In 1981, a young Fausto Pinarello was sat at home in northern Italy, watching the conclusion of that year's Giro d'Italia on TV. The victor was Giovanni Battaglin – a man who would one day produce Giro-winning bikes himself. Battaglin romped away on the Tre Cime di Lavaredo with two stages to go to secure what would be his only Giro victory.
But Fausto Pinarello, then just 19 years old, was not so interested in the manner of Battaglin's success as the machine he achieved it on. It was, inevitably, a Pinarello. The punchline being that it had been painted by Pinarello himself. It proved inspirational and changed the course of his future.
