Guido went to extraordinary lengths to shield young Joshua from the horrors of the war. On the way to the camp, a bicycle race passed their truck. As the riders, themselves escaping a life of grim toil, dirty and sweaty from the effort of heaving their heavy steel bikes up the col, rode by, Guido lifted his son from the truck and placed him onto the road.
The crowd clapped and yelled encouragement to their heroes, and the riders responded by rising from the saddle, straining to turn their big gears over as the slope steepened. Strange men ran alongside the riders, and the cars honked at them to get out of the way. A broad smile lit up Joshua’s face, and it was at that moment he knew that he too wanted to race a bicycle. Suddenly, as quickly as they appeared, they were gone. The crowd dispersed, silence returned, the truck continued on.
But for those few minutes, life was indeed beautiful.
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@The Pressure
It's part of the derailleur system, basically a chain tensioning arm. Bartali rode this style of gear system longer than almost anyone else. He even invested in a company to make an improved version. The Cervino, which I think is what's in the picture, moved the derailing fork from the top of the chainstay to the bottom, so you didn't have to backpedal to shift.
@wiscot
Thanks for that update. Love being educated by you guys.
@Rom
I almost bit on that one!
Pure class and motivazione
Makes me want to read Fallen Angel again by Fotheringham, anyone got any other reading inspiration for this era?
@meursault
I've not read it yet, but the Bartali bio Road to Valour gets good reviews. More personal and wartime history than race report, apparently.
Tomorrow We Ride, by Jean Bobet (Louison's brother) which is covered in The Works. Best book about cycling.
@meursault And this, long out of print but worth seeking out: "The Giro d'Italia -- Coppi versus Bartali at the 1949 Tour of Italy" (Dino Buzzati). Buzzati was a legit journo, and a novelist, poet and painter. Think Jorgen Leth, but words instead of pictures.
Second vote for Tomorrow We Ride. It's an exquisite read. Jean Bobet's perspective is truly unique both in his access to Louison's experiences and his own place in the peloton - the only intellectual! His coach told him to stop thinking so much!
I have 30 pages to go but I'm waiting for the perfect moment to finish it.
Ha, was just reading about Anquetil and Coppi in bed right when I awoke. And now I check in here and we're talkin' about the legends. Nice!
Nothing like arising with cycling history on the mind.
As a History teacher I love these articles and photos - great to use in the classroom as they often generate a lot of questions and allows me to talk about a great passion of mine and hopefully inspire some of my pupils.
DAMN! What's not to love about Italians???
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cTR6fk8frs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ybgg4H4zTHo
Love his line where he thanks his parents for the gift of poverty. Although the audience laughed I believe that he meant it. Such an amazing movie and an amzing guy. Now THAT is passion!