Ho rapito Ugo Malossi - Un viaggio a tappe lungo 90 anni
We live in a strange age. Youtubers who invent the most impossible things to go hunting for likes LORENZO MORO: well-known hunter of mechanical legends for this reason we have decided to drop the ace: today May 31, 2021, is Mr. Ugo Malossi's 90th birthday a life made of elaborate carburettors, upgraded mufflers, overbearing engines ... we decided to go and kidnap him to let him tell us the background of this story that smells of mixture and passion for engines we have chosen the right means to do things with the right style, as befits a character of this caliber. see you later! We are in Bargellino, the industrial area of Calderara. over there, towards the north-east, there is Malossi
a piece of the history of the Emilian passion for engines. Mr. Ugo Malossi, 90, in the morning at 7.30 shows up on time at the company and gets on the lathe I think he has 2% blood you can breathe the tension for this act that we are about to perform let's go! it's time guys here we go! good morning! I came to kidnap mr. ugo I HAVE KIDNAPED UGO MALOSSI, A 90-YEAR JOURNEY TO STAGES ALESSANDRA AND ANDREA MALOSSI. CHILDREN OF UGO AND CURRENT CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICERS A: Andrea this morning I was in the office, I hear Lorenzo coming from the reception, he said he had to kidnap dad, and Paola "yes of course, no problem". but sorry, come on! CHAPTER 1. THE KIDNAPPING A: and therefore I don't know where he has brought him to L: good morning! I have a very special day in store for you UGO MALOSSI. THE CORNERSTONE (STILL) OF MALOSSI S.P.A.
L: so you should come with me M: but will it be all day? L: no in the morning! A: it's incredible because dad is the first to arrive and the last to leave. half a day not on the company will be a problem L: these molds are beautiful! U: we treat them as children! they undergo thermochemical treatments that make them more resistant L: and durable over time! U: we make them with special steels for die-casting printing L: you should come with me, because there is a surprise waiting for you outside M: is it a lion? because we have the lion as a symbol L: there is also the lion M: a live lion? L: no he's not alive CHAPTER 2. THE MEANS OF ESCAPE L: you told me that you like Alfa Romeo M: I am a failed alphist because there was a void ...
M: here is the recovery ... it is risen! L: I stole this just for you, for this day L: now we will go for a ride! U: yes L: I invite you to come on board L: do you want to drive? change my plans! M: no, nothing L: after after! U: I'm a passenger M: do we still have to keep the mask? L: no we can take it off! a moment, that I have the whole path marked L: it is a 3-liter, twin-turbo V6 with more than 500 horsepower L: I would like to retrace, going there, place by place, the history of your company L: let's go to Via Bastia first, if I'm not mistaken U: we should even go to Via San Donato L: Exactly, but as a matter of logistical convenience we do the opposite U: with the film then do what you want, or the electronics even better U: the camera is no longer used L: so now let's go to Via Bastia M: really we should go back, because Via Bastia is over there L: you are a bit like a second father to us, because my brother has been working for you since 90s, if I am not wrong U: how old was he when he came to us? L: he was 18 years old, he had just left school. you conditioned my whole existence, because I grew up in the midst of these engines and scooters L: with this positive shadow of Malossi. in the summer my father sent me to work, and I remember that he sent me one summer in Via Bastia. I checked the tolerance of the cylinders M: there, with Ivan? who was there then? L: ivan! I remember this compressed air machine in which I put the cylinder, and then I had to turn it to see the tolerance. then I branded them A, A + CHAPTER 3. VIA BASTIA (THE 90's)
L: When you were in Via Bastia you had already grown up U: saying big is a word. you are never grown up L: you are never big enough! U: starting from scratch it is a fairly hard and steep staircase. L: here we are in Via Bastia! L: but there is no one left! now let's go down for a moment, that you show me M: when we were there, we cut the grass in the garden L: via Bastia represents a bit of revenge! U: I must say that there was a difficult time for our company U: we had the French importer whom we had trusted, too much trust ... and it went bankrupt. we got to the point where we risked bankruptcy too. so much so that there was a period when we too had the same weed
FABIO CANETOLI. HEAD OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT F: there was a difficult moment, where Mr. ugo made it weigh little. he explained to us about this situation. but every month we had our salary. F: we didn't give up, but this was thanks to Ugo. he in that moment of crisis said "I save the company" U: it was determination. they told me "abandon everything" L: Was there a moment when you thought you wouldn't make it? U:no. I only thought about the family and the company. U: to the future. clenching teeth. doing 15 hours a day. believing in it and trying to get help from suppliers who believed in us.
M: I couldn't think of losing everything and finding myself in the middle of the road F: has invested. he put some money into it and we left again with the scooter. a bet ... nobody believed it! and instead! A: there have been moments where you looked at yourself and said "it all ends". the bike was over now. "what's next?" you have to be careful, believe in it and throw the hook and see if there is life in the pond, as I say U: I can say this. after lunch I always had coffee. since we had these problems and worries I stopped taking it because I had heart fibrillations.
L: ah, you were getting nervous M: now that I'm 40 years older ... L: how old are you today? U: 90! I'm doing them right now L: and coffee doesn't bother you anymore? U: no L: perfect CHAPTER 4. VIA PIRETTI (THE YEARS 70 AND 80) L: here we are in Via Piretti, what happened here? L: this house, Andrea told me, that you built it! U: yes, these were fields and here the train passed. Bolognese craftsmanship has given a hand to the artisans who have joined together, and including us U:we have purchased a plot of land on which we have followed up a project and built L: how did you come here from bologna? U: all industrial activities had to leave the historic center U: we got scared and said "here they make us close, where do we go?" U: the project was the fight against pollution. it was a question of making a decentralized model carburettor service station, because in the historic center it was no longer possible U: it had to be a model city. then we saw that the operation was not that interesting. things were changing ..
SANDRO MALOSSI. BROTHER OF UGO, CO-FOUNDER AND MANAGER OF TROFEI MALOSSI S: there a new road has opened up. the development of engines and their enhancement. Ugo's ability, his desire to make improvements, had resulted in building manifolds to mount larger carburetors on engines S: what happened ?! that the Dell'Orto representatives who collaborated with us saw this market possibility and said "Ugo why don't you produce these things?" U: we dedicated a part of the workshop to a turning and machining company for the pieces we produced. L: you only did carburetors at the beginning, right? U: here we have never activated the carburetor service. We did it in Bologna, in Via Zanardi. here we only did a mechanical workshop, when Silvio arrived L: he is still working there!
SILVIO MELLACINA. HEAD OF MECHANICAL PROCESSING DEPARTMENT S: in 1980 I wanted to change jobs, as soon as I finished the military. I read an article, an advertisement in Resto Del Carlino, that there was this company, CDC Malossi, who was looking for someone to work on machine tools S: at the parallel lathe. so I went to the interview. there was this gentleman leaning, with a huge mustache. to me, 21, it was a bit scary. A: at that time he had a black mustache. he never raised his hands or scolded that much. a look was enough. when I came home, that my mother told him that I had got a bad grade, one look from him was enough to understand that you were wrong
S: I approach, all shy, and I say "I'm coming for that ad" and he "ah yes, I almost didn't remember" and I say "if you want to let me try to work" F: Ugo made me grow. I worked alongside him as well as with andrea, who was young at the time. he taught me to work as a humble person with a lot of patience. he was a tough man F: "we have to finish the project" "we have to get a result". if you don't understand something, he somehow tries to make you understand it. for example how the engine works, how to improve it, how to make it go faster S: he makes me try to work and I make pieces. he helped me make them because I didn't have those skills. he tells me "I'll let you know". after a couple of days I call him and say "Mr. Malossi, have you thought about my interview then?" and he told me "you can come whenever you want, you are the only candidate" S: there I started my adventure. after 41 years I'm still here F: I've been here for 37 years now. it so happened that I lived in the street parallel to the Malossi company. they were looking for a test driver. I was young, but why go to school !? I'm going to be a test driver!
F: knowing my story, with my father, an Alfa Romeo car mechanic. the adventure has begun. I started to assemble some reed packs, because first you have to understand how a reed works. A: if I start from via piretti, I can recognize that they have left us a great deal of freedom F: I didn't start making engines right away, I did a bit of everything in the company, and in my opinion it was a useful thing A: we had the space, and work was a game. we worked every summer. I packaged any type of product, not even understanding its usefulness A: I shared my brother's moments with his friends in the elaborations. I was the best passenger you could wish for, I wasn't afraid to get on even with the most reckless
STEVE LEONI. MECHANICAL DESIGNER S: I grew up in New Jersey. always passionate about motorcycles. as a child I used to go to racing. my father ran and was champion in the united states. he knew Ugo and always came to Italy to buy carburetors S: they won the superbike championship 3 times in america with those carburetors.
S: from what I remember my father had a great respect for Mr. Malossi. a gentleman and businessman S: it was a perfect agreement that lasted a long time. I decided to study mechanical engineering, and I was looking for a job because I wanted to live in Italy. i met mr. malossi who hired me as a designer. 20 years have passed F: still today he wants all the products to pass through me. he tells me "you know them, you have been here for many years" is a wonderful thing L: this is where the French came. they changed the cards on the table. U: it was a coincidence. Conti, who was an Italian who emigrated to France, had a moped to transform.
U: he had the idea of making a kit for the Yamaha 50 enduro. He took it to Deganello, who got his hands on it, but couldn't get the job done. he came to my brother, who called me, and I told him that Conti could leave us the moped S: a client explains to me that he was doing a transformation, of which he would have made 10 thousand pieces. we were totally out of this world. but I knew of my brother's potential and would have sworn on a lot of bibles. he asked me if we knew how to carburetor and I replied that we were the best in this U: from there we made the first transformation. the idea is always to take a piece, you mount it, be it a carburetor or a muffler, and it has to change the face of the vehicle
L: with two-stroke engines it was easier U: that's not true! absolutely the opposite. then I thought that we didn't need a soloist, but an orchestra! U: and we started like this. the first year we made 9 thousand pieces. only with Yamaha 50. S: from scratch. I swore my brother could do anything. and in fact it was U: I still have the complete kit eh! complete thermal group: cylinder, head, piston, segment. fuel system, which meant reed valve, intake duct, carburetor and air filter. U: then exhaust system, which was exhaust pipe and silencer. it was a success. then there was a law: the closure in favor of the manufacturers of Italian motors and mopeds
U: Japanese motorcycles could not enter Italy. in europe, on the other hand. we took the chance and started making the transformations. they came to us and everyone wanted exclusivity. U: back then there was the piaggio that made the Ciao, the peugeot the motobecane, and we made the transformation U: it was a bomb! the transformation in Italy was well established. not in france, as well as in germany, holland etc. all over europe there have started to be importers S: then another trouble happened. there was someone who wanted to organize competitions. and I felt like setting things in motion. S: so I also dedicated myself to this thing. at a certain point this activity was so important that we agreed that I would no longer take care of the administrative aspect, I would have dedicated myself above all to the races. and therefore I have been doing this job for 34 years L: at this point I would say to go to Bologna! so we continue the story CHAPTER 5. VIA ZANARDI (THE 60s) U: I was 3 when my family moved to the workshop in the house my father had renovated. I was always more in the workshop than at home studying
L: you have this passion for mechanics inside U: we have to go back to my father who started in the 30s, when he opened a cycle repair and construction business. L: that is, at the time there were also bicycles with the Malossi branded frame ?! also racing bikes? U: yes! L: it would be great to find one! U: almost impossible L: My secret informants told me that you have never had breakfast at the bar in life! U: eh no! L: so now we stop, on his birthday, and have breakfast at the bar! L: here we are at the house of the tortellino, we will have a brioche but if you want a bag of tortellini too, they will do it for you! L: the last time you had breakfast at the bar, did you pay with lire ?! U: maybe yes! is lost in the mists of time L: good morning! two coffees and I also have a croissant M: I a raviola, with alchermes, reminds me of when I used to help my mom to make sweets. L: the raviola is also typically Bolognese! L: now let's go to the CDC, the house of the carburetor! I make you feel this engine M: via zanardi have made it unrecognizable. before it was an almost country road. let's go see who is in our place L: what number was it? M: 27 if I'm not mistaken
L: what were you doing here? U: motorcycle and car carburetors! there were also 500/800 power plants. from the maxi motorbike up to the roller moped. L: the fuel system is manifold, carburetor and filter. how many were you to work? U: about ten people. my brother came and we started using the computer S: I looked for my way in the school but then I realized that what I had in the family I would not find outside. this authentic passion for one's work. S: I joined the company, I became an accountant. I helped out in accounting
U: one morning a gentleman came and said "you make carburetors for all Japanese bikes, why don't you also make them for MV?" then he provoked me and I said "I'll try". U: then in collaboration with MV Agusta we made more than 100 carburetors. L: today they would say a partnership U: all these Englishisms ...
L: I would say that the next step is in Via del Porto CHAPTER 6. VIA DEL PORTO (END OF THE 50s) L: pity there are the shutters down M: Here were those who rewound the films. there were girls. we weren't going to drink coffee together now that I think about it too bad L: but was there a sign here? U: yes! here we had a lathe in the cellar. when we moved we called the porters and everyone to push up the ramp. we risked it falling L: but how did you do it ?! U: ah I really don't know L: you entered here with the machines and we worked U: cars and motorcycles. finished a moped there was the carburetion to be tested for which we went around here in the neighborhood U: I was here once! L: in 59 this was the house of the carburetor M: what activity is this now? W: a cultural center where we do exhibitions L: inside a cultural center we could organize a carburetor exhibition L: let's make him pull the shutter up! as it once was! U: at the time it was pulled up by hand! with muscles L: it was since 59 that he had not pulled on this shutter! CHAPTER 7. VIA IRNERIO (50's) U: Here we started repairing and selling carburetors along with the initial motorcycle repair business but mainly processing L: when was the lion symbol born? and who invented this lion that holds the bone? U: is a heraldic lion. transformed by a draftsman into the horizontal lion, like the English one
L: I would say that we continue in via san donato ?! so let's go see the foundations of this story! M: I'll show you the window where my mother gave birth to me L: 90 years ago exactly. which was May 31st 1931. Let's go back to May 31st 90 years ago then! CHAPTER 8. VIA SAN DONATO (THE 40s) U: here is the house is that! L: an important place! U: the house was a little smaller, a bomb knocked out half of it U: the workshop was down in the cellar. L: it was your father who started the business M: yes in 1931. when I was born L: and the famous photo of the grandmother doing gasoline was there U: no below L: you had the petrol pump in front of you! then on May 31, 1931 .. M: I started crying right here
U: one day I told my father that I wanted to do motorcycle repairs. he told me I had to learn the trade S: when he directed the family business from kitchens and bicycles to motorbikes, I wasn't there yet. he imposed himself and transformed the company. he even built a motorcycle of his own S: he also made a pass in racing. in the Margherita Gardens they had organized a mosquito competition. he ranked decently but that wasn't enough for him
S: first or second he could tolerate it U: my father had a Moto Guzzi 500 and he used to take me to the tank when I was 1 year old. the roar of the engine never left my head L: I would say that on this story I take you to a special place. you don't know it but for the occasion, I had the malossi museum used L: this is one of the news of the day! M: are there still some? L: there are many others L: now let's go back to the Alfa Romeo and go to the malossi museum! CHAPTER 9. MALOSSI MUSEUM L: your ticket to enter the museum. I don't find mine but they let me in anyway V: welcome! U: welcome back! U: I am dumbfounded U: I am amazed L: here is the first kit! M: here it is to faint! L: we keep you don't worry! U: exceptional! U: here you can see the muffler, the thermal group, the fuel system L: look at the muffler! house of the carburetor .. Malossi U: the famous Motobecane! that one there has our engine and the crankcase too L: the crankcase was yours too! U: the whole engine complete! L: when there was the Motorshow you came to race here! U: yes we have come to run. We beat Polini. he was very angry
L: of this the engine is yours! U: everything. the bike and everything in between L: then here came the age of scooters U: yes in 90. L: and then here we come to the races and Trofei L: we left you speechless. it is a difficult mission U: you have done a really great thing L: here it seems to me that we are moving forward, but we do not stop anymore. here you started to make the ignition. from the house of the carburetor to here there is a long way U: what is still missing, and we are finishing now, are the ratios and the gears. will be the next step L: on this important day when you turn 90, you realize that you have given birth to a cultural movement. I remember at the fair the boys who tear their hair to get a Malossi sticker
L: as if only the sticker could give two more horses. you have created an important thing U: it's a flag, they had a symbol in their hands. they placed them everywhere attached to the things they held most dear U: it is a passion that comes from the first steps. the boy becomes autonomous by means of the scooter. now thanks to the computer
U: the virtual life of the present of many young people who shut themselves up in a room U: what can we do to instill in young people the pride of being? L: ah I don't know U: to belong to a fabulous past. culture gives people the boost of life. we have had famous people in the past. let's use these myths to embody this reboot L: and on this we sign the board M: I have a bad handwriting gentlemen L: as a doctor L: it's not over today U: I don't have such a strong heart! To: we thought so! A: so you finally have the museum !? U: ah I'm speechless. you have done something great A: we took the whole fair for your museum! U: I am moved U: the courage to do this in an environment like this, which is part of our history, because we have been to Motorshow since the beginning ... A: we wanted to show that something different can be done! A: therefore? L: let's go to Calderara because it's not over! U: still? Is there anyone who says it's over? A: I saw you had a mid-morning coffee sitting at the bar. if from now on you want to do it for us that's fine!
U: I have the photos that are at a track in France, near Paris. I went home to Bologna with this. L: will it be 1400 kilometers? U: it doesn't end at 90 anymore! 16/17 hours! I had to stop in Castelfranco Emilia because I couldn't take it anymore! L: but it had already arrived by now! U: I had spent the last drop of blood! CHAPTER 10. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MR. UGO! M: this is a machine that ... To: we are hurt here! L: a handshake from real men. still wishes! for its first 90 years ... M: they are the first huh ..
I KIDNAPED UGO MALOSSI. A 90-YEAR JOURNEY A: how did the day go? L: the kidnapping failed because Ugo overwhelmed me with words. he told me about his life both on the way out and on the way back L: I have run out of energy. and he liked the car! *SHOOTING MADE IN COMPLIANCE WITH ANTI COVID REGULATIONS
2021-07-19 15:19
