Mille Miglia: An Italian tradition revived

Mercedes Benz 300SL Dutch Mandel
Mercedes Benz 300 SL participating in the 2011 Mille Miglia.

By: Greg Migliore on 5/12/2011

One thousand miles of history kicked off Wednesday in Italy with another revival of the storied Mille Miglia, an event that attracts hundreds of historic racers and car lovers from around the world.

It’s a race--sort of--with timing requirements for the stages. But its primary purpose is to pay tribute to the original competition run from 1927 to 1957, a fiercely contested event that produced scores of memorable moments, such as Stirling Moss’s epic victory for Mercedes in 1955.

It was perhaps best summed up by Enzo Ferrari, who called it “the world’s greatest road race.”

The modern version, which features many of the cars that competed in the original, keeps the Mille Miglia from being relegated to the dusty pages of history. Instead, the three-day drive traverses Italy, starting and finishing in Brescia, passing through Verona, Ferrara, Assisi, Rome and Maranello along the way. The vintage cars need to meet timing requirements and must travel at an average speed of 50 kilometers per hour or about 31.1 mph--making it more of a parade.

The Mille Miglia was an actual road race in its original incarnation, until a Ferrari 335S burst a tire and veered into the crowd, killing 10 spectators and the two drivers. The race returned briefly as a rally, and the present edition has been run since 1982.

Alfa Romeo ruled the race in the prewar years, winning 10 times in 6Cs and 8Cs. Alfa came back with another win in the first race after the war in 1947, before giving way to a string of six-straight Ferrari wins. Lancia, with Italian legend Alberto Ascari at the wheel, interrupted the Prancing Horse’s run in 1954, followed by Moss’s win a year later in a 300 SLR that set a record with an average speed of 97.9 mph. Ferrari won the final two true races.


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