 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
In the mythology of ancient Greece, centaurs were half man, half horse creatures that, led by their guide Chiron, would freely roam the woods and mountain slopes. Teachers used to tell these tales to school pupils, creating endless fantasies which made it easier to endure the hardship of school life years ago. These often indescribable fantasies gave Checco Costa the idea of re-creating the atmosphere of ancient Greece with its centaurs. He thought that he would bring to the nature park of his home town, Imola, these strange, amazing knights, whom he identified with motorcycle racers: and so he did in 1949, when he organised races of motocross, a sport still unknown in Italy at that time, in the park of "Acque Minerali". In all fairness, the idea of creating a racing track in Imola was not just Checco Costa's: it was shared by a group of motorcycle enthusiasts, among which the "historic" members Graziano Golinelli, Ugo Montevecchi, Alfredo Campagnoli and the naturally charming, Gualtiero Vighi. One summer night in 1947, this group of pioneers, walking in Via Romeo Galli, a small countryside road that connected the Acque Minerali park with the bridge over the Santerno river, sketched a short circuit: via dei Colli, a connection between the Tosa and Piratella corners, via Romeo Galli. The entire route was less than 4 Km and the road width was approximately 6 m. But man's imagination has no limits, and sometimes, it can write people's future and destiny. Checco Costa, a dreamer, wanted to come up with something unique: he was not entirely happy with the simple plan designed by his small group of friends, and so looked at the same places through the eyes of desire, and thinking with a clear mind, the first buds of the final design of Imola's racing track were germinated. A lover of nature and of agricultural sciences (some varieties of corn still bear his name), Checco Costa was an expert of the area. Most of all, he knew very well the Rivazza farm, where he and his brother Luigi (a talented painter who still lives in Imola), used to spend summer holidays, enjoying nature and that special innocence which, when we are little children, we all believe eternal. His love of motorcycles, the opportunity offered by the ideal location of the park Castellaccio, the short circuit sketched together with his best friends, were all typical of Checco's craving for knowledge and his imagination. It was for the same reasons, man was banished from the Garden of Heaven. 
In that summer night, in the darkness of the park, lit only by moonlight, the most suitable light to clearly see the shadows men are made of, the idea of a racing track was born (5 km in length for a width of 9 m, or to be exact, 5,017 metres) and the final, unique, outline of the current Imola's circuit was sketched.This idea, like a frail creature in need of help, was welcomed, assisted, lulled and nourished by many, but only one was to be its father forever: Checco Costa.  Checco Costa was also the creator of the corners' design, of their radius and of their special shape, called "lemniscate". He fought to ensure that the road surfacing be carried out under the supervision of Istituto Sperimentale Stradale (Experimental Road Institution) of the Italian Touring Club.A law called "Romita Act", in force at the time, was thought by the land surveyor, Campagnoli, likely to help the project realisation. Silvana, Checco's wife, happened to know the minister that the Act was named after: he was a dear friend of her father's.  Silvana was a beautiful women, but her beauty was not her main quality. Mrs Costa may still not be aware of it, but her face was the face of Checco's "anima", the feminine side of a man who had left behind the world and its needs to live in quasi-Franciscan mysticism, closer to the mystery of nature and the sources of genius and creativity. |
