DUILIO AGOSTINI and the Australian connection
No relation to Giacomo, Duilio Agostini was born in the home of Moto Guzzi, Mandello del Lario in 1926. Working as a waiter at his parents’ hotel, the Hotel Restaurant del Porto (now the Giardinetto) on Lake Como, Duilio met executives and race riders from Moto Guzzi who frequented the restaurant, and after the war, he joined the factory. Following a period in the Client Service section he was promoted to the role of test rider for road bikes, and later joined the Experimental Department to test the competition machines. By 1950 he had begun racing, and was victorious in his very first event, receiving amongst his prizes, a second hand Moto Guzzi Dondolino racer. He used this to good effect, winning several of the major public road races, including the famous Milano to Taranto event which ran virtually the entire length of Italy, averaging a record 109.7 km/h. These successes led to elevation to the official Moto Guzzi team, although he was regarded as a factory employee rather than a full works rider. Despite often using second string bikes, he became 250cc Italian Champion, beating works rider Lorenzetti. When at Spa-Francorchamps competing in the 1955 Belgian Grand Prix, Duilio met Margaret Ward, a young Australian woman who was on a working holiday in Europe, travelling with her friend Dorothy Tomkin and Aussie racer Bob Brown. The couple soon began a serious relationship and were married in September 1956. By this stage, Duilio was 30 and with the memories of many friends and fellow competitors who had left widows and children after racing accidents, was considering his future. When Moto Guzzi pulled out of racing in 1957 it triggered his retirement from racing and he set up a workshop specialising in Guzzi in his home town, as well as taking on the management of a new AGIP service station. The business grew to incorporate a Moto Guzzi dealership and later a major Service Centre for the brand, where he was assisted by his daughters Alis and Lindy. It became a “must visit” for Guzzi enthusiasts and especially travelling Australians. Duilio remained involved with the sport as an entrant, preparing a pair of V7 Sport bikes for Endurance racing. He also formed the Moto Club Carlo Guzzi and organised several popular rallies, including one to celebrate the marque’s 60th birthday in 1981.
Duilio passed away in 2008 but eldest daughter Alis continued to manage the business until 2010. A few years earlier, Australian Guzzi enthusiast Peter Bradley had decided to take a year off to tour Europe following the death of his wife from cancer. Peter was one of the founders of the Classic Italian Motorcycle Association in Australia. Naturally his European tour included a visit to Mandello, where he made contact with
Alis Agostini, and a romance blossomed. Nearly twenty years on, Peter and Alis are still living at Mandello de Lario, on the shores of the stunningly beautiful Lake Como.