Becycle was a three-day celebration of cycling culture, industry and passion, launched to coincide with the Tour de France Grand Départ in Florence. Alec Seaman was invited along to soak up the atmosphere and sent in this great write up.

Image courtesy of Pitti Immagine/AKA Collective

I stepped from the plane in Pisa and cold water rushed straight over my flip-flops, hardly the most auspicious of starts! Just an hour earlier, a summer storm had rolled through the region, leaving a trail of flash floods and battered Tour de France street-decorations in its wake and I was seriously questioning my wardrobe choices. 

I'd come to Florence for the Becycle Show, which Pitti Immagine had organised to coincide with the beginning of this year's Tour de France.

Image courtesy of Pitti Immagine/Astra Marina

I'll be honest - bike shows of late have left me a bit flat. Generic, sprawling, soulless conference facilities, lit for dental surgery and packed with a catastrophe of branding and colours that assault the senses and quickly leave me wanting nothing more than a dark room and some ibuprofen. 

As I sat alone in a late-night pizzeria, shivering slightly, I couldn't help but wonder what the rest of the week might hold in store. 101 days earlier, 'Becycle' wasn't even an idea. Pitti Immagine had never organised a bike show before and knowing this, I couldn't help but wonder what the next couple of days would have in store.

Image courtesy of Pitti Immagine/AKA Collective

The Road to Redemption

The next day, my doubts quickly evaporated in the morning sunshine as I walked toward Stazione Leopolda. Florence's first train station is now a hub for creativity. The building has been sympathetically restored and although it is not huge, it has a rustic grandeur. 

Image courtesy of Pitti Immagine/AKA Collective

Rouleur had come onboard as the event's media partner and for anyone familiar with the Rouleur Live show in London, their influence on the show was unmistakable - quality over quantity. Visitors were invited to delve beneath the data, discover more of the 'why' and broaden their connection with cycling beyond road racing. 

With only 100 days to organise the show, Pitti focused on Italian cycling culture, industry and passion for this year's event and rightly so. As you would expect, Italian brands such as 3T, Colnago, Campagnolo, De Rosa and Passoni, and guests including Vincenzo Nibali, Paolo Bettini and Omar Di Felice were the main focus of attention. 

Image courtesy of Pitti Immagine/AKA Collective

Of course, with Florence hosting this year's TdF Grande Départ, the influence of road cycling was unmistakable. Christian Prudhomme, the Tour’s race director, took time to visit the show on its opening day. With a nod to Pitti's background in fashion and acknowledging Florence as a global centre for textiles and fabrics, they convinced Sir Paul Smith to relocate his famously chaotic Aladdin’s cave of cycling memorabilia to a wing of the station.

Defying Conventions

Beyond emphasising Italian brands and cycling personalities, what you might have 'expected' from a bike show stopped outside. Exhibitors weren't packed in cheek-by-jowl, which meant they didn't need to bombard your senses to capture and hold your attention. The venue, while grand, was small enough that you did not need to wear hiking boots or rush around hoping you didn't miss something important. There wasn't a 'trade day'. Brands were mixed in together, as were the representatives from the different European destinations who had chosen to attend the show.

Image courtesy of Pitti Immagine/Astra Marina

In short, Pitti created the space and time to fully immerse yourself in an authentically Italian cycling experience. As you walked through the show, you were equally inspired by what you might ride, as where you might ride it, and what you might do along the way. 

Rougher Roads

Pride of place may have been given to grand tour road bikes this year, but gravel was, without a doubt, the hot topic, especially from destination partners like Eroica, Regione Basilicata and Valtellina. 

Image courtesy of Pitti Immagine/Astra Marina

It seems that every region of Italy is reviving old rights of way, creating new routes (mostly traffic-free) and actively promoting them - an excellent example of which is the region of Basilicata. The Agenzia di Promozione Territoriale della Basilicata (APT Basilicata for short) has worked with local, professional road cyclist Domenico Pozzovivo to create an App called Basilicata Free to Move to help people explore the region. There are dozens of routes across the region. The crown in their collection is undoubtedly the Anello dei Parchi lucani – a 718km route with 13,200m of climbing which explores abandoned towns, remote areas and stunning geology - it's certainly a route we at Gravel Union want to explore!

Image courtesy of Pitti Immagine/AKA Collective

And the regions aren't alone in this endeavour. I sat in on one talk about Wine Bike Tourism (not sure why that appealed so much) - and I was struck that there was a panel comprising not cyclists, but Masters of Wine and Vineyard owners talking passionately about the role of gravel cycling in the wine industry. Strada Bianche and L'Eroica have made a romantic connection between wine and cycling, and the vineyards want to work with regions to make the routes to strengthen that connection further - after all, they laugh, cyclists spend 30% more on wine than non-cyclists.

Beyond the TdF and 2024

So, once the TdF has finished with Florence, what will the future of Becycle look like? Hopefully, it will not be dramatically different - ideally, it will retain its smaller, more intimate feel and continue to focus on bringing the broader aspects of cycling culture together. Based on my experience at this year's show, gravel and adventurous riding will come more to the fore.  

Indeed, both Matteo Cassina (owner of Rouleur) and Silvia Livoni Colombo (Public Relations at Toscana Promozione Turistica) envisage a continuation of this new blended-format event. While it may move to a different time of year, and the focus may become more international, Florence will remain the home for this new event.

For me, it was a surprisingly refreshing approach. Pitti Immagine, Silvia and Matteo have created a new format, more of a celebration of cycling and I look forward to visiting again.

Alec's travel and accommodation were provided courtesy of the Italian Trade Agency