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Alfa Romeo Takes Centre Stage at 44th Lime Rock Historic Festival
The 44th Lime Rock Historic Festival drew record crowds and the largest gathering of significant Alfa Romeos ever seen in the United States, with 12 cars from the Revs Institute and a five-day programme of racing, touring and concours events.
By Charlotte Redford · 4 min read
The 44th Lime Rock Historic Festival has been hailed as the biggest and best yet, with Alfa Romeo as its featured marque and the largest collection of significant Alfas ever assembled in the United States. The five-day event, held over the Labor Day weekend at Lime Rock Park in western Connecticut, combined three days of vintage racing with a 17-mile tour through nearby towns, a world-class concours and an informal exhibition of around a thousand enthusiast cars.
The Revs Institute sent 12 cars from its base in Naples, Florida — the largest group it has ever assembled outside its hometown — an early signal that this year's festival would be a notable occasion. The scenic hills of western Connecticut filled with thousands of cars and fans across the long weekend, with the featured marque drawing particular attention.
The Alfa Romeo theme was set in motion by Santo Spadaro, who proposed the idea at the 2025 festival and, after receiving approval from Skip Barber, spent a year organising the display. Working alongside Lowell Paddock, who runs the Sunday concours, Spadaro coordinated the gathering and maintained a dedicated social media page with daily updates in the run-up to the event. Spadaro, who owns Dominic European Car Repair in White Plains, New York, also prepared a 1959 Giulietta Sprint for the event, which ran without fault in the all-Alfa race group.
The racing programme featured a 27-car all-Alfa group, with a further 23 Alfas competing in other categories. Among the highlights was a 1964 Giulia TZ that won the 1600 GT class at Sebring in 1964 with Jim Kaser and Chuck Stoddard. Joe Colasacco, driving Lawrence Auriana's 1963 Alfa Romeo TZ1, lapped the field twice in most sessions and, starting a lap down in the final race, passed every competitor to take victory. Colasacco also won every race in the Formula Junior category.
Saturday's dinner celebrated Alfa Romeo and the Alfa Romeo Club of America with a panel discussion featuring Donald Osborne as moderator, Miles Collier, Santo Spadaro and Lorenzo Ardizio, an Alfa historian, author and representative of the Museo Alfa Romeo in Arese, Italy. The annual 17-mile parade through Lakeville and Salisbury culminated in Falls Village, where participants were greeted by a bagpipe band, stilt dancers, food, refreshments and a concert by Wanda Houston and her jazz band.
The paddock also hosted nine cycle karts, which proved a popular attraction, while a mentoring clinic on the Sunday gave five young people the chance to learn about photographing cars, arranged by Dave Abelow and Tom Truitt of the Small Car Company as part of their Mentors & Motors programme. A 1970 Fiat Abarth TCR 1000 Berlina Corsa from the Revs Institute was noted by Skip Barber as perhaps the most dominant car ever to race at Lime Rock Park, having achieved 51 victories in 53 starts in period competition.
The Sunday concours filled the main straight with a judged field of cars, while the rest of the track was lined with enthusiast vehicles there to watch the action. The festival has become a fixture for vintage racing enthusiasts, combining competition with a town-wide celebration of motoring culture.
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