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| Horse Tales | August 2013

Hors

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volume 13

issue 2

august 2013

Passione in New England

Rally in the White Mountains Concorso Ferrari & Friends Bear Notch Road


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Contents

volume 13 issue 2 august 2013

Cover photo: courtesy of Dennis Liu

Regulars

Pg. 4: Club Business

Pg. 6: From the Editor

Pg. 8: Events Calendar

Page 11: Passione in New England

Page 24: A Cruise Missile in the White Mountains

Page 28: Concorso Ferrari & Friends

Page 38: Bear Notch Road in a 599

The 50th Anniversary 599 in Massachusetts

Page 20

Page 28

Page 38


policies Horse Tales (“HT”) is copyright of the non-profit Ferrari Club of America New England Region (herein referred to as either FCA/NER or the “Club”) and can-not be reproduced or photocopied in whole or in part other than for individual personal use. Its purpose is to deliver information of interest to Club members. The Club and it’s publishers do not warrant the accuracy of editorial content or photographs, nor do we recommend or endorse any information presented or warrant or verify claims of our advertisements. Advertisers agree to indemnify and hold Club harmless from any claims, damage or expense resulting from printing or publishing any advertisement. Club further reserves the right to re-fuse to publish advertisements that are not Club related.

submissions The Club encourages members to contribute material on a variety of Ferrari related topics. Material submitted for publication is subject to revision and/or rejection at the publisher’s sole discretion, is published without compensation and cannot be returned. Only material or manuscripts from the original writer or copyright permission articles will be considered for publication. Submission of original material constitutes a perpetual, non-exclusive license for Club to print and/or reproduce in any manner, and for any purpose, said material. Send all submissions to HT Editor Frank Anigbo ([email protected]).

advertising Rates include 6 consecutive issues. For information contact Ad Chair Paul Bova ([email protected])

2013 rates Back Cover $700 Full Page $650 1/2 Page $375 1/4 Page $275 Business Card $150

electronic delivery By default HT is delivered to Club members via electronic distribution. Mem-bers will be notified via email when a new issue is available for download in convenient PDF format. Each issue of HT will also be posted to the Club’s web site (www.fca-newengland.org). Members requiring printed copies of a single issue for a specific purpose must contact HT Editor Frank Anigbo ([email protected]) prior to that issue’s publication deadline.

club officers Regional Director Suzanne Hiniker ([email protected])

Chairman David Friar ([email protected])

Treasurer Andrew Baldassarre ([email protected]) Secretary Bob LaRosa ([email protected]) Membership Chair Charlie Vest ([email protected]) Chief Judge Peter G. Lombardo ([email protected]) Advertising Chair Paul Bova ([email protected]) Director Emeritus Dennis Liu ([email protected]) Director Emeritus Sam Hallowell ([email protected]) Horse Tales Editor Frank Anigbo ([email protected])

state chapter presidents Connecticut Paul Bova ([email protected]) Maine Glenn Farrell ([email protected]) Massachusetts Gary Hiniker ([email protected]) New Hampshire Laurie Sanborn ([email protected]) Rhode Island Barry Lundgren ([email protected]) Vermont Ian Wyatt ([email protected])

club Business

publication schedule & deadlines HT is published three times a year. Months of publi-cation and deadlines:

issue deadline April March 15 August July 15 December November 15

address & e-mail changes FCA/NER c/o Charlie Vest, Membership Chair 339 Chimneysweep Hill Road Glastonbury, CT 06033 or via email: ([email protected])

officially sanctioned events Have an idea for an event? Want to help with an event? Contact Regional Director Suzanne Hiniker via email: ([email protected]). Only events approved by the RD and listed either in HT or on the Club’s web site are officially sanctioned FCA/NER events. Any other event purporting to be a Club event and not listed on our calendar is not sanc-tioned and as such the Club has no affiliation whatso-ever with and thus can not be held liable for any do-nations made to such unsanctioned events.

visit us on the web www.fca-newengland.org HT is created using a PC running Microsoft Publisher. Printed in the U.S.A. by PIP Printing Middletown, Connecticut. For additional information contact: www.pipmid.com | 860.344.9001 Postage paid in Stamford, CT.

the ferrari club of america FCA/NER is the New England Region of The Ferrari Club of America covering Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont. The Ferrari Club of America, incorporated in 1962 and recognized by Ferrari S.p.A has 16 regions throughout North America, and 32 chapters within these regions putting on events. For membership information visit FCA on the web at www.ferrariclubofamerica.com or call 800.328.0444 | mailing address: Ferrari Club of America PO Box 720597 Atlanta, GA 30358.

mailto:[email protected]


http://www.fca-newengland.org/




















http://www.pipmid.com/

http://www.ferrariclubofamerica.com/


from the Editor

U nless you’ve been asleep all year, you know that 2013

marks the 50th Anniversary of the Ferrari Club of

America, and that a very special car made its way

through the New England states and was the focal

point of our region’s celebration of FCA’s 50th. This edition of

Horse Tales takes you through all that you missed – starting on

page 12, if in fact you have spent much of the year asleep under a

tire blanket.

Oh, you would have also missed a really cool rally in the White

Mountains of New Hampshire. Turn to page 24 for Dennis Liu’s

excellent write-up and photos that will surely make you green with

envy.

This year’s installment of the New England region’s premier sum-

mer event, Concorso Ferrari & Friends, arguably rivaled that of

any past year in shear excitement, attendance, variety of cars, and

atmosphere. See the coverage of Concorso Ferrari & Friends, 2013

from page 28.

The ever-so-stylish Suzy Hiniker takes over from Sam Hallowell as

Regional Director. And Gary Hiniker slots into Suzy’s former ap-

pointment as the Massachusetts Chapter president. A big Thank

You! to Sam for all his hard work and guidance, and congratula-

tions to Suzy and Gary!

Alas, the end of the driving season is rapidly coming upon us. To

keep your fellow club members amused during the dark and de-

pressing months of cold air and streets covered in mountains of

dirty snow, why not send us your stories for the off-season edi-

tions of Horse Tales? Here are a few story ideas: when you finally

bought the Ferrari you always wanted; a mechanical horror story

(to make the rest of us happy we are not you); driving a really great

road you want the rest of us to know about (see page 38 about

Bear Notch Road); take us through a track-day experience; a trip to

Italy or someplace as exciting; whatever you think is interesting,

really. Send your submission to [email protected].

— Frank Anigbo, Editor, Horse Tales

Correction

In the April edition of HT, we incorrectly identified John Tirrell as

Tim Stanford in the article by Domenic DiDonato, Cavallino Rekin-

dles Story of Great Ferrari Driver and his Mechanic.

to the Editor

I n response to The Other Mister Ferrari, our feature article in the April issue of HT, we received the following kind letter from

Elizabeth Bresiger, widow of our dear friend, the late Werner Pfister.

“I read your tribute to Werner and was deeply moved. I am Werner's wife, Lee. We would have been married 26 years this August .

“It has been very difficult these past few weeks without him, but your tribute gave me solace during this time. We married in 1987. It

was then that Werner contemplated leaving a corporate life [to] pursue his passion. I hope in a small way I gave Werner the encourage-

ment to follow his dream, a dream that we know now exploded into many friendships and associations. He impacted and inspired so

many people he met and worked with. I don't think Werner ever realized his impact on people, how he help and encouraged them. I do

know that he felt he was blessed. He often said he was so grateful for the life he had - his family, his friends, his art, his writing, and his

job which he did not think of as work but where he pursued his passion. Werner said he could never have imagined when growing up in

Germany and those

early years in the Bronx, he would have so much in his life. That was Werner - living his life well and grateful for all he had. No com-

plaints. One of the readings in the mass said it all:

".....I have competed well; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith....."

“Thank you again for your beautiful tribute.”

Elizabeth "Lee" Bresiger



from the Regional Director

Connecticut Maine Massachusetts New Hampshire Rhode Island Vermont

Hello Fellow FCA Members!

I am both honored and thrilled to be chosen as new Regional Director of the New England Region. I thoroughly enjoyed being MA Chapter President for the last 3 years, and it is with great pride that I turn over the position to my dashing spouse, Gary Hiniker. We have a long tradition of car enthusiasm here in New England, and I look forward to meeting all our club members at upcoming club events. Two goals of mine during my RD term will be to encourage more local Ferrari enthusiasts to join the FCA, and also to increase the value of having an FCA club membership. I look forward to hearing your comments and suggestions.

A BIG thank you goes to outgoing Regional Director Sam Hallowell for his always positive, always encouraging, and always thoughtful leadership of the New England Region. Sam has done a top job of orchestrating and attending events, engag-ing members, encouraging new memberships, sharing his vintage Ferrari 365 GTC, and working as a steadfast liaison between the Chapter Presidents and the national FCA. His final swan song organizing the FCA 50th Anniversary event at The Ocean House in Westerly, RI was a tremendous success. Congratulations to all of the New England Chapters for fundraising a total of $20,000 for Ronald McDonald House Charities.

Sam, I just want to let you know you are appreciated. Your leadership and ability to get things done are an inspiration to us all. Thank you. And many thanks go to your lovely wife Elizabeth for sharing you with the club. On behalf of the New England Region we look forward to working with you in your new position as Director Emeritus.

Warmest regards,

—Suzy Hiniker, Regional Director

Retired regional director, Sam Hallowell and his

successor, Suzy Hiniker


calendar of Events

for continuously updated information: www.fca-newengland.org www.empirestateregion.com | www.fcacanadaeast.org

04/20/2013: Tour and tech discussion at American Dry Stripping

05/04/2013: 50th Anniversary Rally — New England Kick Off at Miller Motorcars

05/10/2013: 50th Anniversary Rally moves to Rhode Island — Weekend fun

05/16/2013: 50th Anniversary Rally cocktail party at Ferrari of New England

05/17/2013: Return of the New England FCA Challenge Rally

06/06/2013: Grand Prix in Montreal weekend — come join our group

06/09/2013: Grand Prix of Canada viewing at Rizzuto’s

06/15/2013: Private showing of the Klemantaski Collection

06/30/2013: The 13th Annual FCA-NER Concorso Ferrari

07/30/2013: 2013 FCA International Meet

08/24/2013: DREAM Ride and Cruise

09/29/2013: Myopia Polo — The Ferrari Cup

10/18/2013: The 12th Annual Maine Event

11/17/2013: US Grand Prix viewing party


http://www.empirestateregion.com/

http://www.fcacanadaeast.org/


Passione in New England


O n Saturday May 4th the Ferrari Club "One Lap of America" Fiftieth Anniversary celebra-tion hit Connecticut to start its

swing through the New England States. The Anniversary 599 arrived at Miller Mo-torcars (the original selling dealer) earlier in the week and the expert crew at Miller per-formed a required service. They not only serviced the car they showered it careful attention to every detail. What emerged was a beautifully detailed and prepared car ready to begin its New England adventure. Miller hosted a cocktail party and buffet at their recently opened service facility in Stamford. Over 60 members and guests attended in a variety of new and vintage Ferrari automobiles. Miller also had several significant vehicles on display for our browsing pleasure.

We took the occasion to honor two long-time friends and supporters of the club. Charles "Chuck" Queener, artist, designer, author and big supporter of our club. Chuck's books and artwork as well as his association with Motor Trend, Road & Track, Cavallino and Rosso are known to many. Also honored was a longtime friend and sales manager at Miller Motorcars who re-cently lost a three year battle with cancer. Werner Pfister was universally loved and admired by all who knew him. His encyclo-pedic knowledge of the Ferrari Brand as well as general automotive trivia was legend-ary. We presented his widow with one of the Schedoni awards with a simple inscrip-tion..."The other Mr. Ferrari" Sunday May 5th dawned to bright sunshine and mild temperatures. We assembled 17

Ferraris for an 85 mile drive to West Hart-ford CT. we would have 5 different drivers share the driving pleasure in the 599. Our

The 599 Returns to New England

By Paul Bova

Paul Bova (right) presenting a Schedoni award

to Elizabeth Bresiger, Werner Pfister’s widow


route took us across Stamford and on to the scenic Merritt Parkway for a spirited drive. Driving slots were decided by competitive bidding to raise money for the Charities. The sight of a couple of dozen Ferraris cruising up the highway received its share of double takes and thumbs up. We especially liked the looks of the little kids who, even if they didn't quite understand the Ferrari mys-tique, knew they liked what they were see-ing.

On arriving in West Hartford we were treat-ed to lunch at Max Burger, an outstanding burger restaurant. The special of the day was a delicious "Hole in the Wall Gang" burger, a portion of the proceeds from which will be donated to charity. After lunch we took a short (17 mile) ride to the New England Air Museum where we were treated to a private guided tour. The museum has some spectacular pieces of aviation history, both military and civilian. After the tour we parted company and en-joyed the drive home in our favorite cars. We are happy to report that so far we raised a combined total in excess of $12,000 for

the Ronald McDonald House Charities and "Hole in the wall Gang Camps" with some more potential donations pending. We now reluctantly pass the car off to

our brethren in Rhode Island for the

next exciting step in the "One Lap of

America" adventure

Chuck Queener receives an award for his

long friendship and support of the club

At Miller Motorcars, May 4, 2013

Andrew Baldassarre of the Connecticut chapter

hands over the baton to the Rhode Island chapter


W ith great anticipation the 599 Rally Car was picked up in Connecticut on May 8th by flatbed and the 50th Anniver-

sary Celebration moved to RI Chapter Presi-dent Barry Lundgren’s garage for a needed rest and wash. At noon on a bright, sunny Friday, May 10th a small group of Ferrari owners, spouses and their cars began gather-ing at Barry’s house to prepare for the 50 mile drive from Providence to the Ocean

House in Watch Hill, RI where the bulk of our 50th Anniversary festivities would take place. Barry and Veronica surprised us all with a wonderful alfresco lunch in their gar-den and though I had thought we would leave around 1 o’clock, good food, fun con-versations, and, yes, car talk delayed our departure for an hour or so. No matter, we did not have to be at the Hotel until 4PM. Our intrepid band included: John & Jayne Tirrell - 575M (John is driving the Rally Car all weekend – none of the rest of us had signed up for seat time….or knew our rec-ords would prohibit it!), Bob and Marie Pet-rarca - 328GTS, Lee and Wendy Cappola - 360 Modena coupe, Peter & Rosemary Lombardo - 2010 California, Chris Pedorel-la - 1984 308, Andrew Kelly – 360 CS, Barry and Veronica Lundgren – Barry in a 1971 Daytona and Veronica in their 612 – and yours truly in my 1972 365 GTC/4.

After making it through the middle of Providence without issue we merged on-to Route 95 South and promptly hit heavy traffic, made worse by a great number of rubber neckers wanting to take cell phone pictures of our caravan. At one point I was forced to change lanes to avoid an idiot trying to drive and shoot pictures too. For-tunately we had planned for this and within a few miles exited 95 and joined coastal Routes 4 and 1 where the traffic was rela-tively light. As we passed the turnoff to Newport, Steve Frary and his wife joined our band in Steve’s beautiful NART Spyder conversion. For the balance of the run we all moved back and forth in line, and Bob Petrarca took over the lead role.

We arrived at the spectacular Ocean House on time, parking our cars around its rotunda and on the front lawn to be greeted by Daniel Hostettler, the Presi-

Little Rhody’s 50th Celebration

By Samuel Hallowell


Gatherings at The Ocean House and (below) at Barry

and Veronica’s home — Rhode Island


dent and Managing Director of the hotel, Michael Fantom, CEO of Ronald McDon-ald House Providence and several more Ferraris and their owners: Joshua Teverow - 2013 458 Italia & FF, Paul Hansen – F430, Bill Colom – 360 Spyder, Alfred Bartkiewicz and Lefty Valsamis – 360 Spyder, Wayne Zuckerman – 360, and Barry Jagolinzer and his spectacular 1950 225 Vignale Coupe, which had just arrived in the US. Naturally, we started chatting again and in about an hour Barry and I chose the 7-8 cars that were positioned around the Rally Car in the hotel’s garage. We tried for a car from every decade and chosen were: the Vignale coupe, NART Spyder, Daytona, C/4, 308 GTB, 575M, and 458. Then it was off for an hours rest to prepare for the cocktail party and auction.

As you can tell from the photo’s accompanying the article this was a garage party with flair. The hotel staff set up special lighting for the cars, a bar, carpets, tables and chairs all highlighted by posters and billboards announcing Ferrari’s 50th and RMH’s affiliation. Barry and I welcomed

everyone and invited Michael Fantom to talk about RMH’s mission. We were delight-ed to tell everyone that the 50th Anniversary Rally had generated over $100K so far in donations for RMH and the Hole in the Wall camps. We hoped the results of the night’s auction would result in a significant addition to the total. We had a number of people attend the party that were staying at the hotel or in the area, and I for one spent the next couple of hours answering ques-tions about the cars and discussing the vir-tues of being a Ferrari owner. I did not even get a chance to bid on any of the items up for auction! It was a lot of fun, made all the better with the tremendous help of the staff from both the Ocean House and Ronald McDonald House, with special thanks to Nicole Anderson, Michelle Wade, Natalie

Sowa and Jill Precopio and Hillary Federico. We could not have done this without you. Dinner and bed…..Saturday was going to be very busy!

Saturday dawned with a heavy overcast and the threat of concours events worst enemy…rain. And rain it did, which was too bad because a play area set up for kids by RMH was washed out and the hoped for participation by other car clubs and vintage car owners failed to materialize. The weather in Rhode Island in May is al-ways suspect. Fortunately, Ferrari owners are a hardy bunch and most cars were still around the next morning at 10 willing to join the Rally Car in giving rides by choice of car to anyone for a donation to RMH. We had a nice 4 ½ mile route selected for us

by the Westerly Police Department (they were very helpful all weekend) that was sce-nic, twisty, but with some straight pieces so we could give all our passengers the real Ferrari experience. I counted 28 rides in the rain all told, though I know there was one or two given for fun. Everyone had a blast, and judging by the grins on the faces of several kids we have a new crop of Ferrari owners coming up. Imagine what it would have been like if the weather had cooperated!

Thank you to all FCA members who came down for the 50th festivities, you made a real difference for a lot of families and their children. I would also like to thank those who were able to put in time with their cars in the pouring rain Saturday, espe-cially John Tirrell in the 599 Rally Car who showed our colors on at least half if not more of the rides. And lastly, a special Thank You to employees of the Ocean House and Ronald McDonald House for all the help and consideration you gave to this Celebration


O n Saturday May 11th, under the skilled driving hands of John Tirrell, the 599 gave many a passenger and voyeur a thrill at

The Ocean House in Watch Hill, RI. Many thanks go to Mr. Tirrell for driving those lucky passengers for five hours straight in the cool rain. He and the car looked none the worse for wear. After a full day of fun in the wet, the 599 was trailered unevent-fully to Massachusetts by me and hand-some new Massachusetts Chapter Presi-dent Gary Hiniker. After a couple of days of sponsored drives, the 599 was handed off to Ferrari of New England for a much needed detailing. On Thursday May 16th Ferrari of New England in Norwood, Massachusetts hosted an elegant cocktail party with the cleaned-up 599 as center piece in their beautiful showroom. The event was sponsored by Ferrari of New England and

The Improper Bostonian. With a crowd of well over 200, which included many FCA members, Ferrari of New England custom-ers and other guests in attendance, all en-joyed the event with delightful libations from Bulleit Bourbon and Peroni Brewery, and delicious hors d’oeuvres provided by

Tables of Content Catering. The party was a great success! A huge thank you goes to event planner Leslie Stormes and Sales Manager Jesse Berger for organizing the awesome event at Ferrari of New England, our FCA members who donated to the Boston

The 50th Anniversary 599 in Massachusetts

Words by Suzy Hiniker—Regional Director, NER

Above (L-R): Sam Hallowell, Suzy Hiniker, Dennis Liu and Glenn Farrell with the One Lap of America

baton


Ronald McDonald House for decals and drives, Dellaria Salon for a product filled gift basket, and Ferrari of New England Service Manager Michael Shalhoub for gifting two service certificates for the silent auction. Also a special thanks to FCA member Ara Gechijian for documenting the event with his always ready camera. The 599 left promptly at 11 AM Friday morning for Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont under the leadership of Dennis Liu who had a fun filled proper rally weekend planned to con-tinue the FCA 50th celebration in New Eng-land

(L-R): Konstantinos Andrikopoulos, Jamie Liu and Natalia Escallon


O n Thursday, May 16, Ferrari of New England hosted a glamor-ous cocktail party to celebrate the arrival of the Passione 50th

Anniversary 599 GTB in Boston. The party was co-sponsored by a local glamour maga-zine, so models of the willowy kind mixed in with models of the aluminum and carbon fiber kind. Gary Hiniker, the newly elected president of the Massachusetts Chapter re-marked to me as he handed over the keys in the baton ceremony, “this car is truly re-markable; it’s a damn cruise missile on the highway!” Overnight, with this description hanging in my mind, I pondered how well it would acquit itself not on a 6-lane highway, but on a curvy 2-lane mountain road.

The next morning, our fearless group departed Ferrari of New England and headed North for New Hampshire. Our route up included passing through Franco-nia Notch, where Interstate 93 narrows to one lane in each direction, and where the legendary Old Man of the Mountain stood . . . at least until the FCA New England Re-

gion accidentally knocked it down with our Tubi exhausts precisely a decade previous (but that’s another story). As Gary coun-seled, the 599 GTB was indeed a cruise mis-sile on the highway, as various drivers who had made generous donations to Ronald McDonald House rotated in behind the wheel. Our dozen-car caravan made its way to our host hotel for the weekend: the his-toric Mount Washington Hotel in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire.

Completed in 1902 by 250 Italian craftsmen and the most luxurious hotel of its day, the Mount Washington catered to wealthy guests from Boston, New York and Philadelphia. As many as fifty trains a day stopped at Bretton Woods’ three railroad stations. In 1944, the Mount Washington hosted the Bretton Woods International Monetary Conference, establishing the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, and setting the gold standard in the Gold Room, now preserved as an historic site. The Mount Washington Hotel has been listed in the National Register of His-

toric Places and 6,400 acres of beautiful woodlands were included in the White Mountain National Forest. As we arrived, the hotel staff turned out to warmly wel-come us under the porte-cochere – excep-tional indeed.

In the evening, the hotel hosted us in a champagne reception, before we joined other guests in the Mount Washington’s Food and Wine Festival. Designed as an indoor street food fair, we strolled among the stations and sampled everything from pirogues and fresh pho to carved roast suck-ing pig and lamb skewers. We tried to avoid drinking too much of the copious samplings of whiskeys and cigars, as we had a long day of driving ahead of us….

Saturday morning dawned cool and sunny. The drivers received the route book, rally questionnaire and trivia quiz sheet. After the hotel’s professional photographer took some portraits of our cars with the mountains and the Mount Washington as backdrops, we hit the road. Our route for the day included crossing several White

A Cruise Missile in the White Mountains

Words by Dennis Liu


Mountain notches, a diversion along the Connecticut River in Vermont, and a couple of semi-secret side roads known mostly to locals. At various intervals on our route, participants had to answer assorted ques-

tions relating either to Ferrari history or roadside items. Samples: “Enzo Ferrari died in 1988. In what year was he born?” “What was Enzo Ferrari’s wife’s name?” “What was the name of the engineer who designed of the first original Ferrari engine?” “What does ‘cansone del dodici’ translate into?”

The 599 GTB was acquitting itself quite well. While not as light nor nimble as the 430s trailing it, the 599 nevertheless was very well balanced. The HGTE handling package shined here, carving apex through apex, guiding the missile. We passed through Dixville Notch, where one crest in the road may have gotten all four wheels airborne among the more enthusiastic par-ticipants. The worst thing one could say about the 599 perhaps is that the limits are so high, it would take extraordinary amounts of speed through the curves to challenge the

car’s limits – nothing any of us was brave enough to attempt.

After a lunch stop for ribs at the Moat Mountain Smokehouse in North Con-way, some of the gang retreated directly to the Mount Washington Hotel for scheduled

Group photo behind the Mount Washington Hotel (back row from L-R): Rita and Gene Spivak, Karen Anigbo, Ken Goldman, Leslie and Eric Wickfield,

Dennis Liu, Sandra Goldman, Frank Anigbo, Carol O’Loughlin and Ed Kemp, Maria Forcucci Cue and Jonathan Cue, Michelle Lyndon and

Christopher Vlachos, Michael and Jeanne Fandozzi, Eric Hamel and Sarah Villanueva, Jamie Liu, Dave and Fiona Friar

Front row (L-R): Vassilis and Elena Kontoglis with son Sebastien


spa visits and tours of the historic resort. The rest of us, having had not enough of the passes, traversed Bear Notch Road, a small, untraveled roller-coaster ride over freshly paved rises and drops, followed im-mediately by the legendary Kancamangus Highway (with weekly motorcycles crashes).

On Saturday evening, our group enjoyed a tasting menu at dinner, paired with the best wines on offer from an Austri-an wine importer presenting tastings. At each stop during the day, everyone drew cards from a deck for the poker run. Both the driver and the passenger with the best – and worst – five-card hands would win a prize. During the reception and dinner, horse trading of cards flourished, as players bluffed one another as to what might be winning hands. After dinner, we had a des-sert reception along with our prize ceremo-ny – victors in the trivia and rally quizzes, along with the poker run, got to pick from a selection of FCA and Ferrari gear. Topping off the night was the hotel’s ice carving competition and fireworks ceremony.

As Sunday morning broke, the hotel’s photographer asked a few of us to do a photo session with him and his crew. We started by doing a few laps of the hotel’s rotary, only to have one of our drivers get a little too excited with his right foot, on cold tires, thereby causing a graceful tail-forward “OTE”, all caught on camera. The only “incident” of the weekend! No harm, no foul, and nobody laughed harder than the driver himself. This was followed by some photography runs through the Crawford Notch. After we returned, John Peterson and Ian Wyatt, VT Chapter President, ar-rived at the Mount Washington Hotel and we did the ceremonial passing of the Passio-ne Baton and the hand-off of the 599 GTB. John was driving his 1983 512BBi, and the two 12-cylinder beasts made quite the con-trast, yet shared many of the same virtues.

After brunch, the gang said our goodbyes, packed up our cars and hit the road for the drive home. Driving home with the top down, I gave a salute to the site of the Old Man of the Mountain as we de-scended through Franconia Notch again, to pay respect to that icon in which downfall our club had a hand…

Again, thanks to EVERYONE who came along and made the weekend so wonderful. As nice as the cars were, and as much fun to drive as they are, what really made this trip fun and memorable were the people

A more beautiful day for a road rally could not

have been envisaged!

Ian Wyatt (Vermont) receives the baton and

keys from Dennis Liu


Concorso Ferrari & Friends

FCA/NER’s Premier Summer Event Returns to West Hartford Center, Bigger than Ever


I t was a beautiful night just before the

Concorso as about 50 tifosi gathered

at the Children’s Museum of Con-

necticut on Saturday night around 5

pm for an evening of fun and hospitality.

The party, which was hosted by FCA-NER

for all Concorso participants, was originally

intended to honor our presenting sponsor

Michael Bozzuto. Mike was however called

away last minute to Italy from his friends at

Maranello. We honored Mike by partying on

without him. Thanks to the great work of

Helen Lovas from Bash Signature Events,

who outdid herself once again, the lower

level of the Museum was transformed into a

special place with an amazing attention to

every party detail that made the evening

wonderful for everyone. The FERRARITI-

NI was a signature drink that many enjoyed

which helped to fuel a good time along with

a great spread by Nick Faenza from Pro-

spect Café Catering. This was topped off

with deserts from Stanley Cohen who is

quickly become known as the “Cake Man”.

His friends from Modern Bakery in Hart-

ford provided yet another wonder, complete

with a picture of the waiting room at CCMC

that displays the Crayola Enzo Ferrari model

that the kids love! Numer-

ous awards to be presented

the next day at Concorso

were also on display.

Clearly the dearest was the

Werner Pfister “Mister

Ferrari” award. This award

was to go to the most orig-

inal and highest mileage

Ferrari and would be pre-

sented by Werner’s long time friend and

associate Steve Daley. That evening Con-

corso Chairman Charlie Vest received Ste-

ve’s gift from his “Matching Gift Challenge”

to Miller Motor Employee’s. Steve raised a

whopping $7500. Proof that Werner’s spirit

lives on through Concorso and his wonder-

ful friends! The evening went fast and in-

cluded a terrific 30 minute show on the

Wildest Weather in the Universe by our

friends at the Children’s Museum in the

Gengras Planetarium. It was a fabulous

evening in so many ways. For those that

missed out, please be sure to think about

coming next year to share in the fun and

laughter.

Saturday...

Words and Photos by Andrew Baldassarre


S unday June 30th was a very hot one! But that did not

in any way hamper what was perhaps the biggest

turnout of any Concorso Ferrari & Friends to-date.

Even the variety of cars and the din they brought

along felt more electric than ever, helped in no small part by

the elegant West Hartford Center venue of LaSalle Road.

The following pages tell the story of Concorso Ferrari

& Friends, 2013.

8:00 AM

Participating cars began to arrive at the display grounds on LaSalle Road, West Hartford, including the flawless

Ferrari 275 GTB and Maserati MC12, both belonging to Joe Capasso of Connecticut.

Sunday...

Words and Photos by Frank Anigbo


10:00 AM

Top: the 40 cars selected to make the run to Connecticut Children Medi-

cal Center to pick up and a child per car line up at the staging area.

Middle and left: Cars arrive at the children’s hospital with great fanfare

and the delight of waiting children and their parents.

Opposite page:

Interviews, admiring the cars, and a group photo followed before each

child clambered aboard their assigned car for the ride of a lifetime back to

a waiting crowd at LaSalle Road.


Group photo with drivers and riders


11:00 AM

On arriving back at LaSalle Road with their

precious cargo, each car in turn stopped at the drop-

off stage followed by the emergence of the “Co-

pilota” to cheers and clicks of many cameras.

Each child was received by Erin Brady, Miss

Connecticut and newly-crowned Miss USA. Also

receiving each child was a representative of Italy

who presented each child with a medal that granted

them honorary Italian citizenship for the day.


“Tears are running down my face as I type this to you. We just received the call that Tyler will

be one of the riders at the West Hartford Concorso event. I wanted you to know a little

about him, as to know the impact and magnitude of what you are doing for my son. Tyler is

20 years old. He has spent many holidays, vacations and school time in hospital rooms. He

has had 14 surgeries and another one is scheduled. He has Craniosynostosis, Asperger's

Syndrome, ADHD, Kidney disease plus a bunch of other issues.

“Tyler is one of the best people I have ever met. He is smart, funny, insightful and you will never forget him. I

hope you have the pleasure of meeting him! He was born on Christmas Day and has been a gift to me since.

One of Tyler's loves in life is CARSSSSSSSSSSS!! His uncles are both "gear heads". One has a 69 Camaro

convertible and the other a 1986 5.0 Super charged Mustang. They bring him to car shows and drag races when

Tyler is well.

“It has not been an easy path by any means. I was a single mom with a special needs child. I put myself through

school while going through the hospital stays and surgeries. I worked nights after he went to sleep, went to

school during the day and hammered down. I wanted a better life for him.

"The people we have meet throughout have changed our life forever! You are now part of that list. People ask

me on a regular basis, "How come you are always so happy?" Because my eyes have seen so much kindness of

others, so much love and so much raw emotion. It changes you. It changes how you view people. Politics,

money, power become mute. I have had the pleasure of seeing peoples hearts and souls. You are making a

dream come true for not only my son, but for his mom. What a joy!!! May God bless you and all involved as you

will probably never know the eminence of how these acts of kindness get us through.

“Thank you with all of my being!”

--Tamatha Wolfel

L est we forget what this is really all about, the following letter was received from a mother whose son was chosen to be one

of the riders in this year’s Concorso Ferrari & Friends event. It is a poignant reminder that the small effort and individual

expense of each participant pales in comparison to the healing effects of a simple ride in a Ferrari for a child and a family.


There is a road off Route 302 in the town of

Bartlett, in Northern New Hampshire,

named Bear Notch Road. You can also get

to it from the Kancamangus Highway short-

ly after the sign for Jigger Johnson

Campground headed in the direction of

Conway. The sign at both entrances of Bear

Notch Road spell out in black and white

that it is closed during winter – and for very

good reason.

I have driven a number of great roads in

New England, especially in Vermont where

I lived for a few years with a decrepit white

and rust 1979 Fiat Spider. With my wife’s

parent’s recent move to the White Moun-

tains region of New Hampshire, more amaz-

ing roads have followed, driven this time in

much finer sports cars.

It was late one evening last fall that I first

made the left turn onto Bear Notch Road

from 302 and discovered the best road I

have driven in recent memory. As if to her-

ald the promise of delights to come, there is

a gate just after the turn off which at that

time of year was still open to traffic. And a

sign by it that indicates it will be closed in

winter – which, of

course, makes me

want to drive it at

every opportunity. Just

beyond the gate, the

formal atmosphere of

a small town with

errant small children

playing too close to

the road gives way to a

feeling of intimacy as

houses with mani-

cured lawns and un-

naturally placed shrub-

bery are replaced by

trees that hug the

road’s edges and cano-

pies that close in

above to create a liv-

ing tunnel. The road

surface is billiard-table

-smooth and rises

sharply toward the clouds. I was in a Por-

sche that first time, and I drove with images

of the Targa Florio in my head.

When I learned that I was one of the chosen

few to have seat time in the 50th Anniversary

599 GTB Fiorano, and that the opportunity

to drive the mighty 620 horsepower Ferrari

would come during a road rally in the White

Mountains of New Hampshire, in the vicini-

ty of Bear Notch Road, I knew exactly how

I wanted to use my drive.

All of the other selected drivers for the New

Hampshire leg of the 599’s One Lap of Ameri-

ca tour took their drives at various sections

of the rally; I elected to wait until after re-

turning to our base of operations at the

Mount Washington Hotel before taking my

turn. I made a quick phone call to my father

-in-law whose new home is about twenty

minutes from the hotel: “meet me at the hotel at

5 o’clock, we are going on an interesting drive.”

I didn’t exactly tell Dennis Liu, the rally

master and safe keeper of the 599’s keys

what my plans were. Then again, he didn’t

exactly ask. I wanted to enter Bear Notch

Road from the Kancamangus side which

meant that I had to drive well beyond my

allotted mileage just to get to my starting

point. Oh well, I thought, Dennis will even-

tually get over it.

Richard met me at the parking lot of the

hotel at 5 o’clock, eyes glinting with excite-

ment. I explained he could only be a passen-

ger as my agreement with the club forbade

giving him the keys. Belted in, I turned the

ignition key, then pushed the Engine Start

button on the lower left side of the leather

and alcantara covered steer-

ing wheel, the 599’s big V12

burst into live with a roar

before settling to a steady

growl. Then I remembered

what Dennis had said when

he handed me the keys: “put

it in RACE mode.” I twisted

the little red manettino on the

right side of the wheel from

SPORT to RACE and set

the gearbox to manual mode.

A tug at the right gear-

change paddle selected first

gear. And off we went.

First a quick stop at a nearby gas station for

a few dollars’ worth of premium unleaded,

then a slow drive through small towns on

the way to Interstate Highway 93. Richard, a

gasoline-powered car guy who raced Cor-

vettes and Alfa Romeos in his youth, sat in

the passenger seat with a permanent grin

Bear Notch Road in a 599

By Frank Anigbo


and documented the event with his small

camera.

The drive on I-93 toward the Kancamangus

was a chance to experience the raw power

of the 599. With the oft-spoken words of

my mechanic echoing in one ear: “drive it like

you stole it!” And Dennis’ voice in my other

ear: “Don’t be the idiot who stuffed it!” I decided

on a middle ground. I would not search for

the 599’s 200 plus miles per hour limit, but I

would see what hooliganism feels like in a

big modern Ferrari GT. So I tickled the

throttle like there was an egg between the

bottom of my right shoe and the loud pedal,

the 599 responded with a surge of speed

accompanied by an increasingly urgent

shriek from its front-mid mounted six liter

V12. I glanced down at the speedometer –

“oh, dear! That’s quite enough for now!” I

quickly backed off.

Then I found a straight section of the high-

way, and with intent, put my foot down

again. I imagine it is ill-advised to speak in

details on the happenings of the next twenty

or so seconds. Suffice it to say that I did,

indeed, discover the meaning of hooliganism,

accompanied with visions of Richard and I

in a jail cell, and the 599 whose travels

across much of the United States had been

without drama, unceremoniously dumped

with wheels askew at an impound lot, in the

company of a sun-bleached Plymouth Ac-

claim or other such rubbish. Don’t be the idiot

who stuffed it!

We got off the highway at Lincoln. I was

feeling fairly comfortable with the 599 at

this point but had become very aware of the

passage of time as we hurried toward the

Kancamangus Highway.

This was not a standard 599 GTB Fiorano.

This one was equipped with Ferrari’s HGTE

option, or Handling Gran Turismo Evoluzione,

which translates to English as ‘if you pay us a

boatload more money, we make your 599 GTB

handle as good as it looks.’ The result was a

hard ride over the rough surfaces of the

Kancamangus, but you are glad for that

when you look down at just how quickly

you are carving through its many corners

and the tight hairpin at its summit.

By the time we reached the entrance to Bear

Notch Road, the sun was almost down and

my previous sense of time’s passage had

been replaced by dread, an image of Dennis

pacing the parking lot of the hotel swearing

under his breath. I needed to get the car

back and quickly. With that purpose and a

clear destination, and comfort from over an

hour of orientation behind the wheel of the

Ferrari, I put the hammer down.

Bear Notch Road is a 9 mile narrow ribbon

of asphalt that cuts over a mountain from

the Kancamangus Highway to the town of

Bartlett. It is also a series of fast and medi-

um speed bends with two or three straights

too short to reach top gear. Something

about it gives the feeling of driving an Ital-

ian mountain pass; the forest through which

it runs isn’t so dense as to hide the expan-

sive vistas of surrounding mountains. And

much of the area is shrouded in fog most

mornings, heightening the expression of

driving skill in getting through it at rapid

pace. It is a mountain pass that rises for a

while, peaks, and then descends at an angle

that encourages dabs of the brake pedal as

you turn in to yet another corner that rushes

up to you. Best of all, I am yet to come up-

on another car in the half dozen or so times

I have driven it since the first.

I knew the road well enough to hustle the

599 quicker than might have been prudent

given that I relaxed the electronic guards

intended to keep the foolish from doing

something, well, foolish. I rushed sure-

footedly from corner to corner, the rev indi-

cator lights on the top face of the steering

wheel flashing with frenetic urgency, the

exhaust barking and crackling with each lift

off the gas pedal, and that harsh kick in the

backside every time I tugged at the up-shift

lever to execute an 85 millisecond cog swap,

followed by a bowel-emptying shriek. Faster

than I had ever done it, I was through Bear

Notch, past the gate at the other end and

made the left turn onto 302 toward the ho-

tel.

Dinner was already underway when I dashed

into the dining room and sheepishly handed

the keys back to an anxious-looking Dennis.

We were in polite company so he couldn’t

give me the dressing-down I expected. No

need to wait for it, I hastily made my escape

and hurried to my place at the dining table, a

very big grin upon my face.

P.S.

It turned out that Dennis Liu wasn’t that

annoyed with my antics after all because the

very next morning he again handed me the

keys to the 599, this time to muscle it

around for an hour long professional photo

shoot; a story for another time

A practice run in a 308 GTB the day before

Photo by Karen Anigbo

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