My Italian antennae got me thinking about the status of ice hockey in Italy. I know there’s a lot of snow and ice in Northern Italy with heavy snowfall  and minus Celsius degrees recorded over the last few years and snow reported as far south as Naples. So although playing on ice may not be Italy’s national past time, it is a contender. There is even a Supercoppa italiana (Italian Supercup)  competition. Won this year by the Bolzano Foxes.

Ice hockey is, by no means, new to Italy. As a member of the Federazione Italiana Sport Ghiaccio, Italian ice hockey has been making power plays since 1924. The Turin ice area, the site for 2006 Olympic Hockey Games, has sound absorbing seating that would certainly make the Madhouse on Madison less mad as the  fan sound decibel levels during playoff games have  been recorded up to 122 decibels.

The “coffee car”, brewed up by Bacon and created by the Teesdale Conservation Volunteers of Durham, England,  is a modified British Leyland Rover SD1  appropriately painted mat black.  It set a new land speed record for cars fueled by coffee.

Given the rising cost of gasoline, using renewable green energy to power cars is always on the drawing board. A previous American version, fueled by wood pellets achieved 47mph. The Leyland Rover SD1 averaged no less than 77.5mph with a Guinness World Record noted for the achievement.

Team Billy Goat Members

Eric,our marketing director, is spending the week mountain biking in the Nantahala National Forest in southwestern North Carolina. For the last 15 years he and a group of friends (Team Billy Goat) have a biking bromanace once a year camping and riding the trails on land said to more closely resemble coffee spatters than official survey lines.

More than 516,000 acres cut across the crest of mountain ranges and waterfalls to the river valleys and lakes below making the trail loops and switchbacks of the Nantahala bikeway a popular destination for off-road bycycling.

Like any white, green and red-blooded Italian male, Eric wants, needs and must have his morning espresso but sitting around the camfire on a brisk cold morning waiting for your Moka pot to boil may not be the best way to tackle the 4-loop trails of the Tsali. So on next year’s ride we’re having him trail test the Handpresso Espresso Wild, a portable handheld espresso machine that weighs just 2.05 pounds.  Perfect for espresso to go. The Handpresso Wild pulls a 16 bar pressure, just as high and in some cases, higher than an electric espresso machine but uses power you create manually, much like with a bicycle pump.  There are  two models, one that uses pre-packaged E.S.E. pods or one that uses freshly ground coffee beans.  All you need is hot water, which is easily made over your fire.  All I would need is a Brioche S’more made with Nutella to make me one happy camper.

The legendary ”Ape,” (pronounced ‘Ah-pay’) which literally translates into the “Bee,” is  basically a Vespa scooter with a large square trunk and a cabin. First manufactured in 1948 by Piaggio, the three-wheeled mini truck was favored by workers and small contractors who needed a cheap and efficient vehicle capable of carrying heavy loads and parking in small spaces. I’ve seen the Ape in vineyards and orchards, driving the narrow streets of every Italian city but never like this.

German  industrial designer Cornelius Comanns has converted a Piaggio APE 50 delivery vehicle into the Bufalino, a small camper equipped to meet the basic needs of one person.

A minimalistic approach to RV traveling with a small Italian footprint.

The machine, called the Racepresso, was created by designer Ilgar Rustamov as a concept pitched to Nespresso for the need for speed espresso drinker. Not sure if it brews a quicker shot of espresso but its looks alone could cause your heart to start racing.

Back home in Indiana excitement is building as the 97^th running of the Indianapolis 500 is scheduled to begin in 6 days, 38 hours and 37 minutes.  Racing fans all over the world look forward every May to the thrill of the Brickyard for the agony and the ecstasy of an event that has been called “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”

But before the gentlemen and ladies of the Indy 500 start their engines, there is another thrill to be had on the international racing stage with the vintage and classic cars of Italy’s Mille Miglia, an open-road endurance race that ran May 16-19 along the original Brescia-to-Rome route with some minor variations (due to areas affected by the earthquake in Emilia Romagna in May 2012).

An estimated 4 million Italian spectators  and others from around the world relived a history of road racing that begin in 1927 with cars and drivers like Tazio Nuvolari , who won the  1930 race in his Alfa Romeo, reaching celebrity status. 415 cars were selected for this year’s race from 1,575 registrations based on their history and record of achievements including Ferrari, Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Maserati, Bentley, Porsche, Jaguar, Aston Martin, Lancia, BMW, Bugatti and Mercedes-Benz.

Sport’s car enthusiasts will not want to miss the stunning pictures of the cars of the Mille Miglia posted all over the Internet including fotos from the following sites.

http://www.sportscardigest.com/mille-miglia-concorso-2013-report-and-photos/10/

Sweet treats and a little luck are part of the traditions of a typical Italian wedding and so are a few superstitions. In ancient times it was also believed that evil spirits could attend marriages with the purpose of causing mischief and disharmony. As Roman law demanded ten witnesses be present at a wedding, the attendants all dressed in identical clothing to the bride and groom so that the evil spirits wouldn’t know who was getting married. Following this custom today bridesmaids, groomsmen and ushers all wear clothing that is similar to the bride and groom!

*The classic Italian bomboniera is a little organza or tulle sachet, but much more elaborate fabric, ceramic, metal or even crystal containers are also common today.

So what does this have to do with Italy? Enter the common denominator coffee (Italy’s favorite drink) and enter Exofficio, known for smart, innovative travel clothing (in our case for traveling to Italy).

Exoffico, recognized for its technically designed travel wear, has introduced a new line of lightweight clothing that uses an innovative fabric made from recycled coffee grounds. S.Café® JavaTech technology embeds processed coffee grounds in the fabric for T-shirts that keep you comfortable and dry. The grounds create an increased surface area to wick moisture away from the skin and neutralize odor molecules to keep your fresh.

We think that relaxing in this shirt with a cup of espresso on just about any piazza in Italy might be the perfect way to experience total immersion in la bella vita.