THE MAGIC OF THE MILLE

There are a few choice Italian phrases well worth learning when you're driving in the Mille Miglia, writes Richard Beattie, Executive VP, Marketing & Sales Jaguar North America.

One example, "Si, e una bella macchina," or "Yes, it is a beautiful car," is the reply we gave to seemingly every spectator who laid eyes on our Alpine Rally‑winning 1950 Jaguar XK120 ‑ the famous NUB120 ‑ from the Jaguar Heritage collection.

There's also "Che e il modo piu veloce per la finitura?" or "Which is the fastest way to the finish?" Had we memorized it, this phrase might have come in handy when we took a wrong turn that sent us on a 25‑mile nocturnal detour.

Then, there is perhaps the best phrase: "Mi segua, tutto gas," which is presumably what the motorcycle cop shouted at us before leading us on a pedal‑to‑the‑metal blast through the glorious Tuscan countryside... "Follow me, and full throttle."

The memories of this truly remarkable event are still indelibly etched in my mind...

From the thousands upon thousands of passionate, vocal spectators lining the route from the start in Brescia, down to Rome and back through ancient Florence and Siena, to the flat‑out pace of the event (who said this wasn't a race?) and driving between towering snow banks and thick fog, in frigid temperatures, to a mountain‑top check point. Then, of course, there was the utter exhaustion and pure joy of driving 18 hours straight on the last day.

I'll never ever forget the breathless excitement of driving in throttle‑blipping convoy, late at night, through St. Peter's Square in the Vatican and calling my son in Seattle, who'd spent last summer in Rome, shouting "You are not going to believe this!"

The Mille Miglia revival is, without a doubt, one of the world's premier driving events. It's a three‑day recreation and celebration of the famous 1,000‑mile Italian road race that ran between 1927 and 1957. It's open to the type of cars that ran in the original event, with the entry limited to 375.

We were there to help celebrate Jaguar's 75th anniversary ‑ one of no fewer than 27 classic Jaguars taking part. NUB120 (a spiritual predecessor of the 2010 XKR I drive in The States by the way), was part of the "works" team from Jaguar Heritage that also included a 1953 racing C‑type, driven by Jaguar managing director Mike O'Driscoll, and the famous 1956 D‑type 'Long Nose.'

This year, Jaguar was one of the event's key sponsors, supplying a fleet of over 20 all‑new XJs to the organizers as support vehicles. Few of the spectators had seen the XJ before, so it caused quite a reaction.

As for NUB120, despite turning 60 this year, it ran without missing a beat, which was remarkable considering the pace at which we drove it. My co‑pilot was long‑time pal, ex‑racer and well‑known journalist Jorge Koechlin, who certainly doesn't like to hang about.

After three days, a thousand miles and a million memories, there's really only one word that captures this experience of a lifetime. Magnifico!