2009-2013 Colnago C59
Paul’s C59 in sparkling green and white
The best bike.
The Colnago C59 (marking Ernesto’s 59 years of making bikes) was considered the best handling, smoothest, and one of the most beautiful road bikes that you could ride.
At the time, Scott and Trek both make lighter bikes than the C59. In reality, they also had a few more aerodynamic framesets available than these Colnagos. Stainless steel bikes from Independent Fabrications or Pegoretti would outlive you by thousands of years. Titanium Lynskeys or Ritcheys wouldn’t scratch and had nice, springy rides. The Colnago C59, however, was still considered the best.
C59 head tube
Gavin’s bike in “None more black”
The bicycle equivalent of a Ferrari F12 (actually type “Ferrari” and “Colnago” into Google and see what I mean), the C59 felt solid and sure on the scariest roads. Colnago knew that in order to be fast, a bike must be comfortable enough to ride for hours, and inspire confidence (not trepidation) when it came to high speeds, turns and descents. The C59’s downtube and fork blades featured redundant internal walls, an extra safety measure should one of the outer walls get broken.
The C59 will also go down in history as the first road bike model from a major brand to be offered with disc brakes.
The C59 handled like a dream, was light as a feather, and was pretty enough to sit in the living room instead of the garage.
C59 with Mad Fiber wheels
A C59 with Campagnolo parts
The retro 1994 paint scheme
Since the C59 was retired, Colnago upped their game with the (what else?) C60. The 60 did everything that the 59 could do, with just a little extra Italian flair. The 60 had intricately shaped tubing lugs instead of round joints. The 60 came with bigger diameter tubing that delivered better acceleration and snap, while reducing the overall frame weight by a couple hundred grams.