While Piaggio might be busy electrifying its Ape three-wheeled hauler, that certainly hasn’t stopped some absolute madness from overtaking at least one racer. What do you get when you take a Piaggio Ape and stuff a Triumph 675 Street Triple engine in it, and then send it out to drift in the snow? Utter and complete joy, that’s what. 

Watch racer Francesco Guerrini flick his Ape around at the Livigno round of the Automobile Club d’Italia’s 2020 Ice Challenge. They don’t call these ‘snow drifts’ for nothing, amirite? 

If you’re used to thinking of the Piaggio Ape, you likely see it as a workhorse. Normally, it’s a very capable one. The thing is, even workhorses like to kick up their heels every once in awhile—and that’s when you get utter and complete madness like this video. It’s the kind of joy that only a triple on three wheels can provide.

 

 

 

Sometimes, a creation is far more than the sum of its parts. Is this combined race machine three times as fun as any of its components would be on their own? Only Francesco Guerrini knows for sure. It’s not clear if he’ll be competing in additional events in the 2020 Ice Challenge competition, because he’s not listed among the current roster of racers. 

The challenge consists of four more races for 2020, with the final event happening on February 23, at the Chervalier Reverse Greenhouses event. Here’s hoping we see a lot more of Guerrini and his crazy Triumph-engined Ape to come—if not in this series, then definitely somewhere else in the snow. Car fans may especially want to learn more about the Ice Challenge series, since it’s packed to the rafters with hoonmobiles like Lancia Delta HF Integrales, Subaru STIs, and a couple of generations of Mitsubishi LanEvos. 

Guerrini’s Instagram, incidentally, is full of many more photos and videos to thrill even the coldest of hearts while you’re waiting for your area to thaw. Is this the most fun you can have in the snow? It might be.

Sources: YouTube, Ice Challenge

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