Colnago Saronni 1983

Ernesto Colnago began his career in the bicycle industry at the young age of just 13, starting out as a welding assistant at the bicycle manufacturer Gloria in Milan. After a serious racing bike accident in which he broke his leg, he opened his own workshop in his hometown of Cambiago in 1952. He quickly began building his own frames and teaming up with the then professional racing cyclist Fiorenzo Magni. This resulted in him working as a mechanic for the Nivea professional team, which was the beginning of an unmistakable success story. Through his close collaboration as a mechanic and frame builder for the best professional cyclists of his time, such as Ganni Motta, Michele Dancelli, Eddy Merckx, Giuseppe Saronni, Moreno Argentin and many more, he repeatedly managed to significantly improve details on racing bikes and bring groundbreaking innovations to the market.

While the Campagnolo Record from 1963 was a bitter disappointment for many racing drivers, the Campagnolo Nuovo Record group and especially the rear derailleur were groundbreaking. For over 16 years, this group was the non-plus-ultra in competitive racing and drove one racing driver after another to victory. Its strengths include its lightness, very stable construction and good workmanship. The group's front derailleur in particular occupies an important place in cultural history. Since then, it was no longer just a bicycle component, but was suddenly seen as a piece of jewelry, which was an absolute luxury product due to its enormous price.