When will you ever get the chance again to own and ride a custom Pope-edition Pinarello Dogma F12 road bike gifted to the head of the Catholic church by a Giro d’Italia winner? Yeah, this is probably a one-time deal.
Up for auction now is that one-of-a-kind custom Argentinian Popemobile bike in sky blue and white, a race-ready 53cm carbon rim brake road bike that unsurprisingly has very low miles.
The Pope’s custom Pinarello Dogma F12 road bike popemobile
Back in the summer of 2012, Colombian road racer and lifelong Catholic Egan Bernal won the Giro d’Italia. And to commemorate his victory in Italy, Bernal gifted Pope Francis not just one of his race-winning Pink jerseys, but also a custom Pinarello Dogma F12 road bike just like he rode to victory. Only not in INEOS Grenadiers team colors, but in a custom papal paint job.
Papal Dogma Details
The Pope’s Pinarello up for grabs is a size 53cm rim brake 2021 Pinarello Dogma F12 with a complete Shimano Ultegra 2x 11-speed groupset, a 1-piece carbon Most Ultra Talon cockpit, and Vision carbon wheels.
The carbon frame, fork & seatpost are custom-painted in the light blue and white, plus sun emblem of the flag of Argentina – the birthplace of Pope Francis. Then, on the toptube it gets further custom detailing. Start up top with the Papal Tiara & Keys of Heaven that make up the coat of arms of Vatican City. Then, Pope Francis’ papal name in Italian – Francesco. Next, another Sol de Mayo (Sun of May) from the Argentine flag. And finally, the Pope’s birth name – Jorge Mario.
Ultra papal custom. And UCI ready to race.
The Pope’s Pinarello: Live Popemobile Bike Auction Now
Yes, this is a 2-wheeled popemobile that you actually have a shot at owning. And I hope whoever wins this auction, rides the bike, rolling up to the group ride in an all-white skinsuit and a huge white helmet. Do you think Giro would make a white Aerohead II with gold logos?
The auction runs now until Sunday, March 24th on Catawiki. It is not clear though, who gets the money raised. Does it go into the Vatican City coffers? The current 8500€ bid (at the time of publication) has not yet met the minimum reserve. And the ‘experts’ estimate it will sell for 25,000€ or more.
Place your bid for something unique at: Catawiki.com
