Visionale

The Targa Floria has been called one of the toughest sports car races in the world, one of the most sophisticated and one of the oldest. All three descriptions would be accurate. It is certainly one of the oldest as it was organized in 1906 by a wealthy Italian industrialist, Vincenzo Florio. Florio, who was born in Palermo, Italy, was the son of Vincenzo Florio, Sr. owner of the Florio Wine and Space Company. Vincenzo Jr. was an avid motor enthusiast of the day and a racecar driver. He won the

Targa Rignano in 1903. The race was named for its organizer, Count Rignano which gave Vincenzo the idea of attaching his own name to the Targa Florio.

Vincenzo designed the race to follow a 277-mile (446 km) open road course through the Madonie Mountains. The roads were treacherous bordered by cliffs on one side and drop-offs on the other. Cars climbed to heights that experienced frequent and severe climate changes. There were numerous hairpin turns and sharp curves. The roads were dusty and

narrow often little more than a mountain path.

The drivers often had to compete with donkeys for space on the road.

Nevertheless the villagers along the way turned out to give the racers a warm welcome and cheer them on their way.

The race began and ended in the village of Cerda. The cars had to be started one by one for a time trial, as there wasn’t sufficient room on the road to start all the cars at once. The 1906 race was won by Alessandro Cagno who covered the course in nine hours wi

th an average speed of 30 miles an hour or (50 km per hour). The Targo Florio provided part of the inspiration for Sir Hugh F. Locke-King to build the first closed racing circuit in England.

Most of the early winners were Italian drivers. However, from 1912 to 1914, the course was changed, as would happen more than once during the tenure of the race. The seventh Targa Florio would actually follow the course of the Giro d’ Sicilia, a thousand kilometer run encircling the island of Sicily. The race began and ended at Palermo traversing the towns of Messina, Catania, Siracusa, Ragusa, Gela, Agrigento, Marsala, and Trapani. Many Italian noblemen had entered including Vincenzo Florio. Floria however lost control and wrecked his car enroute. The winner was a British driver named Cyril Snipe.

World War I canceled the Targa Florio as well as many other races but it was resumed in 1919. In 1924 another non-Italian, Christian Werner, a German driver won. The Targa Florio became part of the

World Championship races in 1955. That year another British driver, Stirling Moss claimed first place. Nino Vaccarella won three times, in 1965, 1971, and 1975. Today, along the route through the Madonie Mountains, there stands a high stonewall with the name “Nino” painted on in letters almost as high as the wall. Due to safety concerns the race was discontinued in 1977 but 1973 is considered to be the last professional race.