Il Lombardia (formerly known as the Giro di Lombardia), “Classica delle foglie morte” (the classic of the dead [falling] leaves), is traditionally the last of the five classic “Monuments” of the cycling season.
The first edition was 1905. It was then called Milan-Milan. It gained the name “Giro di Lombardia” in 1907. The route has changed many times. Milan, Sesto San Giovanni, Bergamo, Varese, Monza, Como have been start or finish place.
Fausto Coppi and Gino Bartali: two cycling legends of Italy. The rivalry between them is perhaps the most famous sporting duel in history. It has been started during World War II and continued afterward.
In December 2012, RCS Sport, the organizer of the Giro d’Italia, has put together 100 journalists to rate the greatest moments of the race’s 103-year history. The fifth question was “Which are the biggest sporting rivalries in the Giro d’Italia?”, and the obvious answer was: “The rivalry between Fausto Coppi and Gino Bartali.”
In recent years, fat tire bikes are getting quite popular. Before 2006, They were made only by custom frame-builders who liked to pedal in the snow (or sand, like beaches). Then, in 2006, a Minnesota-based bike manufacturer, Surly Bikes, mass-produced the first notable bike in the “fat” genre with its Pugsley frame. They still build a lot of fat-tire bicycle models.
I bought a Cannondale CAAD10 (2015) the last April, and it was equipped with Schwalbe Lugano 700x25c clincher road tires. After a few months on their pair, I decided to write a review.
First of all, they are cheap training tires. It is the entry-level road tire of the German tire manufacturer.
I finished reading Michael Hutchinson’s “The Hour”, which gained him the award for “Best New Writer” at the 2007 “British Sports Book Awards”. The book mainly covers the first of his two (unsuccessful) hour record attempts.
A lot of people are wondering what is the black stick below the riders’ saddles at the Tour de France. Well, it’s a real-time data transmitter. It is provided by Dimension Data, a South African company specializing in information technology services, and officially called the “Fox”.
When Fausto Coppi headed the Carpano team in 1956, he issued to all his riders eight pieces of advice. With everything the great “campionissimo” said and wrote having become hallowed and revered, the so-called eight commandments of the champion of champions have survived the intervening decades and are still very pertinent. Here is what Coppi wrote:
Today’s historic photo of the day: during the penultimate (14th) stage of the 1921 Tour de France, Léon Scieur, the Belgian rider of La Sportive team carries his own wheel to the finish line. Scieur won the 1921 Tour de France when he was 33-year-old, along with stages 3 and 10.
The 15th edition of the Tour de France took place June 26 to July 24, 1921, with 138 starters. The total distance was 5484 km. The Belgians dominated the entire race, partly due to the absence of the French Pélissier brothers: the French cyclists Henri and Francis Pélissier had left the 1920 Tour de France after Henri received a penalty from the Tour organization for throwing away a tire, and they were still fighting. Therefore, the Pélissier brothers did not join the 1921 Tour de France.
Robert Marchand celebrated his 103rd birthday by climbing the col named after him: “Col Robert Marchand“, in the Ardeche mountains, near Saint-Felicien. Altitude: 911-meter (2988 feet).
Despite the rain and cold weather, Marchand conquered the 10 km climb and reached the summit in less than an hour, and celebrated at the top with a glass of Champagne. He pointed out that it was only 11°C and that he didn’t normally ride unless it was at least 15°C (59°F).
Today’s historic photo of the day: Italian cyclist Bartolomeo Aimo (sometimes written Bartolomeo Aymo) leading a greatly reduced peloton over the Allos at stage 13 of the Tour de France 1925.
Stage 13 was a 275 km (171 mi) long trip from Nice to Briançon. It was a cold, rainy day in the Alps. The Italian sports fans who had flocked to the Tour to see their hero, Ottavio Bottecchia, had the pleasure of seeing their compatriot Bartolomeo Aimo be the first over both the Vars and the Izoard as he rode to win the stage.
Bottecchia was 10 minutes back but still leading the General Classification. Nicolas Frantz, who was in second place in the general classification at the beginning of the day lost over 13 minutes.