Bernina GT 2025 - four long minutes on board
A sunny day in late summer at an altitude of 2300 meters, about 30 of the 50 engines around us are responding to the relentless throttle blows of their corner-hungry drivers with screeching warm-up revs; Roberto and I are still fiddling a bit: the first helmet barely fitted my large skull, the second even less - no matter, who wants to "whine" like a fifth grader now; eyes closed, ears folded back, helmet on and that's it.
After I had successfully hit every part of the roll bar with my helmet and then quickly clicked all five straps into place, Roberto Restelli calmly explained his car to me while the field in front of us was already driving off. No problem, because from the Bernina Hospiz, the Alfa Romeo Giulia GTAm Group 2 lightweight racing car with dual ignition and around 185 hp first goes down the pass to warm up and it is more "stop&go" and slalom driving to warm up the brakes and tires.
Now "hospice" has two meanings in the German language, it occurs to me; on the one hand a boarding house run in the Christian spirit, on the other a facility for the last phase of life. I'm thinking at this moment - when I'm a passenger with a driver I've never met before, albeit a very friendly one - was the Bernina Hospice chosen as a destination solely because of its hospitality and suitable location? That is certainly the case.
Roberto's GTAm feels light and sporty thanks to numerous electronic light metal components in the engine construction, "the perfect car for tracks like this", explains the helicopter engineer, who has followed his passion for motorsport and now only builds cars like this, looks after racing teams and also works a lot with the famous Swiss Ferrari dealer and former racing driver Ronny Kessel. Roberto says that nobody in his family wanted to believe him that he would want to give up a well-paid job in Italy for what he now does with all his passion. "But I couldn't help it and I know what I do and what I enjoy," he explains. I feel like I'm in good hands now at the latest, because intelligent people are usually better able to assess risks adequately, even when you're pushing yourself to the limit.
Meanwhile, the way down the pass is characterized by Roberto greeting every single post on the route with a clear wave of the arm, always accompanied by a softly murmured "Ciao" or "Grazie"; it's as if he wants to make sure that the helpers are also on hand in the unlikely event that something should happen "in the unlikely event of a loss of pressure".
Arriving at the bottom of La Rösa, we wait behind a 1990 Lamborghini Diablo for what feels like half an eternity; will our tires stay at the right temperature? Apparently the race organizers overestimate the rather sluggish Diablo, because it will certainly struggle to catch up with other, lighter cars on a pass road.
Roberto is popular with everyone down here at the start and there's still enough time for some small talk. I ask him if my 85 kg will be noticeable to him as a driver? "Si, naturalmente" and for a moment I have to think about the loss of time on our "demonstration ride", which is hardly relevant; after all, we are not riding "competition". But I also have to think about the numerous amateur racing cyclists around Lake Zurich, who are happy to invest 10,000 francs in their carbon bikes, but who, during the previous week's three lavish business lunches, are sure to have the two to three kilos of lighter bike technology they have saved with them on their hips; just to train off again. "But the car is very happy anyway" says Roberto and I assume he is too - the way he looks ahead and focuses on the route with a barely audible but certainly present and satisfied smile.
And then we are waved to the start and just a few seconds later the flag falls for us too and we are off.
We don't want to deprive you of what that feels like with our video of the entire four minutes of driving time. We recommend turning on the sound to get a better feel for the speed and vehicle. Nevertheless, such a video can hardly reproduce the experience and the G-forces when Roberto hits the brakes just 20 meters before obstacle pylons or even just steers with the accelerator pedal while heading towards a rock face or a slope of hundreds of meters. And yes, I would do it again and again - and I would even like to do it with my own license on the driver's side. After all, it's much safer and therefore more sensible to cut corners on a closed-off stretch of road than on my many other trips over the many beautiful Alpine passes. But see for yourself and, above all, come and see the Bernina GT next year. And by the way, anyone can sign up for a ride ...
