Cicli Masini... offering the best in true Italian vintage cycling. It's not a product (yet), and nothing's for sale (yet) except the idea of riding on the open road, whether in Tuscany on le strade bianche, in the Swiss Jura or through the headwind on the straight lines of Iowa... on fine vintage Italian bikes.
Inspired by the Mason family heraldic shield, the Cicli Masini logo features the family motto "Dum Spiro Spero" (As Long As I Breathe, I Have Hope).
l'Eroica is just under a week away. Last year, Brooks got into it in a big way. This year, the race has exploded, with over 3000 entries (mine being one of them!). Here is Le Coq Sportif's video entry. They'll be journaling the event live, so check them out on Sunday here. Look for me!
A new part of my job for the past couple of years is managing the GT sponsorships. That means I get to work with some real legends of the sport like Hans Rey and EC... and some real characters of the sport, as you can see here!
Nice hair, Erica! Can you believe this qualifies as 'work'?
Great BBC video of one guy building his dream bike... something I've done over and over! Great brands in there like Brooks, and personalities like Steve "Gravy" Gravenites, one-time head wrench for Volvo-Cannondale.
This begs the question: what's your dream bike? Mine (as of today)... a Cicli Masini (yes, it's coming) cambio corsa frame built up with an eclectic mix of 40's and 50's parts plus some modern Campy bits (new Ergo brake levers and brakes). Add the following: a Brooks ti saddle, Brooks bag and bar tape and clincher rims.
Here's one to bookmark! In the comments of this article, blogger P. De Sade is attempting to construct a registry of local Italian bike builders. In the past year, I've learned far more about Italian bike history than I thought possible, even without many written resources, thanks to guys like this on the net. With l'Eroica just a week away, I'm hoping to meet more of them in person... most likely as I'm handing over Euros to buy their vintage parts!
I usually like to wait a day or two to bother a recently-crowned champion after a big win. If I'm not at the finish, I'll try to pass on my congratulations to the manager, DS or whoever I can find, knowing the madness that ensues right after a Grand Tour for the winner. So I finally got through to Vincenzo, who is already in Melbourne for next weekend's world championships. He had heard that everyone at Cannondale had been following his exploits and thanked me for our best wishes and congratulations. This was a big one for Cannondale... our first Vuelta! But it's a HUGE one for the Niblet (as one of our product guys has christened him).
Congrats, Vincenzo... here's hoping that this is just the first of many!
Amazing performance Saturday from lo Squalo. Before I go too crazy at the thought of a second GT win by Liquigas, I have to post this one. Usually the boys are distracted by lovely ladies on the side of the road. I guess this counts too!
