The Cinelli Laser, together with the Supercorsa, is the most legendary racing bike Cinelli has ever produced and is still custom made, however in carbon. The name of this carbon version is Laser Mia.
The Cinelli Laser time trial bicycle in Columbus steel from the 1980s
1981 Laser originated
De eerste Cinelli Laser is ontstaan in 1981 uit een schets van Antonio Colombo en geïnspireerd op de eerste Franse aerodynamische fietsen die Antonio op een beurs in Japan gezien had. De complexe constructie van het frame werd mogelijk gemaakt door de samenwerking tussen Cinelli en Columbus, de bekendste buizenfabrikant die 2 jaar daarvoor door Colombo werd overgenomen.
For the first prototype, pieces of the chassis of a Fiat cinquecento were used to fill in the corners that give the Laser aero aspect. Colombo and his team were looking for a thin but sturdy steel plate.
The first Cinelli Laser Strada from 1981
It was not until the end of 1982, when four Laser frames were commissioned by Cinelli for the Italian Junior National Team, the success story of the Laser that became a real icon in the 80s and 90s began thanks to a full team (formed by the frame builder Andrea Pesenti, the Columbus engineer Paolo Erzegovesi, Antonio Colombo and other collaborators).
The innovative use of TIG welds (until then unknown in the racing bike industry), along with the use of reinforcements welded to the frame junctions (lugs), made the Laser more aerodynamic and also allowed for radical repositioning of the bracket.
position bottom bracket Laser relative to a traditional racing bicycle (red dotted line)
De herpositionering van de bracket zorgde er tevens voor dat Cinelli een aanzienlijk stijver frame kon maken en een korter kader, met duidelijke voordelen waaronder een verkorting van het treintje in een ploegentijdrit. Deze productie-innovatie anticipeerde sterk op één van de belangrijkste kenmerken van de moderne carbonfietsen en blijft vandaag de basis van het ontwerp van de Laser Mia.
Below an advertisement from the 80s for the Cinelli Laser
Regarded as the best of Italian custom frames, the Laser Cinelli has won more Olympic and gold medals in time trial on the track and on the road than any other bike in cycling history.
Variants Cinelli Laser
Over the years, different variants have come onto the market, including Columbus Max and Columbus Air tubes
- Laser Air Pursuit
- Laser Evoluzione
- Laser Nuova Evoluzione
- Laser America
- Laser America Max
- Laser Crono Squadra
- Laser Rivoluzione Pista
- Laser Max
- Laser Track Tandem
- Laser Stayer
- Laser Ammortizzata
- Laser Hyperian
- Laser Nostra
Cinelli Laser Air Pursuit 1983
The Cinelli Laser America from 1986
Cinelli Laser Crono Strada – foto Vintage.Space
Cinelli Laser Evoluzione 1984
Cinelli Laser Evoluzione 1984
Cinelli Nuova Evoluzione 1989
Cinelli Laser Max
Cinelli Laser Stayer
Cinelli Laser Tandem
Cinelli Laser Ammortizzata 1986
Cinelli Experimentele Laser Track 1985
The collaboration with Keith Haring
In 1986 Antonio Colombo meets a young Keith Haring in Milan who is working on the new Fiorucci store. The two become friends and Colombo gives the artist an orange mountain bike that Haring uses in Manhattan traffic.
Colombo also gives Haring a Laser bicycle as a gift and when Colombo is in New York four years later, Haring invites him to his studio to pick up the Laser back. On the full wheels, Haring painted his famous figures, together with a little boy crawling on the left side of the horizontal tube. From then on, this bicycle will become the symbol of all the values that the Cinelli company represents, namely innovation and art.
De Cinelli Laser restyled by Keith Haring
Awards for Cinelli Laser
Even years after the first production of the Laser, this revolutionary bicycle still wins prizes: in 1991 the Laser Evoluzione wins the Compasso d'Oro, the most prestigious recognition in the world of design.
A Cinelli Laser is even exposed in the Museum of Modern Art in Chicago.
In 2013, a 2011 Cinelli Laser Nostra has been sold for $ 47,500 at the auction of Red, a nonprofit of Sir Jonathan Ive, Marc Newson and Bono, from Sotheby's in New York.
The carbon version Laser Mia
De nieuwe Laser Mia is de eerste Cinelli Laser gemaakt uit carbon. Het is het resultaat van een samenwerking van het originele Team uit 1981, is 100% Made in Italy en combineert de technologie van avant-gardematerialen en vakmanschap wat niet kan geïmiteerd worden door massaproductie. Het gewicht van het frame bedraagt slechts 980 gram
The Cinelli Laser Mia in carbon version
