Until the other day I had never seen a photograph of Eddy Merckx not riding anything other than an Eddy Merckx labeled bike. Eddy Merckx was obviously very special, including having the ability to demand that his name be on the bikes (De Rosa, Colnago and Masi among others) that he rode. Think about that in the context of today's peloton.
So, while reading "Un Secolo di Passioni"(http://italiancyclingjournal.blogspot.com/2009/04/book-un-secolo-di-passioni.html) I was surprised to see a photo of Eddy Merckx riding a FAEMA branded bike. The only time this occurred was apparently in 1968 and the caption on the photograph in the book is, "Gorizia-Tre Cime di Lavaredo stage". This frame was made by Masi; you can see the outline of the Duomo of Milano above the F on the head tube.
FAEMA (Fabbrica Apparecchiature Elettromeccaniche e Affini) was an espresso machine manufacturer. Although known for its innovations in espresso machine technology, among cyclists FAEMA is better known as the team that Eddy Merckx rode for.
Photos: B&W: photos of photo in Un Secolo di Passioni; color photo from Kevin Sayles. If you have another photo of Eddy Merckx riding a FAEMA bike please contact me.
Here also is a photo of Vittorio Adorni riding a FAEMA Masi:
Stories, including cycling trip stories, for the Italian Cycling Journal welcome; contact veronaman@gmail.com
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You are right, that is a Masi, and it is 1968. However, Merckx also rode a Masi in 1967, but labeled as Peugeot. The previous year, 1966, he rode a real, stock Peugeot PX10, and in 1965, his rookie year as a pro, he rode a stock Superia. So he did not start riding bikes with his name on them until 1969, the year he first won the Tour de France. Those bikes were made mostly by Colnago and DeRosa or by a Belgian builder, Kessels.
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