Grab your wine, some parmigiano cheese and prosciutto – sit back and enjoy a tale with its beginnings in a small town in Northern Italy called Varano de’ Melegari. A recent trip to Italy to visit family brought me through this quaint little town more than once. And, full disclosure, I forgot that I had been here before when I was only ~7 years old and was brought to Varano to see the home track “Autodromo Riccardo Palletti” – a ~1.5-mile road course originally started as an oval track in 1969 and expanded twice, first in 1972 and again in 2001. The track is currently named after a Milanese Formula One driver, Riccardo Palletti, who unfortunately barely got his career going before his untimely death at the 1982 Canadian GP.
Disappointingly, this trip did not allow time for visiting the track (darn…), however, this is not the only reason why this town is dubbed Motor Valley. It is also the home of Gian Paolo Dallara, headquarters for the race car manufacturer of the same namesake, and home to the Dallara Academy (which opened to the public on October 13, 2018 – lucky me! My last day in town!). But wait a second… I’ve never heard of a “Dallara” racecar… Well, well, are you sure about that? Have another bite of that parmigiano. Mmmm-yum.
A brief history
Mr. Dallara earned his degree in Aeronautical Engineering from Milan Polytechnic and began his career in the racing department of Ferrari. After 2 years he jumped ship to Maserati, and after another two years jumped ship again to Lamborghini where he helped conceive and design… wait for it, the…
Yes, the Lamborghini Miura! (His start was really on the 350 GT and he followed the Miura with the Espada). It was pretty much all downhill from here. Following his days at Lamborghini, he made a quick jaunt with De Tomaso, before finally being ready to go it alone, and started Dallara Automobili in 1972.
The company specializes in chassis design and aerodynamics – consulting and designing for some well-known brands you’ve never heard of … Williams F1 cars, Indy cars, Lancia Stratos, Lancia Beta Montecarlo, Lancia LC1 and LC2, Ferrari F50 GT1, Audi TT DTM, Bugatti Veyron, Maserati MC12, Renault RS01, KTM X-Bow, various GP2 and GP3 cars, Formula Super Nissan, F1 Scuderia… just to name a few.
So, what of the Dallara Academy?
As its name would suggest, it’s an educational institute. Students from all over the world trying to earn their Master’s Degrees in race car engineering can go there to take classes in “Racing Car Design.” It’s also a museum open to the public displaying some iconic race cars and guiding folks through the history of the company.
Now if all that wasn’t enough, Dallara decided to manufacture a car to bear his name, and in 2017 the first Dallara Stradale was born. The car can be (and was) seen cruising the mountain roads of Varano.
Now if a quick jaunt across the Atlantic is out of the cards for you, perhaps the next time you find yourself in Indianapolis you can make a pit stop at the Dallara Indycar Factory. According to their website: “The Dallara IndyCar Factory offers visitors the chance to explore 23,000 square feet of interactive and hands-on exhibits centered around the engineering and technology of the world’s fastest sport! Take a walk through a tunnel filled with IndyCar blueprints and design concept drawings or sit down and relax in our theater as you catch up on the history of Gian Paolo Dallara and his company, Dallara Automobili!” The Factory also boasts the ability to go for a ride in a street legal 2-seater Indy car, as well as simulation time with iRacing. How intriguing.
I, for one, learned something new on this trip. I had no idea the true depth of the Motor Valley, nor the many contributions Dallara has made, and continues to make, to Motorsports.
More pictures from this trip are available in the GT Motorsports Photo Vault.
This article has been brought to you by the friendly folks at Gran Touring Motorsports.
