by Riccardo Giannini
A large bicycle built with waste materials, 5 meters long and 3 and a half meters high: it is a tribute to the Tour de France created by Pier Domenico Cancellieri, the only resident of theiconic castle located on the Galasso stone, in Secchiano di Novafeltria.
Pier Domenico is a great cycling enthusiast: “I took holidays to watch the great Pantani face the uphill stages”. His passion for this sport gave birth to the spark for something that could pay homage to the Tour caravan, but also showcase the Alta Valmarecchia, which thanks to the first stage Florence-Rimini will be “viral”, on all television channels in the world . “MI was told: I have to do something. My rock (Galasso’s stone, ed.) it’s right at the point where cyclists will turn to go to San Leo.”
The idea became reality. Cancellieri visited a carpenter in the area and stocked up on waste material. “I started with the wheels, 2.10 meters in diameter”. Helped by some friends, he also added the figure of a cyclist, with the climber’s polka-dot shirt: “No, it’s not Pantani, it would be disrespectful. But yes, I could call him Pogacar, the Slovenian champion is very good on climbs.”
The particular “sculpture” took shape and was completed after 6 days of work. Insignificant costs: a few tens of euros in screws and paints. Everything installed to perfection, anchored safely to the ground, so that the large bike is resistant even to the impetuous summer weather. Like the Tour cyclists, who are often forced to tackle stages in very unfavorable weather conditions. To complete everything, the LED headlights that recharge to illuminate the large bike at night.
But what will happen to the big bike at the end of the Tour? “I’ll dismantle it, maybe give it away. He was born like this, as a pensioner I have a lot of time. But I also hope that it was an opportunity to remind the Municipality of Novafeltria of the castle…” A tourist attraction that deserves adequate valorisation and which we have told you about in an article, a few months ago. “Anyone who wants to come and see the castle is always welcome, for him there is always a glass of wine”, smiles Pier Domenico. His work can become the symbol of Valmarecchia for the Grande Boucle: “We hope to enhance our beautiful territory thanks to the Tour de France”.
