33 replies to this topic

[David M. Kane]

A year or so ago the Chief F1 Mechanic for Ferrari in the early 1970s died in Maranello. I met him in the early 1990s during my first visit to the Factory. I was at the Newstand in the center of town when I was distracted by some action in the Park behind it. A group of World War II veterans had gathered in their uniforms to celebrate some sort of date related to the end of the war. They spoke no English and I spoke no Italian. Suddenly, the gentleman in question appeared in his uniform with a hat with a beautiful feather in it, like a mountain troop unit. Though older, he was still sprite, as handsome as ever and sporting his usual smile.

I tried to strike up a conversation, but all he understood was Formula One, he smiled harder and tipped his hat.

Does anyone know who I am talking about? Does anyone have a photo they can post?

I would REALLY appreciate it...it's driving me crazy!

[philippe charuest]

Borsari maybe he was tall with a lionesque grey hair. the other chief mechanic was Cuoghi short , thin brown hair and a mustach but cuoghi was speaking english very well, so it must be Borsari

[JB Miltonian]

Here is a picture of Giulio Borsari taken from Jonathan Thompson's Ferrari F1 book.

[David M. Kane]

You guys are good! Yes, that is him! Thank you, thank you!

[Rob Ryder]

While on the subject of Ferrari mechanics, anyone put a name to this face? Through the 1970's he always seemed to be there and aways with Borsari. I never did get a name....


1972 German GP podium

[Twin Window]

Here's Borsari taking Jacky Ickx' Ferrari to the grid at Silverstone, 1973...

[fausto]

Originally posted by Rob Ryder
While on the subject of Ferrari mechanics, anyone put a name to this face? Through the 1970's he always seemed to be there and aways with Borsari. I never did get a name....


1972 German GP podium

The man is "Scintilla" (italian for spark) Tramonti, the Magneti Marelli technician assigned to Ferrari, sadly passed away recently....

ps sorry, cannot remember his name...

[Ralliart]

In an article in Cavalino marking Borsari's retirement from Farrari, there was mention that he fought for the Salo Republic, which was set up when Mussolini was sent packing. If true, Borsari would be considered a Fascist. Enzo Ferrari was although not as openly supportive, it appears.

[David M. Kane]

Ralliart:

Maybe this informal reunion was a Salo Republic group? Wouldn't there have be long-term resentment towards this group or was all foregiven after the War?

[Wolf]

David, seeing how Italy escaped int'l prosecution of Fascists, the way it was done in most Axis countries/allies, I don't think it would have carried much weight (except maybe during Communist govt)... Nor does it, alas, nowdays- even that neo-Fascist swine Paolo di Canio was chosen to carry Olympic torch through Rome this year (not to mention politics, where neo-Fascist Giancarlo Fini is current Italian foreign minister). It is quite disturbing, to say the least.

[Mickey]

David, judging by your description "with a hat with a beautiful feather in it, like a mountain troop unit", I gather he was an Alpino (see pics of Alpino hats here) soldier.

The Alpini were the most partisan kind of army, who fought the Fascists quite heroically. I'd say a link with Salo Republic is pretty much out of the question.


Wolf: I hope you didn't miss my response to a post of yours from some time ago.

[David M. Kane]

Mickey:

This is exactly the hats they were wearing at the gathering in Maranello.

He was so fiercely Italian, so proud I can't see him doing anything that he didn't see was the best for Italy. He was such a competitor I also see him as the kind of guy who wouldn't quit a fight. What ever the answer, I'm sure it was a very complex decision. I don't think he was political. He just seem like a happy guy, full of life, a bundle of energy who wanted to win at everything.

Regardless, far too many people have been far too forgiving of the Axis...including Pope Pius XII.

[Wolf]

No, I just forgot to reply- sorry... even so, the Italian foreign policy still reeks of iredentism (to say the least)- even to the point that Italy will be reported by Slovenia and Croatia to IIRC i'ntl court of justice- not to mention government sponsored historic revisionism. If any of Italian politicians ever meant anything serious, maybe they would have visited a site of Italian/Fascist concentration camp and sincerely appologize to all other nations, besides Jews who suffered from Fascist regime. Until Fini does that, I will doubt his 'conversion' to political sanity.

[Wolf]

David- don't we have his fan in our midst (gborsari)? Maybe he'd know (BTW, to make it clear my tangent did not make any presumptions about Giulio- I would not want to 'condemn' a man on pure speculation).

[Ralliart]

I believe the author of the article on Borsari in Cavalino was Pete Coltrin. I will find the article this weekend.

[David M. Kane]

Wolf/Ralliart:

In a conversation with Brian Redman a few years ago, he told me Helmut Bott was a Panzer Commander. Yet, I never fancied him a Nazi. My sister-in-law father was the Air Attache at the Germany Embassy in Washington, D.C., translated the F-104 manuals to German, fly ME-110 bomb runs over London (which it took me 10 years to get him to talk about, he was very saddened by that). BUT, he was from a Prussian Military family that had served Germany for 450 years uninterrupted. He was a devout Catholic, so I doubt he was a Nazi.

If Guilio didn't hold rank, he'd probably been shot. Like you said Wolf we don't have the facts. I too don't like smoothing over history. There should be an apology.

[David M. Kane]

A full story on the Repubblica Sociale Italiana can be found at http://www.comandosupermo.com/RSI.html. It answered some of my questions.

[zoff2005]

David's initial post implied that Borsari had died, is this the case?
He is of course much older than Cuoghi who is I think still active - last seen in the various Nissan (now Renault) series working for Adrian Campos where he looked after some Spanish kids (names like Gene and Alonso ..).

And Cuoghi used to be mechanic with John Wyer, I think he only joined Ferrari when Lauda was there.

[David M. Kane]

Zoff2005:

I would be thrilled if Guilio is still alive!

Yes, Cuoghi was at Ferrari while Lauda was there. He left with Niki when Niki went to Brabham.

[Rob Ryder]

Originally posted by fausto


The man is "Scintilla" (italian for spark) Tramonti, the Magneti Marelli technician assigned to Ferrari, sadly passed away recently....

ps sorry, cannot remember his name...

Thanks Fausto

I find it strange that he worked for Magneti Marelli and not for Ferrari because he was on the podium quite often....


1971 South Africa


1975 Italy

[David M. Kane]

Those Flat-12 were a hand-full to run and tune. The cranks were so difficult to make that they were done in America by Carillo. They had to be replaced after each race. So I would say "Sparky" was there to make sure everything worked after the engine swap on Saturday night when they put the race engine in.

Anyway, that's my theory and my assumption...

[giacomo]

Originally posted by Rob Ryder
I find it strange that he worked for Magneti Marelli and not for Ferrari because he was on the podium quite often....

Scintilla Tramonti also was the guy who celebrated Patrick Depaillers third place in Fuji 1977 on the podium.

http://f1gt.ifrance....ies/gal1977.htm

[philippe charuest]

well its possible that the involvment of magneti marelli was wider then only the ignition system , there financial participation was maybe bigger too then it appear at the time

[edelweiss]

Originally posted by giacomo
Scintilla Tramonti also was the guy who celebrated Patrick Depaillers third place in Fuji 1977 on the podium.
http://f1gt.ifrance....ies/gal1977.htm

I think your link is wrong, here is the pic:

[LOTI]

I met Guilio at Monza once, after the GP and was he a happy person...... Ferrari had won several hours earlier and the party was going well! Trying out a bit of my very limited italian I offered "complimenti" [spelling?] and he gave me a lengthy explanation of something, I assume the race. The next time we met was at the John Surtees tribute weekend at Brands Hatch where he once again got it into his head that I spoke or even understood italian, luckily there was someone who could translate and we had a lengthy conversation, mostly about Ferrari in the 60s, for which I believe he was repremanded, [not my interview but for spilling the beans generally]
I asked him how good John's italian was, as I was rather worried that I could understand it, and he said that without the hand signals he had a problem understanding. If you watch racers talking there is a lot of hand signalling!
He was a really nice guy and happy to share his passion for Ferrari even with "foreigners"
Loti

[Graham Gauld]

Sorry, I have been away for a few days and missed all this. As far as I am aware he is still alive as I was with him no more than 18 months ago and wrote a piece about his background in my column in Prancing Horse magazine. He has been acting as a kind of helper and overseer for Ferrari in the Historic Challenge races in Europe and I spoke to him at Donington. He started out with Maserati and then moved to Ferrari. A relatively rare thing as there was a saying in Modena in the 1950's that if you worked at Maserati on one side of the Via Emila roman road you would never work at Ferrari on the other side ! But Romolo Tavoni, for example, also worked for Maserati and then for Ferrari.

[Pedro 917]

I've posted these Gulio Borsari pictures before. They were taken at the Nürburgring Old Timer GP in August last year:



and here are some more :



Ermanno Cuoghi is also alive and well, he's working (at 71!) for a Spanish team called Epsilon, racing W6 Renault 3,6 engine FR2000 and the Megane. I've met him in Zolder 2003, when he was working for Adrian Campos in the Nissan World Series :

[Ralliart]

From the Jan/Feb 1979 Cavallino issue:
"Presentiamo...Giulio Borsari" by Pete Coltrin
"Giulio Borsari at 54, retired on November 30, 1978...He has...a project to keep him busy...to put together a book of memoirs and photographs...A week before his retirement, Borsari invited me to his very pleasant home in nearby Montale, a small town about five miles from Modena...Borsari was born in Montale, December 5, 1924, where his parents were born and where his son and grandson were born and live. His son, Sergio, 29, is a qualified engineer who works at Carrozzeria Scaglietti. Borsari graduated from a local scuola media before becoming an apprentice mechanic. When Italy entered the Second World War, he and other local mechanics were employed in a local German army Wehrmacht motor pool. After that, he worked for the Italian Government of Salo. When the American army arrived, he and his mates worked in a local GI motor pool as the war ended. After the unpleasantness was over, he went to Naples for four months with a private team which raced Lancias...he returned to Modena where he soon got a job with Maserati (and)...his first memorable race was the classic 1948 GP di San Remo with the winning Maserati 4CLT/48...at the end of 1957...Borsari joined Commendatore Mimmo Dei's Scuderia Centro Sud (and when)...Dei had to suspend his activities...Borsari had a job ready and waiting at Ferrari's racing department. He signed on the 12th of March 1962. It wasn't long before he became Ferrari's chief racing mechanic from 1963 to 1973 (and meched for Clay Regazzoni from 1974-1976)...After his long stint as a racing mechanic, Borsari went into Ferrari's research and development departments (with the)...Dino V6 F2 engine (and was)...the factory representative to F2 privateers for the past few years. More recently, he has been involved with the 1978 private sponsored 512 BB Le Mans cars...for Chinetti NART and Pozzi/Thomson (and)...just before retirement he was busy...on the 1979 512 BB cars for NART, Pozzi and Ecurie Belge."

[David M. Kane]

Ralliart:

Good, it sounds like he's still alive. I hope he does some more interviews. Plus, it appears he wasn't much of a Black Shirt unless he dropped some oil on his work shirt.

[pilota]

Originally posted by David M. Kane
Does anyone know who I am talking about? Does anyone have a photo they can post?
I would REALLY appreciate it...it's driving me crazy! [/B]

There was a book written by Giulio Borsari - "La Ferrari in Tuta". Published in 1980 by Autosprint. 260pp in Italian but with probably 200 photos.
There was also a book about Cuoghi - published in English.
Nathan

[Pedro 917]

The Ermanno Cuoghi book is called "Racing Mechanic"

[David M. Kane]

Pilota:

I will check Guilio's book out. I already have Ermanno's one.

[Ralliart]

Working 'for the Italian Government of Salo" is different than working against (as the partisans did). 20 at the end of the war, it appears Borsari worked for the Germans and then worked for Mussolini - and then America. The fact that Helmut Bott commanded a tank didn't necessarily make him a Nazi while it looks like Borsari was a mechanic for the Axis, not a partisan, during the war.

[pilota]

Originally posted by David M. Kane
Pilota:
I will check Guilio's book out. I already have Ermanno's one.

David
I have a bit more info. It appears that the Borsari story was published in a number of weekly parts in Autosprint in 1980. Although mine is in hard-back book form I don't know whether it was published as a book, or whether someone had the sections bound.
Collector's Carbooks are advertising a soft-back version here;
http://www.collector.../shop/1232.html
Have done a bit more research and it also comes up on Ebay from time to time.
Hope this helps
Nathan