There are few companies in the cycling world that can boast more than 100 years of history, among these there is MicheThe Venetian brand produces wheels, groupsets and components for all types of bicycles, from the road to the mountain bike, with a specific range for electric bikes and also for the track. In the track sector, Miche supplies the Italian national team. We talked about this collaboration and not only with Paolo Bisceglia, Sales Manager of Miche and we can define him as a historical figure of the company.
Suppliers of the Italian track team
During our visit to the Italian national track team we noticed that some components were marked by Miche.
«Our collaboration with the Italian national team concerns some components – Paolo Bisceglia begins – who are the complete cranksets with bottom bracket and the gears, le chains and sprockets, both in the normal version and in the version Be Giorni, which is the one with the highest ratios, that is the front chainrings ranging from 59 to 63».
Wide range of ratios
These gear ratios may seem "monstrous" to ordinary mortals, but track riders regularly push them, seeking the most advantageous balance with the rear sprockets. It was precisely in Montichiari that we saw some of the girls trying them out in training. ratios such as 61×14 or 57×13The choice varied based on the type of work they had to do and also based on the feelings of each individual. Precisely for this reason Miche supplies the Italian national team with both the line Six Days that the most standard Advanced which has a range of ratios that goes from 44 to 58.
Special chains
Even on the floor of the chains the track requires some particular characteristics, in fact, the thickness is greater than 9 millimeters, while for a road chain also produced by Miche and compatible with Shimano 11-speed, we are at 5,5 millimeters. Paolo Bisceglia anticipated that: «Looking ahead to 2021, we are working on a new type of chain, which we're developing right now." Even though we insisted on more information, Miche doesn't want to reveal too many details about this new chain. But the news doesn't end there.
Miche Active
"We're currently finalizing the renewal agreement with the Italian national team," Paolo Bisceglia continues, "and I can tell you that we'll almost certainly also provide the Azzurri with our latest innovation, the Attiva Pista crankset, with the integrated SRM power meter." It will certainly be a great innovation that will be appreciated by our track cyclists and offers a series of advantages: "Having the SRM power meter has the advantage that once calibrated, it no longer requires further adjustments, even if you need to change the length of the cranks or the chainring to change gears." This is a great advantage, especially on the track, where gears are frequently changed depending on the many variables at play.
And on the road?
We asked Paolo Bisceglia what 2021 will be like for Miche in terms of presence in the professional world: «For next year we will collaborate with Androni Giocattoli to whom we will supply the wheels Supertype 38 and 50 mm profile in the version for tubulars with disc brakes. In addition to these wheels we also supply the Supertype with a 40mm profile but for clinchers that kids can use both in training and in competition. For the chronometer we will provide him with the lenticular as rear and the 50 and 88 mm wheels at the front. In this case I'm for traditional brakes, because time trial bikes don't have discs."
The pros are the test
Finally, we asked if Miche uses these collaborations to develop new products and have them tested by riders. «We develop and test our products internally, We provide teams with safe, reliable, and high-performance materials. For us, safety comes first. we receive feedback from the professionals who are our testing ground, if they are good for them then it means we have worked well".
