 |
Legend |
 |
|
Corporate |
 |
|
|
It was in the year 1885 when
Edoardo Bianchi, then 21 years old, started
his enterprise as a bicycle manufacturer in
his little shop in Milan, at via Nirone. The
deep innovative zeal distinguished him above
all the constructors of his era.
His first idea, conceived 120 years ago, was to reduce the diameter of
the front wheel and balance the gap of the motion with the application
of a chain, which had just been invented by the Frenchman Vincent, and
then to lower down the height of the pedals.
And so “Safety” was born: a safety cycle and the very first
modern bicycle.
One of the main advantages of this new means of transport was stability:
no acrobatics were need to keep balance. Then Edoardo designed a similar
vehicle, whose wheel diameter was further reduced and which had both front
and rear wheels almost of the same size. Italy found out the manufacturer
that would have marked the Italian production all through the century.
The “little blacksmith”, as he was called, moved his workshop
from via Nirone to via Bertani to enlarge it. In this new working place,
he produced, in 1888, the first
bicycle with tyres, a recent invention by the Scottish veterinary Dunlop.
In 1895, Edoardo Bianchi was invited
to Court, at Villa Reale in Monza: Queen Margaret had heard about his original
bicycle and was eager to learn how to ride it. Then Bianchi created, especially
for the Queen, the first lady’s bike. Since the very beginning of
his activity, Edoardo Bianchi had been very keen-witted about innovations
and watchful about the sports sector.
Bicycle competitions were just the perfect chance for the young manufacturer
to test his new technical solutions before taking them to production.
Bianchi’s first international sport success dates back to 1899,
when Tomaselli won the Grand Prix de la Ville de Paris. This is how Bianchi’s
adventure started: sports competitions fuelled the growth of an enterprise
which was born just four years before as a workshop, but was going to become
one of the most important industries in the world |
|
 |
|