I bought a ton of stuff from the Motorola team when they were liquidating, including Jesus Montoya's "Caloi by Eddy Merckx" Litespeed-built titanium time trial bike. I was told by the team staff that the '94 titanium bikes were just repainted for the '95 season, w/the new Caloi stickers added. No mention anywhere on this bike of it being built by Litespeed, but that is indeed who built it.
I am really surprised that you weren't able to buy a titanium bike thru Motorola, as up at the Waukesha headquarters of the team, everything was for sale. And I mean everything. Hell, they were even trying to sell used tubulars.
Dave Patrick Chelsea, Michigan
Todd Kuzma <tullio@TheRamp.net> wrote:
on 2/23/05 4:55 PM, Angel Garcia at veronaman@comcast.net wrote:
> BTW, there was a Motorola Merckx at Trexlertown last year which was unlike
> any Merckx I had seen. Normally this is lugged steel bike. This one was way
> different. When I asked the seller about it he said it was a, "Ti bike made
> by DeRosa for Merckx". This would have been from the early 90s. It was
> pricey but nice. I guess DeRosa still had a relationship with Merckx (if the
> seller is to be believed).
If it's a Motorola team frame and made from Ti, it was built by Litespeed. In 1993, Lance Armstrong unofficially won the World Championships on a stock Litespeed painted in Merckx team colors. EM later displayed a lugged bike at tradeshows claiming it was the WC bike. Pictures of the WC race clearly show Armstrong on a TIG'd bike with Litespeed's ovalized tubing.
In 1994, Eddy Merckx unveiled an official EM titanium frame that was manufactured to EM specs by Litespeed. These frames were labeled "Eddy Merckx by Litespeed." The following year, the Motorola team switched frame sponsors to Caloi, but EM still made the frames. They were labeled "Caloi by Eddy Merckx." I never was able to determine if titanium team frames were labeled "Caloi by Eddy Merckx by Litespeed."
I worked at Motorola at the time this all happened and had contact with the equipment guys for the team. We were able to buy team frames at the end of the year. I asked them if I could buy one of the unofficial titanium frames from the 1993 season. They acknowledged that they had them, but they said that they couldn't sell one to me since they didn't officially exist.
So, I think that it's unlikely that this frame was one of the unofficial 1993 frames. It is likely a 1994 frame that was an official EM model. These were available as a regular EM model to the public (even in team colors), but it should say "Eddy Merckx by Litespeed" on it somewhere. Todd Kuzma
Heron Bicycles
Tullio's Big Dog Cyclery
LaSalle, IL 815-223-1776
http://www.heronbicycles.com
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