New Vacansoleil Bianchi Oltre, and Lotto-Belisol 2012 kits look spiffy

It's about that time of the year for teams and bike manufacturers to show off what's new for 2012. Vacansoleil, coming off a pretty successful Tour in 2011, will ride historic Italian bike manufacturer Bianchi in 2012. Bianchi not really Italian anymore (unfortunately) and is currently owned by a Swedish company that also owns other cycling companies. Bianchi is one of most historic names in cycling. Fausto Coppi raced to most of his historic wins with Team Bianchi.

Mario Ferretti, a famous Italian cycling announcer, in 1949 started a Giro D'Italia broadcast with arguably the most famous words in cycling history, "Un uomo solo è al comando; la sua maglia è biancoceleste; il suo nome è Fausto Coppi." ("There is one man alone in the lead, his jersey is celeste, and his name is Fausto Coppi.)

Celeste, the most recognizable and historic color in cycling.  I am so glad that Bianchi, who once went away from this color on its top end bikes, has finally embraced it. It is and always will be their signature. Anything from Bianchi that is not celeste is a disappointment in my opinion. The new Oltre has received good review, and i have to admit that the Vacansoleil 2012 edition looks really stunning.

 

I really love the FFWD wheels and the color matching, and it should be interesting to see how the kits will look to match the bikes. 

Talking about kits, Lotto-Belisol recently debuted their redesigned 2012 kits, and I think the look pretty good.

I really wasn't a fan of the 2011 Omega-Pharma Lotto kits, but this is really tastefully made. The team has signed a deal with Ridley, said to be a 8 year commitment from the Belgian company. The bikes that the team will ride in 2012 have not been manufactured yet, but Ridley's website is showcasing the design for the bike. (LINK)
Once again it seems like team and sponsors are really pushing some awesome new designs and as fans we should really be thankful because that's how the sport is going to continue to grow.