The 1000 Miglia is a historic classic car race that takes place in Italy every year.

It began life in 1927 as an open-road speed race from Brescia to Rome and back again. The motivation for the drivers was to see who could complete the course in the quickest time.

In 1955, Hans Herrman and Stirling Moss, the great British Formula one driver, set a record time of 10 hours, 7 minutes and 48 seconds, averaging a speed of 157.650 km/h.

Back then, it was all about speed but after two fatal crashed in 1957, one of which involved the death of three drivers and nine spectators, five of which were children, the race was deemed too dangerous and was banned.

It was revived in 1977 as a timed race in which arriving before the other cars is no longer the motivation. Now, it is all about getting from one point to another in exactly the right time. If you are even one second late or early, you lose points.

It’s still an open road race and since it takes place on public roads the national speed limits must be adhered to.

The cars have to have been built before 1957, the year of the last speed race. They have to be original and they have to be in perfect condition before the race starts. If they fail the technical checks before the race, they cannot take part.

A few years ago, one participant was refused entry because he had the wrong type of lightbulbs in his headlights!

Drivers come form all over the world to take part. Some spend tens of thousands of euros shipping their cars over to Italy.

Many of the cars are incredibly rare, and as such are incredibly valuable. One of the cars that took part in 2018 had been recently purchased for 33 million euros.

Every year there are accidents, cars are damaged and on occasion completely destroyed.

So what motivates the participants to bring their cars to Brescia every May to take part in a race that is not about speed or breaking records?

Why would they risk driving their multi-million pound works of art on public roads where they could easily be reduced to a worthless pile of metal?

Why bother if they could be disqualified for something as trivial as a headlamp?

What motivated them to get up at 5am every day during the race to drive old, uncomfortable cars some of which are open to the elements for up to 12 hours a day?

It’s not the competition. It’s not the winning. The majority of the drivers don’t care about where they finish in the final results table.

Their motivation comes from the event itself. The taking part in this immense, prestigious race that takes them through some of the most beautiful scenic towns and landscapes of Italy.

It’s about bringing joy to the thousands of people who line the streets to watch them as they pass by.

It’s about the relationship they have with their cars, man or woman and machine against the elements.

It’s about being part of an event that is loved and respected throughout the world.

It’s about being motivated by passion.