Velo City: Bicycle Culture and City Life

Pelizzoli Leggenda

Pelizzoli Leggenda

For fans of classic Italian racing bicycles, the re-emergence of Giovanni Pelizzoli must be a welcome sight. You should be familiar with his Ciocc marque and the legendary San Cristobal frame: Cicli Pelizzoli is the banner under which he is now producing frames, with his son.

The range includes three fully lugged Columbus SL frames—two road-faring frames and a Pista—and the Leggenda, a triple-butted Columbus ALTEC frame coupled with an SL fork.

Pelizzoli Leggenda

Patrick Thames, of the fixed gear site Pedal Consumption, did his best to disguise his enthusiasm for the Leggenda through his minimal updates, and he has been waiting for a break in Portland’s rainy weather to snap some shots of the build. He tells the story thus:

“When I first saw the Pelizzoli Leggenda on their site, I was quickly captivated by the similarities of the 1992 Cannondale Track. The electric blue was popping and the tight geometry was shouting out my name. Without a doubt, this was to be my next frameset.

“I quickly sent Pelizzoli my Fit-System specs and opted to make a few custom changes to the frame… such as widening the chainstays to accommodate a larger tire.

Pelizzoli Leggenda
Pelizzoli Leggenda

“As my frameset was being made, I started visualizing the build in my head and making a list of the components I would be using. I decided to use my Campagnolo parts mixed in with some high-end Japanese components. When the frameset arrived, I was immediately putting it together in the garage.

“I ran into a few hiccups, but all in all, this was a fun build and it came out exactly how I envisioned it. Once completely built, I couldnʼt ignore the quality craftsmanship of the frameset — I gazed over and over the fine details.

Pelizzoli Leggenda

“The day I took it out for a test ride was blissful. It took quite some time to get used to the compact geo and the huge toe overlap, but after an hour or so I felt very cohesive with the bike.

“I’m proud of this build and honored to have this bike in my hands. The folks at Pelizzoli are true artisans and very pleasant to deal with. Much love to them.”

Pelizzoli Leggenda

Here’s the spec sheet:
Frame/Fork: Pelizzoli “Leggenda” Track
Headset: Campagnolo Record
Stem: Nitto Pearl
Handlebars: Nitto B-125 Alloy Drops
Grips: Champ
Seatpost: Thomson Elite
Saddle: San Marco Supercorsa
Bottom Bracket: Campagnolo Centaur (Italian)
Cranks: Campagnolo Record Track
Cog: EAI Steel 17t
Pedals: MKS Custom Nuevo
Toe Clips: Cinelli
Toe Straps: Toshi
Hubs: Shimano Dura-Ace HB-7600
Rims: H Plus Son Formation Face
Spokes: DT Swiss Competition
Nipples: DT Swiss Alloy
Front Tire: Vittoria Rubino Pro (23c)
Rear Tire: Vittoria Randonneur (28c)

Pelizzoli Leggenda
Pelizzoli Leggenda
Pelizzoli Leggenda

You can read all about Giovanni Pelizzoli’s workshop and view his work on the Cicli Pelizzoli website.