Ugo De Rosa: Father of the Future

“I am a man who goes straight to the point… And, by force of habit, I never look back and count the years I have spent making frames. I prefer to look ahead because, after working for half a century, I am still convinced that the bicycle has room for improvement. And just as I…

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Bridgestone Eurasia: All-in-One Sports Bicycling System

Every now and then, we are reminded of something long forgotten that remains so special it needs to be remembered again. Like the deeply meaningful reasons behind national holidays or their religious counterparts, these things tend to be timeless in nature and transcendent in meaning. They usually come in the form of an obvious offering…

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Maxi-Car Hubs History & Image Gallery

Célestin Auguste Ripet patented the use of special annular bearings in bicycle bottom brackets and hubs in 1933. Rousson & Chamoux were already producing a wide range of hubs, pedals, chainrings and crank arms under the trademark name RFG by then. (RFG stood for “Roulement Francais Garanti”). These two manufacturers would eventually merge three decades…

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Ernesto Colnago Photo Gallery

Ernesto Colnago was perhaps the greatest racing bicycle designer, builder and mechanic of the 20th century.  He started in 1945 at the prestigious Gloria Bicycle Company when just 13 years old. After apprenticing there, Colnago enjoyed a relatively brief racing career himself that ended with a horrible crash. This led to him opening a bicycle…

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Ernesto Colnago: Fortune in Fracture and Ferrari

Bicycle racers face immense danger every time they swing their leg over the top tube, from broken bones to outright death. Some might even argue a severe bone break can be worse than death itself, for it can spell the end of one’s racing career.

Hetchins Bicycles: Meticulously Lugged

Bicycle companies faced a historical deletion around the time World War II hit as the prevalence of automobiles and weight of war became overwhelming. Manufacturers, racers and race organizers found their livelihoods interrupted – and in some unfortunate cases, even ended. It was around this time that several European bicycle companies found themselves struggling through…

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