Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este 2022 - Prelude Rally
Time flies, doesn’t it? After more than two years of waiting for the Concorso d’Eleganza 2021, the 2022 edition came in a blink of an eye. We are back to cruising the classic May agenda, which this year started with a bit of novelty. Participants gathered already on Wednesday in Milan for a dinner at the very famous Teatro alla Scala. Then, on Thursday morning in front of the theatre at Piazza della Scala, the drivers united with their machines to get ready for the traditional prelude rally. What a special morning for the Milanese on their way to work!
This year the rally seemed to be a little bit shorter, starting from Milan and taking the course to the Touring factory, the home of the legendary Superleggera technology . Following the coachbuilding trail the group then hit the premises of Zagato manufacturing shop after which everyone’s automotive hunger was filled, and it was time to kill the actual hunger with lunch. The last step was already in Cernobbio at the lakefront. The cars gathered in front of the Hotel Miralago, warmly welcomed by quite a big group of car enthusiasts and tourists. It was also there, where I managed to catch some of them both steady and on the run, forming a prelude gallery to the main event - enjoy!
Alfa Romeo TZ1, 6C Villa d’Este, BMW 700RS Spyder or Ferrari 365 P Berlinetta Speciale?
It was not immediately when I realised the cars are parked by the lake, but I got some hints. Firstly, a peas-green BMW E9 3.0 CSL passed me by and headed to Cernobbio. Then, when walking through narrow Via Regina I was shocked by a Ferrari 365 P Berlinetta Speciale “Tre Posti” by Pininfarina. Shocked, because I did take my iPhone out as I thought from afar that it was a white Dino… This marvellous piece of machinery was only produced in a couple of pieces and can indeed be considered an ancestor to the 206/246 production cars. Well, they did not keep the triple seating layout, did they?
When I reached the parking lot there were more beauties to admire and bear in mind, not all of them are cars partaking in the weekend’s Concorso d’Eleganza. Striking was the black and red Alfa Romeo TZ1 bodied by Zagato, which, judging by its American plate, just paid a home visit to the factory after a long, long time. If I am not mistaken, it is the one featured in a Petrolicious video not so long ago. There were two more Alfas - an outstanding Alfa Romeo 6C Villa d'Este and a 2600 Giulia Sprint. A couple steps away parked were Aston Martin DB4 GT (of course, Superleggera) and a rocket-fast Porsche 356 B Carrera Abarth GTL from the United States.
For me, an extraordinaire that was a great attention catcher was the one-off, fin-tailed Bristol 404. In a deep black it contrasted well on a very sunny day. But other colours were fine, too - just look at this orange-red BMW M1 or white and blue Maserati MC12. My favourite car of the day was hands down the tiny BMW 700 RS Spyder, driven by two gentlemen in classy helmets. With its centrally mounted engine and two exhaust pipes it sounded and looked out of this world!
JUST TYPICAL COMO THINGS
After the rally I went back to Como to finish the day with a good pizza. On the way, how could I not picture a few seaplanes at the Aeroclub Como? Especially if there were colour-matching Vespas just besides! All the cars, beautiful views and seaplanes everywhere spun me into Concorso weekend mood. I hope these pictures warmed you up, too… Get ready for the weekend and stay tuned!
Text & Photos: Adam Pekala ©
