THE WINNER, DRIVEN BY FORMER RALLY CHAMPION SKODA ROVANPERA
The original Panamerica was run between 1950 and 1954. Due to safety concerns it was cancelled as the 1955 race was approching. Started again in 1988 and still running to this day using period cars and spread out over seven days. The are much safer today with modern equipment under the bodies.
The winner, by 1/10 of a second, was a Studebaker. Studebakers for second and third. In fact. Studebakers in first 15 times over the last 22 years. Drivers this year came from Canada, Finland, Germany, Austria, Belgium, France, Italy, The Netherlands, Switzerland, Spain, Sweden, USA, Uruguay and Mexico. The race is run in 7 stages at full bore. One hundred and twenty cars all seeking a win.
When I was a kid there were a lot of cars floating around that had run in the original races. There were many magazine articles being written long after the races had stopped. All this to advertise a 29,800 mile road from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska down to Chile. The end of the road is claimed by several cities in Chile.
photo credit: © 2010 sports car digest
