The classic Alfa Romeo Giulia GTAM is one of Alfas most iconic race cars. Seeing on in the flesh is a great experience. Seven years ago we did just that and some more. It was supposed to be only a small pilot to open doors for other projects. It ended up with a DVD called “Nurburgring Legends”. As nobody buys DVD´s anymore we decided to release some of the movie clips on VIMEO. So join us for a lap around Nürburgring. Listen to the two-litre Alfa play its wonderful tune in the Eifel Mountains or rather the Green Hell, as Sir Jackie Stewart famously called the track.
PHOTOS/ VIDEO: FREDRIK LØVGREN BRYN / FREDRIK TEMTE / CHRISTER LUNDEM
The classic Alfa Romeo Giulia GTAM is one of Alfas most iconic race cars. Seeing on in the flesh is a great experience. Seven years ago we did just that and some more. It was supposed to be only a small pilot to open doors for other projects. It ended up with a DVD called “Nurburgring Legends”. As nobody buys DVD´s anymore we decided to release some of the movie clips on VIMEO. So join us for a lap around Nürburgring. Listen to the two-litre Alfa play its wonderful tune in the Eifel Mountains or rather the Green Hell, as Sir Jackie Stewart famously called the track. WARNING SEMI NUDE CONTENT A PHOTO STORY BY KIMM SAATVEDT / TEXT CHRISTER LUNDEM To state the obvious – Italy is pure beauty. It was never more so during the 50s and 60s. Fortunately, we can travel back in time. Back to an era when people had time to live, feel, love and enjoy. Pack your bags with vintage dresses, suits, scarfs and good hat. Get on a plane to Italy. Breath in the air of culture. Bring a wine cooler, buy some prosecco from the local shop. Purchase a checkered cloth, one straw basket, some cheese and crackers. Rent a classic car - if only for a day. And voila, you will feel like Marcello Mastroianni and Anita Ekberg in La Dolce Vita . For life is beautiful, now live it!
Sometimes pictures say more than words. Thanks to photographer Kimm Saatvedt for making our fantasies real. These guys are great, get the classic car here Photo and text: Christer Lundem 17 August: Visiting Frank BullittWe have now travelled for a week in California, our travel companion is an arch American Ford Mustang. So when we arrive in San Francisco and see the Golden Gate Bridge, we cannot suppress the temptation to follow in Steve McQueen footsteps: Imagine being detective Frank Bullitt. I want to race in the streets, jump the hills, see the views and not at least find the place where Frank Bullitt lived in the movie. The apartment is located at 1153 Taylor Street, at the adjacent corner of Clay Street. It is not hard to find by feet, but without using Bullitt's Highland Green 1968 Ford Mustang GT 390 or the gangsters black Dodge Charger R / T, it will be a very sweaty experience. When we finally find the place, as the tourists we have become, I cannot resist the temptation. I'm posing as McQueen in sunglasses outside his apartment. I know it is silly, but feel much cooler than before I left. There are only 24 hours until we are going home, but it really doesn't matter. For ten days we have experienced California's car culture with no initial expectations.
But what an adventure this has been – An American Car Adventure! Photo and text: Christer Lundem August 16: Enough is enoughIt is all cozy with the partying and Champagne, but now we both want to see some real racing. Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca is one of the world's most famous racetracks. It is exciting, mythical and challenging. The spectators are really close to the action. One experience the best of classic racing anywhere. Everything from small Mini Coopers to classic Formula 1 cars compete on the track. The racing is close, exciting and the volume intense. The old cars are allowed to drive on straight pipes without silencers. Under the simmering heat with classic V8 Mustangs and AC Cobras, the share noice of it all is so loud that you literally feel the sound shaking your entrails. Outside the racing area, at the parking lot, it is even better. Here you will find unique Ferraris and rare sports cars casually parked among Chevy´s, Subaru´s and BMW´s. It's incredibly hot, we get silly sunburnt even with our clothes and caps on. Eventually it becomes so hot that we simply have travel back to the hotel. I cannot belive it: I've had enough of cars. Time to go to San Francisco.
Tormorrow: Visiting Frank Bullitt Photo and text: Christer Lundem August 15: Elegantly wastedOutside “The Quail” there are parked twelve new Lamborghini Huracáns. I do not even think they have so many cars standing ready at the Lamborghini factory. We stumble across them on your way to our breakfast. Strangely almost missing them all, circling around an old Alfa Giulietta Spider and a Mercedes 300 SL Gullwing. That's what happens when you are exposed to massive visual impact day after day. With creative ways (I am not getting into how…) we manage to get us invited into the closed event. There are rumors that people have tried for several years, so I've probably struck pure luck or something else... Here we find the playground of the ritch, helicopters taking off constantly. It is even rumored that Jerry Seinfield is here, all this while high heels are desperately trying to penetrate immaculate grass and people sway left right and center of us. We fight our way between, hats, settees, dresses, khaki pants, cufflinks, gold watches and sunglasses. We are clearly not dressed for the occasion. However, with the high temperature taken into consideration, we think our shorts and shirts are the choise of the clever.
There is just so much to look at and everything that one can dream of car wise is there. TV-presenter Jay Leno hangs with the Porsche reimaginers Singer, and is caught in an infinite "selfies-run" with manic fans. All celebrities are under attack here. 74 year old racer Derek Bell gets attacked with a microphone precisely inserted into his face. A blissful circus. We enjoy the mayhem at a comfortable distance. Drinking bubbles under the shadow of an umbrella. It is extreme and incredibly entertaining. The evening ends up at the same Mexican restaurant as the day before, and this time we meet the best friend of Tesla's Elon Musk. Definitely an interesting guy. No names are told. That is just the way here, and we have began to think that it is quite normal. Tomorrow: Enough is enough |
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We want to share our stories and passion with the Benzina readers. Whether it is about an unforgettable road trip to the United States, eating a good meal in Italy, enjoying classic racing in Copenhagen or driving a scooter thru Paris is not important: It's all about the good experience and the unique story. Archives
January 2025
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