Over the Apennines

Italy's Mille Miglia, a 1,000-mile race up and over the Apennines from Brescia to Rome and back, is known as the "race of the 7,000 curves." It is one of the most dangerous road races in the world (in 1938, when a driver plowed his car into a crowd and killed 23 people, Mussolini banned the Mille Miglia, and it stayed banned for eight years). This week, as exciting and almost as bloody as ever, the 21st Mille Miglia again brought the world's fastest cars roaring over the mountains.

The Ferrari entry, which dominated the race in recent years, suffered a crippling blow when its No.^1 driver, Giuseppe ("Nino") Farina, in one of its hot, new 4.9-liter cars, cracked up-and out. Farina escaped with a broken arm and nose. With the top opposition out of the way, World Champion Alberto Ascari, driving a Lancia over the rain-slick course, roared home first, half an hour ahead of the field. Average speed: 86.6 m.p.h. It was the first Lancia victory in seven years. It was also the first time that World Champion Ascari had ever managed to finish a car in the grueling race.

The Miglia took its annual toll. A French Citroen spun out, smacked into a tree, bounced into a crowd and injured eight people. The driver, Andre Bouchon, was killed and his copilot injured severely. In another accident, a 15-year-old boy was killed when a French Renault went off the road. In all, five were killed, 25 injured, including twelve drivers.

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