
Our last stop was in Parma, arriving on the same night as the racers. Here, we also visited a prosciutto ham-maker, a factory of the famous Parmigiano Reggiano cheese as well as the historic Teatro Farnese.
Amid all the excitement, a germ of an idea formed in my mind: the possibility of actually joining the Mille Miglia as perhaps its first Filipino driver. The MM today attracts some 400 men (and women) from all over the world, from the Netherlands and the United States to Germany and Belgium, to the United Kingdom and Japan. Why not the Philippines?
The Mille Miglia is the “holy grail” for car collectors and one of its many challenges was to find a car worthy of the dream. I found it in a Porsche 356A 1957, acquired from a known collector and restored by a top Porsche specialist to a “Concours d’Elegance” standard.
The next step was to get the vehicle certified by the Federation Internationale Véhicules Anciens (FIVA) which only registers cars of at least 30 years old that are preserved and maintained to a historically correct condition. I am humbled to say that we also hurdled that challenge.
Finally, we received news just last of the acceptance of “Scuderia Cruz,” a father-and-son team composed of myself and my youngest son, Ismael Jaime “T.O.”, into the official MM roster of drivers and navigators. (My eldest son, Maurice, had taken a side trip to Italy to inspect the Porsche while it waited in its garage for our arrival.)
According to the organizers, the 2023 edition of the Mille Miglia will be “of unprecedented length and, as in 1947-48, will reach Piedmont: spanning five days and over 2000 km with legs finishing in Cervia-Milano Marittima, Rome, Parma and Milan.”
In addition, to mark the Centenary of the Italian Air Force, a symbolic place will be included in each of the race days: the Ghedi Airbase, the airports of Pisignano and Piacenza San Damiano, the Air Force Historical Museum in Vigna di Valle and the 1st Air Region Command in Milan.
The race’s iconic symbol, the Red Arrow, will be accompanied again this year by the 1,000 Miglia Green, the Ferrari Tribute and the Supercars of the 1,000 Miglia Experience, and there will be many more important novelties.
Little wonder indeed that more than 65 million tourists find their way to Italy and its many enchantments, each one finding their own dream come true.