I would drive 1000 miles

The Mille Miglia (1000 Miles) is a reenactment of a classic race that ran from 1927 to 1957. The only car models that can apply to enter are ones that were raced in the original series. The organisers then assess the historical significance of the car in question to come up with the final list of 420 vehicles.

The race runs over four days and consists of a loop, starting in Brescia and heading south to Rome, before turning around and heading back north again, running through Siena (!) on the way back to Brescia.

I had been looking forward to seeing this race since I knew it existed. The weather has been unseasonably cold and wet the last few weeks so I was a bit worried that the race (which includes many open-top cars) would be affected.

Fortunately, when I woke up on Friday and checked the forecast, there was no rain predicted. Siena has limited parking, especially for big events, so Mandi dropped me in Due Ponti on her way to taking the kids to school and I walked up the hill and into Siena.

The cars were going to enter from the south, through Porta San Marco and wind their way through Siena’s tiny narrow streets, ending up in the main piazza - Piazza del Campo, where they would stop for lunch before continuing north (this is Italy, after all). I went to the piazza to check out the preparations.

There was nothing much going on, and the cars weren’t scheduled to arrive for a couple of hours so I took the opportunity to walk the streets of Siena and take some photos (something I never get tired of).

There are 17 contrada (regions) of the city and each one has it’s own flags and chandeliers, which are put up for special occasions. There were all out for the 1000 Miglia.

It was eerie seeing the streets of the city without parked (and double-parked) cars everywhere.

I made my way to Porta San Marco and found a good spot to wait for the first cars to arrive. After about half an hour I heard the roar of V8 engines coming up the hill.

The first cars to arrive were press and sponsor cars, including a bunch of current and vintage Ferraris.

I followed the cars through the tiny Siena streets. Having accidentally driven through the historic center of an Italian town before (and received the ticket to prove it) I didn’t envy the drivers trying to navigate very expensive cars around the winding cobblestones.

It was getting close to the time that the main cars were due, so I picked a good vantage point and settled in to wait. The oldest cars arrived first.

Even though there was a car race going on - Italians have their priorities - nothing gets in the way of their mid-morning drink.

Even at the risk of getting run over.

After about half an hour, we started to see more cars from the later years of the race.

By this time, the street leading into the piazza was getting pretty choked.

Some of the drivers were also feeling the need for a pre-lunch apertivo.

The cars slowed to a craw, causing some breakdowns that required crowd assistance.

Eventually the cars got moving again, letting the glut of Porsche 356s through.

They were followed by Mercedes-Benz 300 SLs. I’d never seen so many in one place.

Then an Austin Healy or two

The final cars to come through were the 1950’a race cars like the stunning 1954 Maserati A6GCS, worth about $3mil.

Finally all the cars made it into the Piazza del Campo. It was a pretty amazing sight.

I met up with Mandi and the girls (who had an unrelated half-day off from school). We walked around for a bit then went for gelato. I was a bit lightheaded from inhaling carbon monoxide from 60-year-old engines all day so we headed home.

It was a great day. If you’re interested in what it’s like to drive in the race, this documentary by Chris Harris is a must-watch.