These Guys Drove a Real 1927 Bugatti—and More—over the Alps in Winter!
What used to be just one race a year—the revival of the Mille Miglia in Italy—has grown into a number of very fun events all over the world, from Mille Miglia tributes in China, Japan, the UAE, and even Florida, to the Coppa delle Alpi, a re-creation of a winter race over the Alps that started in 1921.
This year, on March 13 in the city of Brescia (traditional start of the Mille Miglia), 40 cars took the green flag and headed north into the ice and snow of the frozen Alps.
The entries included: four Porsche 356s, two Aston Martin DB4s (and a DB2), period-correct entries from Jaguar, Triumph, and Austin Healey, three Ferraris (two from the 1980s and a 348 from 1991), as well as a couple of Fiat 508 Cs.
The goal on the morning of the first day was lunch in the ski resort town of Tirano (it's a civilized event, after all), followed by a charge over the Swiss border to St. Moritz, which had only weeks before hosted the GP I.C.E. Race.
Next day was back into Italy, then over the Fuorn Pass to Austria and on to the Tyrolean town of Brixen.
Saturday, March 15, may have been the best leg as the cavalcade of classic cars crisscrossed the spectacular Dolomites, topping the Sella Pass then threading the Fassa and the Fiemme valleys. The cars reached the beautiful Lake Serraia and then went on to Baselga di Piné, where the last lunch of the race was hosted. After reaching Trento back in Italy, the race ended with the award ceremony in Ponte di Legno on top of the final pass of the run: Tonale. No doubt named after the Alfa Romeo (or vice versa).
We give you the detailed route in case you want to fly to Italy and rent a car for a week, which we would definitely recommend.
While 40 cars started this year, the fifth running of this commemorative race, the Coppa will accommodate twice that.
'A maximum of 80 cars built up to 1990 will be accepted to the race, which will compete to win one of the 7 guarantees of acceptance to the 1000 Miglia 2026 up for grabs,' read the google-translated statement from event organizers.
So you could potentially qualify for the Mille Miglia, the grandaddy of all great races. Plan now for next year.
The tour enters Livigno, Italy, just a crankshaft's throw from Switzerland.Neither rain, nor snow, nor dark of night...
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