A Golf-Inspired Pegoretti Duende Rock & Roll

In all our time here at Regroup, which is almost a decade, I’ve been interested in lots of different bikes, but for whatever reason, I haven’t ridden a steel bike. So, when we were introduced to the Italian brand Pegoretti a couple of years ago by our friend Pete, I was instantly intrigued by the idea of creating a wholly new type of bike from one of the most revered and storied steel bike brands in the world.

One of the unique things about working with Pegoretti is their signature Ciavete artwork. It ultimately boils down to a program where they have complete autonomy to paint the bike however they see fit, albeit with some inspiration from the client. Think of it as a ‘surprise me’ paint scheme, but more ‘art’ than anything you may have ever seen on two wheels.

When I was introduced to Cristina, the co-owner at Pegoretti, we quickly found out that we both have a love for the sport of golf. Going back to my childhood, my mom would drop us off at the golf course in the morning, and we would play all day long. That was before I knew much about riding bikes. So when Cristina and I started talking and realized we were both passionate golfers, the idea of creating a bike that reflected my love of the game was an obvious choice. I’ve had lots of ideas for lots of bikes over the years, but I’ve never really got to do a project that combined both of my passions. And Pegoretti had full control. Its artisans could literally paint the bike however they saw fit and add whatever details they found interesting. In my case, you’ll see that they put some cactus on the top tube, which is unique to where we are in Arizona, alongside endless ‘easter egg’ surprises that seem only to reveal themselves the more I ride the bike.

The bike looks so good that it’s easy to forget to cover some details of the frameset itself! The model I chose is Pegoretti’s Duende Rock & Roll, an all-road-meets-gravel bike built with custom Columbus stainless steel XCR tubing that errs on the more conservative side of the trail, with clearance for up to 40mm tires, with a nice amount of space left over. XCR was originally developed through a Pegoretti and Columbus partnership, so it’s a fitting material, and one that lends a direct, quick and comfortable feel to the frame, aided by Pegoretti’s Piron carbon fiber front fork, which tracks beautifully and Pegoretti’s celebrated geometry. The whole thing rides like a genuine dream. It really is a special bike. So much so that I may have to try one of the brand’s road models, or steal Pete’s Elio (his Ciavete is inspired by his two little girls, his former home of the Pacific Northwest, and the town of Astoria that he named his first daughter after), which he’ll be bringing to the Regroup in the Desert bike show at the end of January. Sorry, Pete!