Since the early days of road racing Colnago has been one of the most desirable choices in the cycling world, with more racing pedigree and history than many brands combined. The first Colnago rolled out of the Italian factory in 1967, fast forward to 2011 and the C59 is the company’s flagship bike.
- Thomas Voeckler’s Colnago C59 (photo by Sunada)
And it’s the C59 bike that is currently doing service between the legs of the current maillot jaune wearer, the plucky Thomas Voeckler (Europcar). After featuring in the dramatic break on stage nine of the Tour de France, featuring the now catastrophic crash that has hit headlines around the world, the Frenchman pulled out enough of a lead on Thor Hushovd and the other top ten placed riders to secure the jersey. How long he can hold on to it is another matter…
With the yellow jersey comes the inevitable plethora of yellow kit, including in most instances these days a specially painted yellow frame and matching kit. In this case Colnago pulled out all the stops. Reportedly the frame was rushed from Colnago’s factory, the paint still tacky, to the Europcar team hotel on the rest day in a drive that totalled some 1400km. Gives you some idea just how much the yellow jersey in the biggest cycle race means to a bike brand.
Aside from the bright paintjob, Voeckler’s frame is essentially the same as that which you can pick up from your local dealer. It’s subtly different however, with a custom frame that measures 50cm with a 1cm longer top tube to fit the Frenchman.
Unfortunately, unless you can ride like Voeckler, you wont’ be getting your hands on one like that pictured above. Luckily for us mere mortals, Colnago have announced a Colnago C59 Europcar replica. The frame, fork and headset is yours for £3499.95.
