1971 Gitane Super Corsa

[LouB]

I also posted on CR, so please excuse the duplication, but I wanted to cover all the bases.

Here is our Gitane Super Corsa. Rear hub stamped '70, front hub '71. I acquired this from Hank Cunningham of Helotes Bicycle and Hank and I (thats 90% = Hank and 10% = Lou) went through all the bearings, cleaned and regreased. Mounted lovely FMB silk tubulars. Cleaned and polished the &^% out of every nook and cranny. She is a virtual time capsule. Brake pads still have their ridge from the molds. Paint is pretty much perfect and all stickers are original. She is all Campy inc. brakes with Cinelli stem and bars. I'll replace the Brooks Professional with an Ideale 90 when I save up some $$s. This project has been a joy, with all the best our hobby/passion has to offer. I was able to learn from a master and had a hell of a lot of fun doing so. I rode it for the first time today, and its smooth, fast and elegant. I'm a happy boy!
Lou Boffa
San Antonio, Texas
USA

 

[bulldog1935]

tricolor pump is a nice touch

 

[Eric Amlie]

I'd love to have one of these in 56 cm.
I have a couple ca. '71 TdFs in 56 cm but the Super Corsas are much harder to find.

 

[petritl]

I was able to see this bike in person today and it is really a time capsule. Lou was gracious and allowed me to go for a ride, what a plush ride.

 

[harpon]

My first full-campy bike was a Gitane Super Corsa I got in the summer of 1971 at Steve's cycle Center in Dayton Ohio, $400 retail. It was purple with yellow bar tape and those same decals, Dunlop sew ups, and the same zefal tri-color aluminum pump- which go these days for ridiculous prices the rare times they come up on e-bay. I replicated one last year with a plastic zefal pump I first painted chrome silver and then used anno red and blue on the separate ends- it came out really nice. It was a good bike but just a shade tall for me at 60cm. In a few years I used most of the parts to build up a Colnago frame, and sold it then. I've almost bought lesser models with the same paint- but yes, Super Corsas are kinda rare.

 

[LouB]

My first full-campy bike was a Gitane Super Corsa I got in the summer of 1971 at Steve's cycle Center in Dayton Ohio, $400 retail. It was purple with yellow bar tape and those same decals, Dunlop sew ups, and the same zefal tri-color aluminum pump- which go these days for ridiculous prices the rare times they come up on e-bay. I replicated one last year with a plastic zefal pump I first painted chrome silver and then used anno red and blue on the separate ends- it came out really nice. It was a good bike but just a shade tall for me at 60cm. In a few years I used most of the parts to build up a Colnago frame, and sold it then. I've almost bought lesser models with the same paint- but yes, Super Corsas are kinda rare.

It took me a while to find one. Funny thing is I looked all over the country for almost a year and then found this beautiful example--in my size--close to home. How lucky am I!

 

[harpon]

Yes, there is reality. Few find it, ESPecially concerning others and SS Gi tanes.....