other Italian manufacturers, and you’re
bound to find something to tickle your fancy.
Then, at the stroke of 11:30 a.m., the crowds
disperse, the cars are cleared, and the
streets reopen for business.
For those looking at a more formal
gathering of finely polished and prepped
entrants, the concours circuit has plenty of
stops. The sharpest arrow in my quiver for
the last half-decade has been the Greenwich
Concours d’Elegance, whose picturesque
backdrop, world-class cars and top-shelf
judging make it the premier concours in the
northeast. The Italian contingency was well
represented, with numerous wins across the
categories including the coveted Best in
Show - Sport being awarded to a Ferrari 335
Sport Scaglietti, one of just four produced.
Among the other victors were a 1962
Maserati Tipo 151, 1922 Alfa Romeo RLTF (TF
for Targa Florio) and the rather unusual 1965
Ferrari 330 GT Vignale Shooting Brake.
Somewhere between a casual car cadre
and full-blown concours sits Festival Italiano.
In its second outing, FI managed to corral an
impressive assemblage, including a pair of
Ferrari 250 GTEs, a double dose of 365
GTC/4s, an original-owner early De Tomaso
Pantera, and many other treats. Attendance
took the quality-over-quantity approach but
no other venue can compete with the
manicured grounds of The Hermitage, a
National Historic Landmark. To quell any
thoughts that this was simply an extended
amateur hour, recognised judges were on
hand to apply years of experience in choosing
the belles of the ball. A 1961 Fiat 1200 Spider
was crowned Best of Show, and scooped the
People’s Choice as well. Bravo!
the 17-mile route, much to the delight of the
thousands of spectators that lined the
streets along the way.
Finally, it’s apropos to wrap up this recap
by touching upon a family that has touched
so many lives. The Domenico and Tindara
Spadaro Memorial Drive Against Cancer has
been running in honour of the patriarch of
the Spadaro family for the past nine years,
raising thousands of dollars for cancer
research and creating countless memories in
the process. Unfortunately, the latter name
was added last year after the passing of Mrs
Spadaro. Santo Spadaro, along with his
brother Frank, sister Vera and an army of
volunteers, organized the Sunday drive in the
country, just like their late father enjoyed
after a hard work week, surrounded by
classic Italian sports cars and the like.
Santo’s shop, Dominick European Car Repair,
has built a returning clientele from decades
of honest and knowledgeable service to the
classic car community, many of whom
participate in the event in their vintage
Italian vehicles. Among them this year were a
1961 Alfa Romeo Giulietta SZ with years of
patina, Maserati Ghibli, Fiat Dino Spider, and
Lancia Aurelia B20. Combined with wonderful
weather and camaraderie, the Drive once
again proved successful.
Although I’m doing all the aforementioned
events a disservice by summarising them in
just a few sentences, if you find yourself
wandering around the Northeast United
States next year at any point during the
sunny season, cross-check your calendar
with your map to see if you can join in the
automotive fun and bring home some
stateside Italian memories.Each year during its Historic Festival, Lime
Rock Park succeeds in making lemonade out
of the ‘No Racing on Sunday’ lemon, with the
1.5-mile track playing host to over 1000 cars
for the Sunday in the Park Concours
d’Elegance and Gathering of the Marques.
One could easily spend all day walking up and
down the Sam Posey Straight, admiring the
concours entrants. Although the featured
marque was Bugatti, with well over 40
classics clogging (!) up the main straight,
there were more than adequate offerings
from the Italians. Lotsa Lancias, a Ghia-bodied
Ferrari 195 and a recently restored Siata
200CS (after an inattentive driver texted
some undesired body modifications) all took
home some mantel hardware.
Flanking the cold track portion of the
weekend were some very exciting vintage
races. Members from the Vintage Sports Car
Club of America, along with other seasoned
racers, took to the track in one of eight
racing groups, from pre-war to tin top. While
many a hyperbolic term has been tapped to
describe the sound emitted from
carburetted engines and unrestricted
exhausts, they can’t stand in for actually
standing trackside. And there’s nothing like
donning a bright orange photographer’s vest
and capturing a 1935 Alfa Romeo 8C-35 or a
1933 Maserati 4CM as they blur by, all within
a few feet of your eardrums. If you’ve never
been, do your aural protuberances a favour
and get to one. Post-haste.
As an added bonus, there was the Vintage
Race Car and Sports Car Parade to the
nearby town of Falls Village to kick off the
weekend. Many of the race cars, including
those that weren’t quite street legal, drove