The initial signs of crisis

In Italy in the 1950s the wounds of the Second World War were still clear but were healing quickly. The reconstruction was at a good stage, the first signs could be seen of what would be a real economic miracle and Italians looked forward, leaving behind them the horrors and deprivations suffered just a few years before.
Motorbikes and scooters were becoming more and more common on roads.
The same thing had happened 30 years before with bikes, a real rarity at the beginning, followed by an ever greater number of means of locomotion. The advent of motorcycles led to a time of inevitable decline for bicycles, which were certainly cheaper but more humble, tiresome and slow. Cycling continued to be all the rage with its champions on the pages of newspapers and around tables in bars, but the industry figures reduced significantly.
The same thing happened to Wilier Triestina. After having a maximum workforce of 300 people, with a production of 250 pieces a day, the company gradually entered a period of crisis which was reflected in the Dal Molin’s commitment in competitions.
After the marvels of the previous years, in 1951 the red-halberd team was forced to downsize.
At the end of his athletic career, Giordano Cottur got on the team car to direct Elio Brasola and his brother Annibale, Barbiero, Cremonese, Grosso, Moresco, Pasotti, Roma and Zoppas. Naturally the results were not ideal. Wilier Triestina lived on the memories of its glorious past, but there was no place for it in the limelight of great cycling.


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1st October 2013