Homage to Century ride
To celebrate the Santa Fe event’s 32nd anniversary, vintage bicycles will be in the spotlight
Anew wrinkle is hitting the Santa Fe Century ride when it takes to the streets May 21. The Vintage Bike Pageant and Celebration will pay homage to the start of the annual event that began 32 years ago, said Santa Fe resident Jeff Della Penna, who has been pushing for the idea for several years.
“The original event started in Italy,” he said. “That event, now you can only get in through a lottery. They have 6,000 people … all riding bikes older than 1987. Some bikes go all the way back to turn of the (20th) century.”
Della Parma won a coveted slot in the Italian event but was unable make it, so he created his own in Santa Fe to coincide with the Italian ride.
“I fell in love with that whole idea of these bikes that are older and you have to take care of them,” he said. “I’ve been pitching it to the Santa Fe Century for the last five years, and I finally talked them into doing a vintage category. This year, they said, ‘Yes, let’s try it.’”
The beauty of the Century ride, Della Parma said, is its focus on fun.
“I’ve been riding the SF Century forever,” he said. “I don’t go back the full 32 years, but I’ve been riding a really long time. I’ve always loved the aspect that it wasn’t about the competitiveness. You show up and leave whenever you want to. You ride it, come in, and you’re finished. I always made a big effort to stop at all the rest stops because I thought it was the polite thing to do. Usually I didn’t need anything; I just wanted to stop and say hello. That’s always been my attitude about the Century.”
But with the recent addition of the Gran Fondo and Fondo events, the Century took on a more competitive edge and Della Parma really wanted to encourage the fun aspect of the event.
“You get some funny looks,” Della Parma said. “It’s pretty obvious it’s an older style. I had been upgrading the bike every year or two. This year, I have a pristine Bianchi from 1986 that I actually bought from a dealer in Belgium. They’ve seen some miles, so you have to take care of them. But this is more about having the enjoyment of the ride.”
Albuquerque rider Tom Candelaria got hooked on the genre six or seven years ago and won’t ride anything else.
“I just love how beautiful they are,” he said. “They are truly pieces of art. They’re amazing, the craftsmanship. Each has a lot of history and tradition that goes into building each one of these bikes.”
Candelaria is meticulous in finding the correct parts for his bikes, his favorite of which is a 1971 Masi Grand Criterium equipped with Campagnolo parts.
“It’s like riding a cloud,” he said. “I’ve sourced pieces from Italy, Belgium, the UK, throughout the world. Even Japan.”
Having the chance to show it off during the Santa Fe Century will be a true treat, Candelaria said.
“I think it’s great,” he said. “There are tons of vintage bikes. They don’t realize how many are still out there. They’re fun to ride, a challenge to ride.”