Text by Miriam Terruzzi
For someone like Paolo Bettini, the bicycle has always been much more than a sport. It’s the vehicle that brought him global success, but also the one he now chooses to return to his roots – to the simple joy of travel.
So it was easy for Paolo to say yes when Italian music icon Lorenzo Jovanotti asked him to join his “pedal-powered band.” An adventure to reach the location chosen for a one-of-a-kind event: the Jova Bike Party. That is, a human wave of cyclists coming together to share a moment of music and celebration.
Together with Lorenzo and a group of fellow cycling enthusiasts, Paolo Bettini crossed Italy to arrive at the foot of the Julian Alps, where 5,000 fans had already embraced the idea of a concert you could only reach on your own two legs. A one-of-a-kind journey through half of Italy – landscapes, smiles, and deeply moving human encounters.
Pedaling North
It all began with a crazy and beautiful idea by Lorenzo Cherubini himself. Starting from Cortona, he decided that getting on stage wasn’t enough – he wanted to truly experience the journey and the road, meeting people and their stories along the way. From the very beginning, Fred Morini joined him. Then, stage after stage, the group grew. Until it became a real "pedal-powered band."
“I joined on the third day,” Paolo recalls. “Lorenzo had already been riding for two days. We met in Castrocaro Terme, and from there we rode together for three full stages, averaging around 140 km a day. An intense experience, but full of enthusiasm.”
The Journey Is the Real Magic
As the group moved forward, something extraordinary began to happen.
“There were so many emotions,” says Paolo. “We were never alone. People were waiting for us, wanting to meet Jovanotti. It was something incredible.”
Over more than 500 kilometers, unforgettable moments kept coming, showing how cycling is a true connector – it brings people together, touches hearts, and sparks joy. One story in particular, Paolo remembers, involved a boat crossing.
“It was my second day of the ride, Lorenzo’s fourth. We decided to cross the Venetian lagoon in a special way: by bike, island to island. In Chioggia, we met Captain Ulisse Bracozzi. When he saw Lorenzo, he stopped everything, suspended the regular routes, and gave us a private ferry to Pellestrina. For us, Ulisse will forever be our Lagoon Captain.”
The 3T Extrema Italia in a Special Edition
A full-carbon bike built for high performance but designed to offer comfort and agility, even on varied terrain. Paolo rode his new 3T Extrema Italia, featuring a custom paint job inspired by Shimano’s colors to celebrate the release of their new groupset.
“Equipped with the brand-new Shimano GRX, I found the bike smooth, comfortable, yet incredibly fast. The Extrema Italia has a racing soul, but offers surprising comfort for journeys like this.”
Fitted with 29-inch wheels and 52 mm tires, Paolo’s bike didn’t go unnoticed. “On the pine trails of Ferrara, riding on sand, I was floating.”
Alongside Lorenzo Jovanotti
What does it mean to ride for three days with a legend of Italian music? It means sharing the road with someone who truly knows what it means to be in the saddle – but above all, someone who knows how to listen.
“Lorenzo knows the cycling world well. He can handle a bike, but more importantly, he’s curious. We were curious about his world, and he was curious about ours. It was a constant dialogue – different experiences intertwining, filled with laughter and stories. In a few words: it was wonderful.”
Lorenzo Jovanotti – born Lorenzo Cherubini – is one of the most iconic and beloved artists in Italian music. Active since the ‘80s, he’s crossed genres and generations, blending hip hop, pop, funk, and world music, with lyrics ranging from playful to profound. But Jovanotti is much more: a communicator, a dreamer, and now a passionate cyclist who’s turned concerts into shared adventures.
Over the years, he’s connected with his audience through his bike journeys, sharing values he’s rediscovered while pedaling through places, cultures, and time. In 2023, he even filmed a docufilm chronicling his 3,500 km ride with 50,000 meters of elevation gain in South America – like a modern-day explorer capturing the imagination of a generation seeking meaning. One clear message: cycling brings you back to beauty, to what truly matters.
For Paolo, riding with him wasn’t just about sharing kilometers, but a way of being together. No rush, no competition – just the joy of living the road for what it is: a space that connects, that opens up, that builds bonds.
Adventure Is Everything
In the end, what remains isn’t just the distance covered – it’s something more authentic and deep. What stays is the feeling of having embraced the unexpected, human connection, and the slow rhythm of pedaling.
“The desire for adventure,” Paolo concludes, “that never goes away. The joy of being together, of discovering, of talking to people – even just for a moment. The journey was all this. And now? I feel like setting off again.”
