Photos by Marty Wood

It’s not everyday that I get a Merckx Mondays submission featuring a practically NOS Faema Merckx, shot in a studio nonetheless. Todd Schmidt is the owner of this bike and Marty Wood shot the photos. Both of which work at Q in Minneapolis. I met Marty during Frostbike and he said he had a Merckx to share…

Todd picked this up while he was working for Wares’ Cycle in Milwaukee. He was 16 when he started at Wares’ and instantly became overwhelmed with all things cycling. Back then, the heroes had frame companies. Names like DeRosa, Lemond, Colnago, Motta, Moser and of course, Merckx.

Fast forward to modern day. Todd, like many people, still want to relive the days of yore (i.e. the steel age). A random friend sent a note to him about a customer selling this very bike: a 1985 Eddy Merckx Professional made from Columbus SL and it wasn’t some ordinary factory paint, it was in the Faema Team livery.

Below is a rather lengthy description of what Todd did to restore this bike, which I won’t even begin to paraphrase. If you’re looking for a good read and photos, check out more below!

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M-m-m-molteni Monday! While Tracko’s got a sweet Merckx Mondays post up, I’m adding to the bike coveting with this sick Molteni Pista up on eBay. If I had the money and if this thing was a little bit bigger, I’d swoop it up for sure. Some background, this is being sold by a reader, who’s a photographer in need of some new glass. I’ve been there before and it’s a tough sacrifice to make.

See the rest of Anthony’s Eddy Merckx Pista in high res here or try your luck, bidding on it at eBay!

A reader forwarded me a scan of this photo, featuring Eddy Merckx at the Miroir du Cyclisme in April 1975 during the Paris-Nice Prologue, while in the commune of Fontenay-sous-Bois. In his hand, a Merckx-branded, DeRosa-built road bike.

I’d love to see a modern take on this photo!

One of the first Merckx Monday posts I ever made was on Eddie’s Hour Record track bike. Go back and check it out if you missed it. When I saw this artwork by Richard Pool, I immediately thought of that beautiful machine!

Many thanks to artist Richard Pool for this week’s Merckx Mondays portrait!

Photos by Giovanni Pirajno

Sorry for the lack of updates today, I was out doing reconnoissance in the Angeles Forest. That and Tracko doesn’t have wifi at his bachelor pad. Speaking of no wifi, I doubt the De Rosa factory has it either.

I can’t get over this De Rosa-built Molteni road. Gahhhhhh. See more at FYXO!

At this point, it should be Molteni Mondays, right? Artist Richard Pool just came out with these “The Cannibal” t-shirts, celebrating everyone’s favorite (right?) racer in orange. See more at Richard Pool’s site!

Photos by Kyle Kelley

Woah! I’ve never seen a Merckx track bike with those custom details, only a Merckx SLX road. Usually an extended head tube lug and a downtube cluster webbing was strictly for the big boy racers. These details came custom out of the Eddy Merckx factory in Belgium and are still, to this day, a rare find.

Check out more at the Tracko Flickr!

This is so good! When John Maniquis from Rapha SF posted this on his Instagram last week, I kindly asked for a scan of it. User-submitted / created Merckx Monday content is always welcomed!

Molteni sausages were onto something when they sponsored a young bicycle racer by the name of Eddy Merckx in 1971. Not only were they to see a huge jump in sales from his many victories (someone give me a source!), but little did they know, their brand was to be embodied in one of the most iconic colors in cycling history.

While this frame in particular is not an original Molteni, it still looks mighty nice sitting atop this Kubota.

I have been dangerously low on Merckx Mondays content, so when I was over at Maison de Blanc over the weekend, I asked FYXO to shoot one of his many Merckx frames. “Which one?” he asked, to which I replied, the one that’ll look the best on your dad’s mower.

Granted, this is by no means the “nicest” Merckx frame in Andy’s man cave, it just looked so quant… See for yourself in the Gallery!

This, like everything in the world of FYXO, is for sale. Interested? Shoot him an email.