22 September 2024

Centenary of the Acerbo Cup

 


The Coppa Acerbo in Pescara, Abruzzo, Central Italy, was founded a century ago in 1924 by Diego de Sterlich Aliprandi Marchese di Cermignano and Giacomo Acerbo Barone dell'Aterno among others in memory of the First World War Hero Tito Acerbo, brother of the Barone.

The Acerbo Cup was an original motor race with much character anybody could watch free from their village or a hilltop or road side in a spontaneous community spirit without having to pay some big company to see cars that did not all look the same in those days. 

It has been rightly described as the golden era of racing in the interwar period and until 1961. Now all the cars look all the same. It is like a sterilised remote video game where the live driver is largely a robot following remote instructions while not to say that no skill is involved. Back in the olden golden days the racing cars had no safety features, not even seat belts. Death, violent or otherwise, was accepted as a normal part of life until the 1960s. 

In the modern or contemporary "egalitarian" world, formula drivers are remote millionaires who arrive in their jets and disappear immediately after the race. In the old days the racing drivers were normal people who mingled with and befriended local people.  This is just another example of the organic original natural world being replaced by a sterile technocractic profitocracy.

If one ran out of petrol during the race, as could happen, making the race more exciting, one could stop even at a closed petrol station and someone would quickly appear to put some petrol in the tank to enable the driver to continue racing. Nowadays if it was England, either nobody would be there or the staff would just say they are closed and do nothing, despite whatever pleadings might be made, and seemingly oblivious to the opportunity to earn a bob or two, which shortcoming at least would not be a problem in a Middle Eastern country where the petrol station would demand a huge amount of money for any petrol (if any). 

If one driver's car broke down, the driver ahead of them would help his competitor to follow him to come second at least. 

People were still human until the 1960s. One can watch the documentary on Netflix: The Acerbo Cup (2015 by The Talking Tree SRL).

But if you thought motor racing a century ago was pericoloso, compare it to the first aerial circumnavigation of the world also a century ago in 1924 when the British Royal Air Force attempt was led by Squadron Leader Archibald Stuart-MacLaren, who flew in the Apennines in heavy clouds barely seeing where they were going, not very far from Pescara at some point. 

From The Telegraph

The Palio di Siena horse race in Tuscany and other palio races around Italy still retain even more character than the original motor racing - not only wild and wonderful human character but formidable horsepower. 

One can only thank the wonderful Italians, despite their sterilised constitution from 1946, for the true victory of retaining much original character and colour in this increasingly sterilised world. Viva Italia! 

People in Pescara still enjoy vintage motor racing


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