The Italian 500 Revival

Da Christchurch, in Nuova Zelanda, Barb Palmer ci ha scritto raccontandoci del raduno annuale dei cinquecentisti locali al Circuito di Ruapuna intitolato “Italian 500 Revival”, avvenuto ad inizio maggio.

Un bel gruppo di appassionati possessori di “Fiat Bambina” (così viene chiamata la 500 in Nuova Zelanda) si sono ritrovati sotto i colori della bandiera italiana, scelti anche per decorare dei deliziosi cupcake! Con la partecipazione di alcune 500 di nuova generazione, una quindicina di cinquini si sono cimentati in quattro giri di pista e per alcuni è stata la prima esperienza su un tracciato che solitamente vede protagoniste auto dalle grandi prestazioni. «Le nostre auto ci hanno resi orgogliosi e senza grandi problemi meccanici», hanno dichiarato i partecipanti.

Ecco di seguito il testo originale in inglese:

Ciao from Christchurch, New Zealand. We are an active bunch of dedicated 500 Enthusiasts covering the South Island of New Zealand and frequently get together for picnic runs and events.
May was no exception when we held our Annual Italian 500 Revival at Ruapuna Raceway. Each year the Canterbury Fiat Lancia Club hold their Track Day and we have the opportunity to take our fantastic wee Fiat 500’s (known in New Zealand as a Fiat Bambina (meaning baby) around the track in the lunch break.
It was a beautiful Autumn Canterbury day. We all arrived at 11am, parked up and mingled with other owners. Barb Palmer the organizer handed out Italian Flags and Cupcakes to everyone participating and they certainly went down a treat. Doug Moody gave us all a thorough track safety briefing and instructions and 15 of us assembled on the track eager to start.
And we were off! The modern 500’s were at the front so that they would keep ahead of the Cinquecento’s. It was such an awesome experience as cars weaved in and out flying their Italian flags with pride navigating the track with ease not speed! For some of our wee cars and owners this was their first taste of being on a track that normally raced high performance cars. Four laps later and the checkered flag was lowered and we returned to the pits on a high. Our wee cars did us proud with minimal mechanical issues. We finished with lunch at a local café, a wonderful way end to a fantastic day.
We come from all walks of life but it is the love of these wee cars that makes us a part of the Fiat 500 Family.
If you’re ever in New Zealand we’d love to see you, arrivederci!

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