From 1954 to 1966, many top racing drivers would head for the Bahamas at the end of the racing season, not just for a holiday, but for Nassau Speed Week. This allowed them to combined relaxation in the sun with a few stints of low-pressure racing.

Cars such as Ferrari GTO, Maserati Birdcage, Chevrolet Grand Sport, Chaparral, AC Cobra and Ford GT40 were driven by the stars of the day, including Roger Penske, Dan Gurney, Bruce McLaren, Mario Andretti, Pedro Rodriguez, Mark Donohue, Phil Hill, A. J. Foyt and Stirling Moss.

Next year, the Bahamas Speed Week Revival will run for the first time, taking place in its traditional winter slot, in this case from 30 November to 4 December 2011. The five-day event promises a Revival island tour, street course demonstration, drag racing, concours d’elegance, road show, fashion show and charity ball. The intention is to invite 50 race cars ‘of the type which graced the original events’, supported by a cavalcade of Ferraris, old and new, visiting the island’s beauty spots via roads which border the sea.

Invitations will be extended to original drivers and car owners, as well as latter-day celebrity residents of Nassau. The event will close with a cavalcade of participating cars through downtown Nassau and around one of the island’s new marina complexes, to be followed by a time trial on a street circuit between West Bay Street and Arawak Cay on Nassau Harbour Front.

For more details, see www.bahamasspeedweekrevival.com.

Text: Classic Driver
Photos: Courtesy Terry O’Neil