Day 2
On the second day, the planned route was short. It consisted mostly of a drive from their main hotel to another Resort in the hills of Siena for a lunch break, with a coffee break along the way of course. The first day took care of most of the motorway driving for the rally so the second day
had many country roads to experience.
The coffee stop was at a hotel at the top of a hill that even Don Corleone would approve of. The small towns we passed through to get there were quintessential Italian towns with plenty of people sat outside enjoying wine before midday, terra-cotta colored houses, and narrow roads with surfaces that weren’t designed for multi-million dollar supercars.
Once the owners were fueled up with Italian espressos, the rally made their way to yet another resort for their lunch stop. The roads towards this stop were significantly smoother and more flowing than the roads going up to the tight coffee stop.
With roads slicing through fields and hills, this drive was the best one yet. That didn’t mean cars didn’t get lost or separated from the pack. Despite the half a dozen crew Alfa Romeo Giulias and three incredible traffic controllers on motorbikes, a couple of Paganis still ended up taking the wrong turn. Or two.
Eventually, the cars made it to the lunch stop. The tall gates and ominously grey clouds greeted the rally at the Borgo la Bagnaia resort. A hotel, spa, and golf course, the resort was also hosting the launch of the new Jeep Compass. However, no one was paying attention to that with a convoy of Paganis rolling though.
During lunch a spontaneous downpour brought happened brining some. Luckily most of the owners had made it inside but there were still a few stuck in their cars and we hid under a parasol with some of the staff and Horacio himself.
By the time they finished their lunch and relaxation at the Hotel, the rain had made way for an unapologetic Italian sun and uncomfortably thick air. It was time to get back to the Castello del Nero hotel. This leg gave the owners two options; the first a shorter and more direct route back to the hotel or a more scenic route.
With the rain now fully cleared and the sun shining in full force, almost all the cars chose the scenic route. Only one Zonda, the blue C12S, chose the direct route back to the hotel. Knowing we wouldn’t be able to keep up with the cars at the front, we decided to take the direct route too to catch the cars at a later point.
Luckily, we found a place to wait by some of the most breathtaking hills Tuscany has to offer. After a short wait the cars had caught up to us, taking the uphill corners and straights with a bit of speed. The noise of a dozen V12s howling through Tuscan hills was a noise I’ll never forget.
After a day of driving across some of the best roads in Tuscany, the cars made a quick fuel stop before heading back to their hotel. It was quite a sight to see Paganis, Lamborghinis, and Ferraris swarm a motorway petrol station on a Saturday afternoon. The staff and the locals driving by had no idea what they’ve witnessed.
With the sudden weather change, mix of straights and twisty hilly roads, and beautiful stops, the second day of the Raduno was my favorite.
By Ken Saito