THE ROOTS OF THE RIDERS LAND
Romagna, a piece of ground overlooking the sea and embraced by mountains.
Year after year from the early days of the 20th century the people who live here always had a strange attraction for the two wheels. Starting from the bicycles passing through the first example of “motoleggere” till the modern superbikes.
Most of them built in private garages, with a lot of passion, sacrifices and sometimes with innovative ideas!
Facing the laws when it was forbidden to ride in downtown. Facing the fate, with those tire and protection gears, not present. And a piece of that madness spanned though years to get in here.
Every September the MotoGP lands in Romagna. And every year, if you are here, you'll always a chance to take part in this great Motorsport event.
MotoGP, the Master Class, it brings every time tons of fans, riders, and petrolheads. And during that week a lot of conventions and conferences enrich the days before the main event.
One of those was Pulsioni, and it talked about the history and the people and the facts that permeate the Romagna land. Laura D'Amico, the author, but first of all, a friend of mine, collected all of these stories inside a book, that got the same name as the talk show, here a copy of the book. And in my opinion, it’s one of the two most important manifestoes about Motorcycle in Romagna.
The second one was written in the mid of the 70s by Luigi Rivola, a real Virgilio of motorcyclist movement in Romagna. He started from the bottom, the last years of the XIX century, to describe the clan of the two wheels. From bicycle to the motorcycle, passing through the first race on the oval tracks, Imola and Santamonica. Sold out for years.
The second event represents the roots of the passion for two wheels. A red thread of fate that connects Romagna to the motorcycles. The Roots of Riders Land it’s the name, and inside the amazing landscape of Malatesta Castle, I found probably the most representative bikes of the last 40 years.
Nuovo Motoclub Renzo Pasolini organized this amazing exhibition with the intention to show pieces of our story. This was not self-congratulation: it’s the reality. That concerns us all.
Like drops in a stretch of water that create concentric circles, extending themselves toward the infinite, every rider, from the national race till the most important world series, they act in the same way: spreading passion, sacrifices, anger, hunger, joy in every direction. Echoes from a piece of land settled between the mountains and the sea.
Ladies and Fellas:
The Roots of Riders Land.
Starting with the Divas.
And the forerunner it's the oldest:
Daughter of the street-legal DS, the TD, and TR series represented the "back to basic" aim of Yamaha. In 1968, abandoned the water-cooled V4 way, Yamaha decided to focus its energy on the most reliable and not expensive air-cooled parallel twin. The TD2 was a great racing machine, able to gain the significant power of 44hp at 10000rpm. And it was also affordable, it cost as a Norton Commando. Described as "absurdly simple" was really efficient: a TD2 won in 1969 the German GP at an average of 100mph. Paolo also told me that the aim of every rider is to reach max performance on his bike: and so, after many miles, it's necessary to change only a few things. Like: the Ceriani forks, Fontana brakes, and if really really, really indispensable, a 6-speed german gears. The TD/TR series were efficient and reliable bikes, as long as you did the maintenance work.
Year after year from the early days of the 20th century the people who live here always had a strange attraction for the two wheels. Starting from the bicycles passing through the first example of “motoleggere” till the modern superbikes.
Most of them built in private garages, with a lot of passion, sacrifices and sometimes with innovative ideas!
Facing the laws when it was forbidden to ride in downtown. Facing the fate, with those tire and protection gears, not present. And a piece of that madness spanned though years to get in here.
Every September the MotoGP lands in Romagna. And every year, if you are here, you'll always a chance to take part in this great Motorsport event.
MotoGP, the Master Class, it brings every time tons of fans, riders, and petrolheads. And during that week a lot of conventions and conferences enrich the days before the main event.
This pic does not belong to me.
The second one was written in the mid of the 70s by Luigi Rivola, a real Virgilio of motorcyclist movement in Romagna. He started from the bottom, the last years of the XIX century, to describe the clan of the two wheels. From bicycle to the motorcycle, passing through the first race on the oval tracks, Imola and Santamonica. Sold out for years.
The second event represents the roots of the passion for two wheels. A red thread of fate that connects Romagna to the motorcycles. The Roots of Riders Land it’s the name, and inside the amazing landscape of Malatesta Castle, I found probably the most representative bikes of the last 40 years.
Nuovo Motoclub Renzo Pasolini organized this amazing exhibition with the intention to show pieces of our story. This was not self-congratulation: it’s the reality. That concerns us all.
Like drops in a stretch of water that create concentric circles, extending themselves toward the infinite, every rider, from the national race till the most important world series, they act in the same way: spreading passion, sacrifices, anger, hunger, joy in every direction. Echoes from a piece of land settled between the mountains and the sea.
Ladies and Fellas:
The Roots of Riders Land.
Starting with the Divas.
And the forerunner it's the oldest:
Paolo Aluigi's Yamaha TD2 m.y. 1970
Morbidelli 125 GP 1976/1977
Giancarlo Morbidelli, main character in the motorcycles GP in Italia in the 60s,70s, and 80s was first of all a real race addicted, and with the help of the engineer Jorg Moeller, through the mid-1970s, introduced probably one of the best 125cc. This parallel-twin was able to gain 41hp at 14500rpm and a top speed of 235kmh. Weight? Insanely light: 80kg.
With bikes like these, Pileri in 1975 first, and Bianchi (from Renzo Pasolini Motoclub, of course)for the next two years won the World Riders and Factory Championships 1976-1976-1977.
Minarelli 125 GP 1979
After the triple crown achieved with Morbidelli, the engineer Jorg Moeller decided to leave the Factory based in Pesaro and face a new challenge with Minarelli. Bianchi, fresh World Champion, in 1978 joined the Minarelli with the rising star Angel Nieto.
In '78 Bianchi won 4 race, and Nieto 3. But Lazzarini, a privateer with huge skills, got the drop on them. And won the title with a unique bike: a Morbidelli deeply modified, that prides itself of Morbidelli-Lazzarini nickname. In 1979 Minarelli won the Factory World Championship.
44hp at 14000rpm and a top speed over 230kmh, 78kg.
MBA 125 GP 1977/1985
Born in 1976 from a rib of Morbidelli Factory team to offer good and honest bikes for privateers. MBA was first an acronym for Morbidelli-Benelli-Armi. Closely related to Giancarlo's 125GP, they differ for a less compressed engine (14:1 instead of 15,5:1). After the departed of Giancarlo, which decided to focus only on his Factory, in 1978 MBA started to develop and build its bikes inhouse, and the acronym changed in Moto-Benelli-Armi.
The bikes were pretty fast, but expensive, circa 4000000 lire.
1977 125GP around 35hp and 80kg. 1985 125GP around 44hp.
Yamaha TZ250 1978
This is a replica of the same bike used by the rider Massimo Matteoni. World Motorcycle Gran Prix rider, Massimo won also in 1985 the European Championship in 250 class.
He tested and developed also Bimota race bikes, Yamaha and Honda, and invented some interesting devices applied to his GP bikes.
This TZ250 represents the perfect manifesto creativity: started from 1978 TZ250E the customizations changed its profile and was also updated on tech specs with a double front disc brake, new forks, new fairing, and alloy wheels. And now it looks like a modern 1981 TZ250H.
Circa 53hp at 10500rpm.
Garelli 250 GP 1985
The Garelli recipe, for its race bike, it's simple: rotating disk and monocoque frame for 50cc, 125cc, and 250cc classes. High performance, around 70hp for the 250GP, brings high consumption: with 1 liter of fuel mix 2%, it was capable to cover only 9km.
70hp at the considerable amount of 12000rpm, and 102kg.
Bimota TESI 1D SR 1992
Stranger in the night.. Engineer Pierluigi Marconi private bike. A pure form of art on wheels. HERE some info about it.
851cc Desmo4 brought till 904cc, able of 113hp at 8500rpm.
201kg dry weight.
Cagiva Supermono 1994/Geminiani Special Open 2000
Luca Pasini's bikes. Father of Mattia, World Motorcycle Gran Prix rider, Luca was also a great rider, that ridden different bikes, from the light two-stroke GP till the ephemeral SUPERMONO.
Like this one, built from a Cagiva Mito frame where it was placed a Husqvarna 530 engine brought till 575cc. And in 1994 he won the Italian title of this innovative and "cheap" championship.
Bimota 500-V2 1997
The first Bimota equipped with an engine built in the Factory. A real two-stroke sportbike with electronic injection, a revolution in the 90s. Its misfortune was to be born in the last days of the powerful 500GP, in 1997, despite the project Tesi V-2 started in 1993.
110hp at 9000rpm, 180kg for a unicum in motorcycles panorama.
Also this one belongs to Engineer Pierluigi Marconi.
Gilera 125GP 2001/Aprilia RSV 250GP 2003
Two real winners: with one of the greatest Italian rider: Manuel Poggiali.
The Derbi-Gilera, called it this way after the Piaggio acquisition of the Spanish Derbi, was madly powerful and insanely light, 70kg the bike, and with Manuel on, only 135kg. Able of 50hp at 12500rpm, with this red bullet, Manuel achieved in 2001 the World Title. And only two years later he repeated what done in 125 class. With the lethal weapon made in Noale, the RSV 250 GP, Manuel won at first attempt the 250 Title in 2003, with 4 victories.
Over 100hp at 12750rpm and 96kg in dry weight specs.
44hp at 14000rpm and a top speed over 230kmh, 78kg.
MBA 125 GP 1977/1985
1977 125GP around 35hp and 80kg. 1985 125GP around 44hp.
Yamaha TZ250 1978
He tested and developed also Bimota race bikes, Yamaha and Honda, and invented some interesting devices applied to his GP bikes.
This TZ250 represents the perfect manifesto creativity: started from 1978 TZ250E the customizations changed its profile and was also updated on tech specs with a double front disc brake, new forks, new fairing, and alloy wheels. And now it looks like a modern 1981 TZ250H.
Circa 53hp at 10500rpm.
Garelli 250 GP 1985
70hp at the considerable amount of 12000rpm, and 102kg.
Bimota TESI 1D SR 1992
851cc Desmo4 brought till 904cc, able of 113hp at 8500rpm.
201kg dry weight.
Cagiva Supermono 1994/Geminiani Special Open 2000
Like this one, built from a Cagiva Mito frame where it was placed a Husqvarna 530 engine brought till 575cc. And in 1994 he won the Italian title of this innovative and "cheap" championship.
Bimota 500-V2 1997
110hp at 9000rpm, 180kg for a unicum in motorcycles panorama.
Also this one belongs to Engineer Pierluigi Marconi.
Gilera 125GP 2001/Aprilia RSV 250GP 2003
The Derbi-Gilera, called it this way after the Piaggio acquisition of the Spanish Derbi, was madly powerful and insanely light, 70kg the bike, and with Manuel on, only 135kg. Able of 50hp at 12500rpm, with this red bullet, Manuel achieved in 2001 the World Title. And only two years later he repeated what done in 125 class. With the lethal weapon made in Noale, the RSV 250 GP, Manuel won at first attempt the 250 Title in 2003, with 4 victories.
Over 100hp at 12750rpm and 96kg in dry weight specs.
And well, that's all, Fellas!
Or maybe not.
Or maybe I'm forgetting something. Or someone.
Let me think.. These two represent the flag of Motorcycle Riders in Romagna. A lionheart is hidden under the leather suit. Humble and generous, but ready to give everything once on track.
Ciao Renzo,
Ciao Marco,
