Gentlemen’s Run 2020 | Autumn’s Vibes

22 October 2020 Redazione Events, Lifestyle, News, Vintage

Autumn’s Vibes

A gentlemen – and gentlewomen – escape in perfect vintage style, a moment of lightheartedness in which everything has been forgot in favor of that passion for cars that have character and a thousand stories to tell.

Words and Photos by Giorgia Rossi

After a two-year break, our event dedicated to historic cars returns and exactly where we left off, it takes up an updated and perfected format, still keeping the two ingredients that we consider fundamental for a rendezvous that requires an early alarm clock in the morning: an uncompromising driving experience and a total immersion in the flavors of the region that once again hosted us, Piedmont. Challenging an extremely difficult year and limitations revolving around the coronavirus-related health emergency, the Gentlemen’s Run has been postponed from late June to early October, just in time to allow the participants to spend a day with thoughts away from the apprehension that characterizes this oppressive period, in the heart of the truffle season.

Once again the appointment attracted drivers from different areas of northern Italy, with the logical prevalence of Piedmontese crews, gathering a selection of historic cars and even some youngtimers, one of the many updates that therefore grants more variety for models having played an important role in the world of automobile, thus being able to roam around the Langhe area, among vineyards and that unmistakable flavor that flares up in the middle of a pit of engines with several springs on their shoulders. Despite some forfaits, due precisely to the climate of tension fueled by the news, the participants arrived at the first light of day on the heights of Farigliano, where the Bricco Rosso opened the doors of a beautiful villa, allowing to arrange the cars in the private courtyard and then to proceed with the registrations and a tasty breakfast right in front of the lit fireplace. And this is where the 2020 edition of the Gentlemen’s Run officially began, an escape of gentlemen – and gentlewomen – in perfect vintage style, a moment of lightheartedness in which everything has been forgot in favor of that passion for cars that have character and a thousand stories to tell. Minute after minute, the Bricco Rosso courtyard welcomed the various cars, with a strong delegation of Lancia and Porsche sharing the looks of the curious and the other drivers, without forgetting a beautiful Mini Cooper, but also Alfa Romeo 1750 GTV, Ferrari 365 GT4, or the BMW trio consisting of the more recent Z3 and Z4, combined with the legendary and increasingly rare Z1 with downward sliding doors. To open the dances and close the ranks, the Peugeot 504 Cabriolet by Pininfarina made available by the friends at Peugeot Italia and of which you will read an interesting piece in the next number of ACM.

Time to enjoy a good breakfast and let the sun make its way through the clouds, contradicting the pessimistic forecasts and it’s time to set off behind Remigio’s Fulvia Zagato, impeccable leader who paved the way to the group with a roar of thunder awakening Murazzano, Bossolasco and then descending towards Montelupo Albese and Diano d’Alba. It is here that the cars attract everyone’s attention and allow them to be admired, like a virtuous open-air cars museum, a dynamic one of course. Yes, because we don’t want to hear things like leaving the cars in the garage collecting dust.

The tour allows itself a stop at the giant red bench at the gates of La Morra, arranging the cars on the side of the road and enjoying the rays of the sun that become more and more intense as the hours pass. Another turn for Serralunga d’Alba, with the tidy balconies of the Langhe that form the perfect setting for the snake of classics that heads for Roddino, crosses Monforte d’Alba and, after passing the panoramic view over Barolo, finally arrives at its final destination, at the Bricco delle Viole restaurant, exclusively reserved for us and where we are pampered by arranging the cars and enjoy a welcome cocktail. Time to get inside then – socially distanced and following all the regulations in force – for a lunch dedicated to dishes typical of the area, all skillfully enhanced by the chef. The typical chatter of enthusiasts exchanging opinions and comments on the 80 kilometers traveled leaves room for the clink of cutlery and there is just time to congratulate us with designer Enrico Fumia, today at the wheel of his (in every sense) 1999 Alfa Romeo GTV.

The Gentlemen’s Run thus ends with a smile on everyone’s face, the satisfaction of having made the old ladies stretch their wheels and a belly full of good food and wine. We were missing this event, just as we missed that unique atmosphere created by gravitating around cars with distinct personalities, each with something to tell about its restoration, its conservation and undoubtedly with many other things still to be experienced, perhaps next year at the 2021 edition of our gentlemen’s escape, including other news, but always guaranteeing a day dedicated to a heritage – not just an automotive one – that must absolutely be lived firsthand.

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