The 31st edition of the Lana rally took place on the weekend of 25-26 August 2018, of which we were proudly top sponsors and which we would like to tell you about.

The first edition of this historic rally in Biella, our city and headquarters of our company, was held in 1973, with the victory of Franco Perazio on his Red Fulvia H.F. 1.6 Gr4. From then on, it was raced annually for 29 years, when it was decided to interrupt the event due to the Ford Escort Group N driven by Enrico Lavino Zona and Elena Camusso going off the road.

First national, then international and finally valid for the Italian Championship and for the European Championship, the Wool has always represented a large portion of Italian rallying, always remaining in the hearts of Biellese and enthusiasts from all over Italy. And it was precisely the passion of the Biellese that brought it back to life after 17 years, in particular that of Corrado Pinzano, a young entrepreneur and one of the best Piedmontese drivers. The driver first of all founded a cultural association specifically to bring about the rebirth of “Wool”: the Rally LANA.ALIVE, of which he is president; next to him in the role of Vice-President we find Roberto Bologna, always alongside the late Meme Gubernati in the organization of the “Lana”.

After the attempt in 2015 with the “Rally della Lana Moderno”, a national event, won by Omar Bergo and Brusati with a Peugeot 207 S2000, but which was not followed up, it was not easy to revive a new edition of the rally, but passion won out. The 31st edition took place last weekend with great success paying homage to the historical version, but at the same time bringing some novelties:

  • The first novelty concerns the official “plaque”, which represents in a modern note the mythical ball of yarn, emblem of many editions of the race, to pay homage to the unforgettable “Meme” Gubernati, soul of the event, naming the “Memorial” after him;
  • the second novelty concerns the cars: in fact, the use of today’s rally cars has been envisaged;
  • finally the route: it follows in the footsteps, the places, of a past rich in tradition, but includes seven special stages, for a total of 75 km, which will be almost totally new.

The departure took place on Saturday evening from the Baptistery square, in the heart of Biella, for the Biella-Oropa night “Superspecial”, an adrenaline-pumping challenge between the suggestive curves that lead to the Oropa sanctuary. It then resumed on Sunday morning with three more special stages, each held twice: “Prova Speciale di Tollegno”: from the village of the same name to Pralungo, already a stage in the golden years; “Prova Speciale del Tracciolino”: a completely new stage characterized by numerous curves, almost 13 km long which, however, takes up the final part of the old “Bossola”; “Special Stage of Netro”: from Vagliumina to Donato, passing through Netro. The arrival on Sunday afternoon was once again in Piazza del Battistero. The undisputed winners of this edition were Ivan and Marina Carmellino, brother and sister who qualified first in all the trials.
«The idea came to me while I was making the last transfer of the historic “Lana”. There, during that stretch of the race, I felt that the “Lana”, the real one, made with today’s cars, had to come back. […] I repeat: it is right that the “Lana” exists, it is a piece of history that belongs to us» declared Corrado Pinzano in an interview and he had seen it for a long time! The initiative was, in fact, appreciated by all Biella residents and enthusiasts, and we at Max Application are proud to have given our contribution as top sponsors to help bring this part of Biella tradition back to the surface.