12 Hour Cycling Marathon at Autodromo di Monza

News from 12H Cycling Marathon:

The countdown has started to the first edition of the 12H Cycling Marathon taking place on June 27 and 28 2015 in the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, the famous race track steeped in history.

Dedicated to all cycling enthusiast, their families or simply bicycle lovers, this two-day race takes place from 10.00 a.m. on Saturday 27 to 6:00 p.m. on Sunday 28.  In a night race where the athletes will face their personal challenge in complete safety, either alone or as a team, the brave participants will pedal non-stop from dusk till dawn for 12 hours, in an event that will provide its share of unique emotions.

The Cycling Open Days are not only a race. Besides the 12H race, there will be an “experiential” Bike Village with on-track Bike Tests and Workshops on sports nutrition, training methods and road safety. This unique and passionate event will also keep the kids entertained, thanks to the Kids Area and to the Junior Bike Test on a mini circuit.

The 12H Cycling Marathon is the brainchild of Andrea Massimello, its creator together with the Night Riders Cycling Team, combining commitment and energy, it is a bike marathon with a double vocation: bold and heroic spirit on one side, exciting and all-involving on the other. It is open to both pro-riders and amateurs who will ride freely at their personal pace. It is possible to take part in this pedaling adventure, alone or as a team consisting of 2, 4 or 8 people (men, women or mixed), sharing the experience with friends. For those “obsessed” with single speed bicycles, they can race with fixed gear cycles that will be scored in a specific list.

But this is not all! Thanks to the partnership with Bike Channel / Sky 214, Radio DeeJay and to the enthusiasm of Linus and Aldo Rock, all raring to start right now, the Autodromo di Monza will be a mix of competition, emotion and fun.

Registrations are now open.

For rules and information, go to www.cyclingmarathon.com.

Ambrosio, Gore, Kappa, Kuota, Lauretana, Lavazza, Red Bull, Specialized and Vittoria are the primary sponsors the 12H Cycling Marathon.

This event will let you pedal in a fascinating environment, at night, with only your own helmet light and the full moon to guide you. Athletes will pedal without traffic and in total safety focusing only on their effort, pushing their physical and mental limits in search of an experience that they have never reached before.

Come, join us and challenge yourself and your friends in the night between June 27 and 28 in Monza.

The 12H Cycling Marathon: this time the engine is you!


Content for the Italian Cycling Journal is now based upon contributions from readers. Please contribute. Stories about rides, granfondos, touring, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, racing, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com.    

Legendary Climbs, Dolomites + Stelvio, Gavia, Mortirolo

I received a note from Cycle Italia that they have two slots open on their Legendary Climbs tour of July 5-July 16. Any readers of ICJ  who sign up and mention the blog will their choice of rental bike (subject to availability) at NO EXTRA CHARGE.

What's in store? Passo Furcia, Val Pusteria, Passo Tre Croci, Tre Cime di Lavaredo, Passo Giau, Colle Santa Lucia, Falzarego, Valparola, Passo Campolongo, Passo Fedaia (Marmolada), Sella, Gardena, Passo Pordoi, Passo Costalunga, Monte San Pietro, Mendola, Palade, Passo dello Stelvio, Passo Mortirolo, and Passo Gavia.


Details at http://www.cycleitalia.com/legendary-climbs-east-dolomites.htm

Content for the Italian Cycling Journal is now based upon contributions from readers. Please contribute. Stories about rides, granfondos, touring, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, racing, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com.    

200 Slots Left for Colnago Cycling Festival, Desenzano del Garda

Only 200 slots remain available for the Colnago Cycling Festival 2015 in Desenzano del Garda (BS), on beautiful Lake Garda, on 15, 16 and 17 May 2015. Riders from 20 countries and all the regions of Italy are already registered.

Entry forms are available on the official website www.colnagocyclingfestival.com along with all the detailed information about the different events. Details published earlier here.

Content for the Italian Cycling Journal is now based upon contributions from readers. Please contribute. Stories about rides, granfondos, touring, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, racing, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com.    

First Glimpse: Eroica Collection by Santini

From Santini:

A jersey designed to capture the true essence of the Eroica, the event that embodies the passion of the vintage cycling phenomenon. This event inspires thousands of enthusiasts to dust off old steel bikes and take to the white roads of the vineyards of Chianti to relive an experience from origins of cycling. For this reason, Santini Maglificio Sportivo, with its half-century history, proved to be the ideal partner to create a unique collection that would embody the vintage soul of the Tuscan cycling event, bringing back to life the style and fashion of bygone era of cycling.

The new official jersey of L'Eroica - Gaiole in Chianti is made from wool and features authentic additions such as a short metal zipper, triple back pocket with mother-of-pearl buttons, and the beautifully rendered event logo embroidered on the chest and back. The jersey is finished in the trademark burgundy colour of L’Eroica accompanied by a touch of orange, a colour originally synonymous with the Santini brand; additionally a series of original Santini clothing labels have been recreated especially for the line. Finally, an additional label created specifically for the range certifies the originality of every piece and endorses their use for all the Eroica events.

The EROICA BRANDED collection, inspired by some of the most significant pieces preserved in Santini company archives, will make its debut at the Eroica Primavera on Sunday May 3rd in Buonconvento, in the province of Siena. The entire collection incorporates both vintage wool racing garments and also a series of vintage casual garments, wearable off the saddle.

Suggested retail price: 130 Euro
Available in selected stores from May.
For more information please visit: www.santinisms.it/eroica 

Content for the Italian Cycling Journal is now based upon contributions from readers. Please contribute. Stories about rides, granfondos, touring, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, racing, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com.   

FrameBlock - Theft-proof bike by MilanoBike

FrameBlock is the first bicycle with the lock directly integrated into the frame. Prevent bike theft, with Italian style!

FrameBlock, which is patented by MilanoBike, uses steel cables and a burglarproof lock which are integrated into the design of the bike; the cables extend from the seatstays to a locking mechanism, both shown in red in the Kickstarter edition bike. Each FrameBlock also has a digital code on the frame which can be scanned to determine ownership.

MilanoBike has started a Kickstarter page to get the production of the bikes started. More photos, videos pricing, shipping (available worldwide), and details can be found on Kickstarter here.

Content for the Italian Cycling Journal is now based upon contributions from readers. Please contribute. Stories about rides, granfondos, touring, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, racing, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com.  
 

Stelbel Returns

The Stelbel brand, founded in Rodano back in the 1973 by Stelio Belletti, has returned. Belletti, a passionate cyclist and a fabricator with exceptional talent and knowledge, was an early expert in the TIG welding technique. Personal problems forced Belletti to close the doors on Stelbel in 1990, and nothing more was heard from the famous framebuilder until 2013. In September of that year, there was talk of a return. The foundations were laid, and work began on returning one of Italy’s finest framebuilding brands to its former glory. Now, thanks to a collaboration between Cicli Corsa and Stelio Belletti a new generation of cyclists can purchase a Stelbel frameset.

The website is www.stelbel.it. Note that a registry of classic Stelbel bikes has been created for owners.

The currently available models can be seen here; they range from the classic "Integrale" to the modern "SB/03":

The "Ortica" track frame dropouts:

Content for the Italian Cycling Journal is now based upon contributions from readers. Please contribute. Stories about rides, granfondos, touring, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, racing, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com.  

98th Giro d'Italia Starts in One Month

We are only a month away from the official start of 98th Giro d’Italia – organized by RCS Sport / La Gazzetta dello Sport and held from 9 to 31 May – with the new spectacular Team Time Trial stage being held, for the first time in Grand Tours history, on a cycling path: along the Italian Riviera dei Fiori from San Lorenzo a Mare to Sanremo. Edition 98 of the Corsa Rosa will finish in Milan during Expo 2015. 22 teams, each with nine riders, will start the race.

THE 98TH GIRO D’ITALIA IN NUMBERS
4 – Giro d'Italia race starts in Liguria (Genoa 1980, 1992, 2004; Sanremo 1987)
5 – Mountain stages (Fiuggi-Campitello Matese, Marostica-Madonna di Campiglio, Pinzolo-Aprica, Gravellona Toce-Cervinia, Saint Vincent-Sestriere)
7 – Sprint stages (Albenga-Genova, Montecatini Terme-Castiglione della Pescaia, Grosseto-Fiuggi, Civitanova Marche-Forlì, Montecchio Maggiore-Jesolo, Tirano-Lugano, Turin-Milan);
7 – Medium mountain stages (Rapallo-Sestri Levante, Chiavari-La Spezia, La Spezia-Abetone, Benevento-San Giorgio del Sannio, Forlì-Imola (Enzo & Dino Ferrari Autodrome), Imola-Vicenza (Monte Berico), Melide-Verbania)
7 – Uphill finishes (Abetone, Campitello Matese, Vicenza (Monte Berico), Madonna di Campiglio, Aprica, Cervinia, Sestriere)
29 – Overall Giro d’Italia wins by non-Italians
68 – Overall Giro d’Italia wins by Italians
77 – Kilometers of time trials (17.6km “Riviera dei Fiori” team time trial, 59.4km individual time trial Treviso - Valdobbiadene)
2,178 – altitude, in meters, of the Colle delle Finestre, the Cima Coppi in the 2015 Giro
3,489.0 – the total length of the Giro d'Italia, in kilometers
43,000 – vertical meters climbed during the 2015 Giro d'Italia

JERSEYS
Balocco will sponsor the Maglia Rosa, worn by the General Classification leader.
Banca Mediolanum will sponsor the Maglia Azzurra, dedicated to the King of the Mountains classification leader.
Algida will sponsor the Maglia Rossa, worn by the Points Classification leader.
Eurospin will sponsor the Maglia Bianca, which goes to the Young Riders classification leader.

Photo Credit:  LAPRESSE AND GRUBER

Content for the Italian Cycling Journal is now based upon contributions from readers. Please contribute. Stories about rides, granfondos, touring, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, racing, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com.  

Bixxis, Doriano De Rosa Follows His Own Road

Doriano De Rosa, son of Ugo De Rosa, has decided to go on his own and is creating his own brand: Bixxis. Doriano will be building only in steel and titanium (as he was at De Rosa) at a new workplace in Seregno, just outside of Milano, at Viale Edison 26.

The meaning of Bixxis: Biciclette Italiane per il XXI Secolo; Italian Bicycles for the XXI Century.

Website: www.bixxis.com  You can register your email address here for future communications.

Facebook: www.facebook.com/Bixxis

Content for the Italian Cycling Journal is now based upon contributions from readers. Please contribute. Stories about rides, granfondos, touring, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, racing, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com. 

MCipollini RB1000 Luxury Edition

MCipollini wanted to create something new and without precedent for the “Like Bike” in Monte Carlo (3rd to the 5th of April 2015) producing this RB1000 Luxury Edition in carbon, platinum, gold and diamonds.

Gold 40 grams / 18 carats
Platinum 12 grams
Diamonds 17 carats

"decals' in Platinum

Content for the Italian Cycling Journal is now based upon contributions from readers. Please contribute. Stories about rides, granfondos, touring, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, racing, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com. 

Pinarello Announces Rear Suspension Road Bike, Ready for Cobbles

On www.pinarello.com here.

Content for the Italian Cycling Journal is now based upon contributions from readers. Please contribute. Stories about rides, granfondos, touring, having a good time cycling in Italy, Italian cycling history, racing, etc. are always welcome. Contact me at veronaman@gmail.com.