1961 Bianchi Specialissima

1961 Bianchi Specialissima

Bianchi headbadge and centerpull brakes

A Bianchi.  Coppi’s bike.  Gimondi’s bike.  Argentin’s bike.  Pantani’s bike.  A lot of racing heritage with Bianchi, and a lot of magical properties associated with bicycles that are, after all, just bikes.

Still an Italian classic, this is Bianchi’s second-tier bike from 1961. 

Classic design in the downtube decals

Campy derailleurs of this vintage had no teeth on the pulleys

Campy Record equipment and a matching Silca pump

In the decade or two surrounding Fausto Coppi’s career, Bianchi had achieved mythical status, and this bike was a popular model in the U.S.  Bianchi was easier to find than other more esoteric labels, and was typically a good value.  The Specialissima came outfitted with great Italian components, with Cinelli handlebars, Fiamme red label rims and Campagnolo’s Record component group. 

The celebrated "celeste" color

Not all of Bianchi’s bikes were painted celeste green.  There are a couple of myths surrounding the origin of Bianchi’s signature celeste paint color.  Some say celeste is the color of the Milan sky, or the eye color of a former queen of Italy.  Knowing bicycles and bicycle people, I’d say that the story about it being a mixture of surplus navy paint makes the most sense.  Anyway, this bike is rootbeer, a color that was only used on bikes that were exported to America.