October 1999


Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint

October Monthly Meeting

On Tuesday October 12th we had our monthly Stammtisch in Kernersville. Steve Karapetian drove his Ferrari 308 GT4 ,Jim Clarkson drove his 328 Ferrari, and John Hauser and Marcus Menz drove a Healey 3000. Tim and Susan Simmons arrived as always in their their Alfa Romeo, and Bill Craig brought his Porsche Boxster. Piers Clarkson drove his newly acquired red Porsche 928. Our Jap-friends Blake Frazier and Steven Jones came in a Z car and an Eclipse respectively. The Emmis arrived in one of their Alfa 164s, Jack O’Brien drove his MGA, and Natasha Eulis drove all the way from Graham in her Alfa Romeo Spyder. Thor Mirchandani and Amy Kudla came in Amy’s 1969 MG Midget, and Bob King in his 1966 Porsche 912. John Harrill rounded out the crew.

The program was free-form, with a post-European Car Show Festival debriefing. The general consensus was that the show was a great success - like some wines and most car-stories it gets better each year! Many suggestions and observations were tossed around, with the ultimate goal of continuing the upward trend next year.

We enjoyed chatting with Marcus, just in from Germany who arrived just in time for our get together. Marcus was detained in Customs for over an hour and then allowed in. The reason was, he did not have a gift for the person he was visiting and thus they unpacked and even unrolled his socks and then left him to repack everything. Marcus and John grew up together in Darmstadt Germany half way between Frankfurt on the Main river and Heidelberg on the Neckar river just off the first autobahn and where Bernd Rosemeyer died in the Silver Arrows (Auto Union) record attempt on January 28 1938 . (Darmstadt is also the place where von Empfang impaled a slow-going Mercedes 260 with his "Valkyrie", while attempting to break the land speed record in 1937. For some reason they forgot to vacate the Autobahn. This incident still marks the unofficial flying quartermile record for two accidentally fused vehicles... Ed.) This is also the town where the last Russian Czar Nicholas Romanov married the local princess Alexandra in the 1880s. As they grew up Marcus raced the Mercedes as Fangio and Porsche as Hans Herman and John raced the Vanwall of Sterling Moss and Lotus of Jim Clark. We had a great time amongst friends.

Corsa Rossa’s European Car Festival


Austin Healey 100/4 and 3000

Saturday October 9th 117 cars registered for the annual European Car Festival at Historic Reynolda Village, House and Gardens. There were 14 Alfa Romeos, 2 Audis, 2 Austin Minis, 12 BMWs, 1 De Tomaso, 1 Ermini, 17 Ferrari, 3 Fiat, 8 Austin Healeys, 2 Jensen Healeys, 3 Jaguar, 1 Lamborghini, 1 Lancia, 1 Landrover, 2 Lotus, 2 Maserati, 5 Mercedes,14 MG, 16 Porsche,1 Saab, 1 Siata, 3 Triumph, 2 Volvo, and 3 Volkswagen. Click here for more festival statistics!


Fiat Spider and Fiat 600 Abarth

Last year there was a tremendous showing of Alfa Romeos, which at 30 made up just under a third of the show entries. This year we had more variation, with at least one car in each class except for Rolls Royce/ Bentley and Peugeot/Citroen.

The Phil Hill exhibit went over very well and drew a lot of attention in the center of Reynolda Village. Thirteen photographs and several prints by Alexander, Klemantaski, and Turner depicting Phil Hill and his era of racing were on display. Additionally, the book "Yankee Champion" and the special edition T shirts and sweatshirts depicting the Ferrari Shark nose F1 of Phil Hill were on sale. Special thanks go out to Mark Godfrey of Brown Fox Books and Peter Sachs of the Klemantaski Collection for helping make this display possible.


Tiffany Walker's VW Karmann Ghia

The class awards were a copy of the Brown Fox book "Phil Hill: Yankee Champion" as well as gift certificates from the merchants of Reynolda Village and several other sponsors. The coveted Patina Award went to Jon Saylor for his 1953 Austin Healey 100-4. The class awards were:


Ferrari 330 GT 2+2 "Testarossa" rebody

The award for is years featured marque, Ferrari, sponsored by Reynolda House Museum of American Art went to two cars:

Many people had travelled from far away to show their cars. The Rindlers drove their Ferrari four hundred miles from Hilton Head, which must be some kind of unofficial Ferarri record! The Gallahers drove their Lamborghini from Asheville, Jim Dill and Jim Dillon drove a Porsche 180 miles from Hinton, West Virginia, Jim Salerno drove his Lancia from Virginia Beach,Mark Kingsbury drove his Volvo from Georgia, Bill and Wendy Djang drove their Ferrari F40 Super Car from Raleigh and many other enthusiasts came from far and wide to join in the fellowship and fun.

The Museum opened its doors and the Winslow Homer exhibit to all participants and no charge.

Gary Brierton, Wanda Freeman and the Triad Austin Healey Club sponsored a wonderful tour lasting about 1 and 1/2 hours, leaving from Reynolda Village at 4pm. The tour ended at Sam’s Ristorante & Pizzeria in Walnut Cove. Our warmest thanks go out to Gary and Wanda, sine quae non!

The tour went North on Reynolda Road and through historic Bethabara Park and the colonial fort up to historic Bethania founded in 1759 by Moravians and out along Main Street to Tobaccoville, and then meandered on to beautiful Spainhour Mill road. From the interesting old barns and Ostrich farms off Grassy Creek road the tour left Forsyth and entered Stokes County and went into the beautiful Suration mountains and up Mt Zion road to Surry County to Pinnacle. The tour reentered Stokes County at the famous blue Victorian House near the rural rail tracks. On it went up the twisting roads of Flat Shoals, Capella Frye and Brim Road and then highway 8 to Hanging Rock and Moores Wall on to Walnut Cove. The drive was well attended and it was most amazing to see Ferrari 330 rebodied 1950s Testarossa and a 1965 Lamborgihini among all the other Europeans glidding through the hill country in its fall splendor.
Until next year!
John Hauser

Impressions from the European Car Festival

This was my second European Festival, one I looked forward to since early August. The variety and volume of cars is unlike anything I have ever seen. I continue to be amazed by the makes and models that show up, many that I have never heard of before. This could be because of their rarity and age.


Lamborghini 350 GT

Helping with the event is a mixed blessing. It can be tiring and time consuming, but it's also fun. I was privy to being the first to greet many of the participants and see the excitement on their faces as they pulled in. I too had a big smile, knowing what excitement and pleasure the day would hold.

The host tent was better this year with the addition of the Louis Klemantaski and Graham Turner prints. Both added another dimension to the show. The new shirts this year were also more colorful.


Mighty Vikings: Volvo P1800 and SAAB 900

The day was not long enough to see and do all there was available. One of the biggest changes between this year and last is the number of special people I now know. Last year, I strolled throughout the village admiring the cars. This year, I stopped and chatted with many of the enthusiasts and owners I have come to know through Corsa Rossa.

The rallye ended in a touchdown. We were supposed to go as a group, but got separated. Natasha Euliss was gracious enough to give me a ride in her Alfa Graduate. After starting, we met Dorothy Clarkson at a stoplight. We ended up at her and Jim's home, where they jumped into the 328. The rallye itself was marvelous, taking us through countryside we had never seen before.


Miriam Bond's Turbo Beetle

Natasha is very knowledgeable about automobiles and is an accomplished driver. This fact was not lost as we kept up with Jim through the snaking country roads. The conversation was always spirited, as was the drive.

Dinner with Jim, Dorothy and Natasha at Sam's Ristorante & Pizzeria was very memorable. We laughed a lot and had some great food. It was the perfect ending to a successful day. Thanks to Corsa Rossa for exceeding my already high expectations.
Blake Frazier

MAARC Winetour - Vintage 2000

I hope this will answer the many questions about the upcoming 2000 WineTour.

The dates are April 14th thru April 16th 2000.

There are 20 rooms reserved at the English Inn of Charlottesville located at 2000 Morton Drive. Phone 1-800-786-5400 or 1-804-971-9900. Prices run from $68.50 to 74.50 double occupancy. A complimentary buffet breakfast is included. Our group Name is "Alfa Romeo Club" and our Group Number is 041400, please refer to this number when making reservations. Reservation cut off is 4-1-2000.
John Hauser

European Car Festival Shirts for Sale

We have a limited number of 1999 vintage European car Festival T-Shirts and Sweat Shirts for sale. The T-Shirts are yellow with a red 1960 Tipo 156 "shark-nose" Ferrari in front and Club logo in the back, and are priced to sell at $10.00 plus shipping. The sweat shirts are grey, with similar designs, and priced at $16.00. Both are 100% cotton and available in sizes M through XXL. As always, the proceeds go to the Childrens Arts Program at the Reynolda House, in Winston-Salem.

Contact Steve Karapetian at (336) 766-1785 or leave a message in our online mailbox.


Bimmers in the Village

The rare and unusual at the European Car Festival

This year, more than ever, we had a wide range of cars represented at the show. Some of these cars may be unfamiliar to many readers, and a brief introduction of some of the "oddballs" may be in order.

Abarth Allemano. The Austrian Carlo Abarth started manufacturing Fiat-based competition cars in 1950. A friend of Ferdinand Porsche, he had been instrumental in designing the Cisitalia GP racer. Originally, the Abarth cars were based on Fiat 1100, but later other Fiat engines, as well as units manufactured by Simca, Giannini and Lancia, were utilized. The Allemano was introduced in 1958. Based on the Fiat 850, it was available as a coupe, in addition to the spider version seen at the festival. The Allemano bodied 850s are considered by many to be the prettiest Abarths of them all.

Devin Ermini The Devin Ermini is actually something as rare as period American kit car! Founded in 1952, Devin made fiber-glass bodies based on the Scaglietti designed Ermini. The company also produced Panhard based roadsters. Later on, in 1959, Chevrolet V8s were shoehorned into Irish built chassis and clad in Devin bodywork - makes you wonder where AC got the idea for the by comparison ubiquitous COBRA! Sixties models were based on Porsche and, believe it or not, Chevy Corvair! All these vehicles were extremely quick, and made in very small runs, and are consequently extremely rare, as are the "real" Erminis from Italy. Last time an Ermini was in the spotlight was in 1996 when a 1955 S-Type placed 3rd in theMille Migila Historics.

SIATA The name is an acronym for Societa Italiana Auto Transformazione Accessori, which as you guessed, is Italian for something or the other. The marque was founded in 1927 by Giorgio Ambrosini and his son, Renato. The company was sold to Abarth in 1968. SIATA manufactured all manner of cars, ranging from single seaters to limousines, as well as some small motorcycles. The cars produced in the 1950s, like the example on display at the European Car festival, are widely considered the cream of the marque. Equipped with crossley 724cc engines, and subsequently Fiat 850 mechanicals, these little cars were raced with success in the Mille Miglia, as well as the Italian Road Racing Championship.
Thor Mirchandani

Healey Club Mountain Tour


Jack and Amy went up the hill in their MGs!

The Piedmont Healey Club arranged a mountain tour on Sunday October 24th, and naturally, Corsa Rossa was in attendance. We met at 10 AM McDonald's by the Hanes Mall in Winston-Salem, on a sunny and cold fall morning. Corsa-Rossicans on site were Jack O'Brien drving his MGA, and Thor Mirchandani and Amy Kudla in her MG Midget. In addition there were three Austin-Healeys, one Jensen Healey, a Triumph TR 6. Cliff and Kathy Hudgins broke the British dominance by driving Kathy's Benz.

After imbibing coffee, we drove Hwy. 421 North for a little while and then hit the backroads. The trees were turning, as we caravaned North through Yadkin county. Crossing the mighty Yadkin we drove the twiddly-bits up to Elkin, where we stopped at Jack Ventures Shop.

We took time to buy all those ancient things we always wanted, and to look at the cars in the showroom, mostly American classics, but also a Porsche 911 and a T-series MG. Additionally, there were several European cars undergoing restoration - a Healey, an Opel GT, a couple of BMW 2002s and a Volvo Amazon caught my eyes. My favorite was an immaculate red Healey Bugeye Sprite.

Unfortunately, the fuel pump on Jon Saylor's Healey 100/4 decided to give up, so we lost one car, but we gained a BMW and Bugeye Sprite, as we traveled a Hwy 21 in fall splendour, up to Jon's mountain home.

There we had a picnic lunch and admired his many cars, in varying state of repair. There was a couple of MGs, a 240 Z, and a couple of 100/4s in the back. Like somebody said, "Jon's yard in the mountains looks just like Jon's yard at home"! After lunch the caravan went on to beautiful Stone Mountain, before returning to Winston-Salem. Thank you, all nice folks of the Triad Healey Club, for arranging a great driving event.
Amy Kudla

More About the GTO in GSO!

In the last issue we described a Ferrari 288 GTO, that was on display at Foreign Cars Italia in Greensboro. The article received the following response from Jeff Yeattes:

"The GTO in your article appears to be the one once owned by Tom Williamson. Steve Barney may also have had an interest in it though I'm not sure. If it is the same car (they fill the streets you know), I had the pleasure of a very fast ride around CMS, oops "Lowes" Motor Speedway, in it around 1985. The turbos put you back in the seat and the brakes tried to push you out the windshield competition harnesses were standard I think. I think I have a photo of this car in front of the mural at the old FCI location. If not the GTO then it's an F40, either way an interesting shot of the new in front of the old."

We thank you, Jeff, for this piece of GTO history!
Thor Mirchandani

We have a new Web Address!

You can now get to our homepage at the address http://www.geocities.com/corsarossa/. A little easier to remember than /MotorCity/Track/2690, right? The old address will still work, however.
Thor Mirchandani

Click here for more info and pictures from the European Car Festival!