AcdB Museo

Bad management. I consulted Google and checked the schedules. Open until 7pm. I drive an hour and find it closed. The notice that re-opens on the 31st is written on a sign visible only approaching the wall of the building. And it is the second time that happens to me in Piedmont. Always in a bicycle museum. The other episode in Cerro Tanaro at the Sarachet museum. Obviously in Piedmont bicycles are worth little. The pages update them

Small, but well-kept and with trained staff

I had already been a few times in this museum which is located in the city center - in the building that was the seat of the Chamber of Commerce - and I went back there on the occasion of the exhibition on Fausto Coppi. it is a small museum, a dozen rooms, which recount the relationship between Alessandria and the province with the bicycle, starting from the mid-1800s when Michel brought a velocipede into the city bought at the universal exhibition in Paris today. the first room is dedicated to him, with his bicycle with the giant wheel and a very short introductory video. in the following rooms various gradually more recent models are exhibited, various memorabilia, photos and a set of information panels that frame various aspects that revolve around the two-wheeled vehicle: the manufacturers with various historical brands, the workshop of Meazzo - di where you can see the photographic reconstruction with the compressor on which Coppi always sat and a short video -, cycling as a sport, the champions who have marked the history of cycling, the newspapers that have dealt with it ... the set up is really well cared for in detail and the lighting happy to admire everything in an optimal way. in the center of the rooms stand the various models of bikes, for walking such as those used by the workers of Borsalino, and sports bikes, among which those belonging to the great champions such as Coppi. currently and until February 2 in the corridor, in the 2 rooms at the end of the path and in the hall on the upper floor, the museum hosts an exhibition dedicated to the great Fausto, on the occasion of the centenary of his birth. for the occasion you can see about fifteen paintings by the Spanish painter and cyclist Miguel Soro made with the collage technique, all focused on the figure of Coppi and thirty shots that take him back in crucial moments of his career and in more intimate situations and family members. among these the photos that immortalize him after a victory while he is honored and immediately after while delivering the flowers to the White Lady, thus making their relationship official; in the company of the eternal rival and friend Bartali; while posing naked for a French photographer to show his physique; at home with the family; in the company of his brother Xerxes; during the races and with his wingmen in moments of pause; and - inevitable - while receiving the bottle from Bartali during a climb. there is no shortage of the funeral procession that accompanies him on the hills of his country, at the end of the route. about thirty panels and short captions narrate his biography and that of his wingmen and comment on the shots and the few objects exhibited in support of the photographic exhibition. these are 2 bicycles not used by him, donated by his wife to an Alexandrian doctor, and probably one of his brother Serse, of his pink shirt, his helmet and some cameras. the smaller room is set up as a dark room, with images hanging on the walls and wires. there is also a movie with clips from his competitions and funeral. the staff is really nice and competent. accompanies on a visit explaining the shots and then lets visit freely for those who want to deepen. the museum takes about an hour and a half, the exhibition takes about an hour. it is open Friday from 16 to 19 and Saturday and Sunday from 10 to 13 and from 16 to 19. the ticket costs 5 €, free with museum pass. when I was there, on Sunday, it was free. on the lower floor, which can be visited for free, there is also a nice exhibition by the Trieste artist Sandi Renko, of which 37 paintings and sculptures can be seen. the technique used is brilliant, painting on corrugated cardboard, which allows you to have a different optical effect depending on whether you look at the work from the front or from the side! the visit takes about 20 minutes. highly recommended both the museum and the exhibitions!

Beautiful thematic museum on the bicycle and the city of Alexandria. Free admission, museum equipped with a lift to facilitate access. Free entry.

A "ride" in the history of cycling!