Table of contents
Alpinestars
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This is what they used to look like: motocross boots. The following pictures show you the Alpinestars story and how the Italian company produces today.
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Lasts for top performers: The boots for MotoGP and Superbike pilots are made in the racing department.
Alpinestars
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Stress test: Shifting and braking processes are simulated in the in-house development laboratory.
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High-tech for the dirt: The Tech 10 motocross boot consists of 102 individual parts.
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The tailor-made driver’s suits for the Motorcycle World Championship and Formula 1 are made at the old headquarters in Maser.
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Bang on case: racing suits have recently been equipped with airbags.
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In boots: first Alpinestars factory in the northern Italian town of Maser.
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Started with hiking boots in 1963: master shoemaker Sante Mazzarolo.
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Development worker: World cross-country champion Roger DeCoster.
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Edelweiss appearance in the road world championship: first Alpinestars factory driver is Kenny Roberts.
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The “Oscar design” was typical of Alpinestars.
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The test center and company headquarters are now in Asolo, a neighboring town of Maser.
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Walk of Fame: In 2011 the Alpinestars riders won 22 world titles.
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Gabriele Mazzarolo (left) with ex-crosser Oscar Lanza at the 2012 Dakar.
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Star of the Alps: The edelweiss characterizes the original Alpinestars logo.
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Factory visit to Alpinestars
Motorcycle boots for the stars
Star of the Alps or in German: edelweiss. Even if the name suggests something else: Alpinestars boots are anything but suitable footwear for flower pickers. Off through the Dolomites to Asolo.
Jorg Lohse
02/02/2012
The evening sun bathes the foothills of the Dolomites in fiery red light. Now stand up there on one of these peaks and enjoy the breathtaking panorama: What a dream! Anyone who visits the picturesque town of Asolo in the southern foothills of the Dolomites understands the human addiction to storm these peaks. But no addiction without the right tool. There was, for example, one town further on, in Maser near Sante Mazzarolo, a shoemaker who had specialized in making sturdy hiking boots. Solid name of the family business founded in 1963: “Alpine Stars”, the star of the Alps, not only better known to botanists in this country under the name “Edelweiss”. And because Sante doesn’t just want to earn money with summer visitors, he also cobbles sturdy ski boots for winter sports enthusiasts. Just two years after starting the company, Mazzarolo (born 1929) expanded the range to include sturdy motocross boots. The Italian is as creative as it is innovative, providing the boots with robust shinbone protectors, buckles and supple soles. As the ski industry increasingly relies on plastic boots, Schuster Mazzarolo concentrates entirely on the motorcycle sector. Sante gets help from Roger DeCoster, a young motocross rider from Belgium who trusts Alpinestars footwear. DeCoster proves to be a real stroke of luck for Mazzarolo. Not only that the Belgian gives him important input for the further development of the cross boots. At the same time, DeCoster is the rising star in the motocross scene and therefore a perfect ambassador for the young brand from Veneto. After advancing to the 500cc premier class, the Belgian bagged five world titles between 1971 and 1976. Sante himself won the Italian design Oscar in 1973 with his cross boots – the circular logo of the award was characteristic of Alpinestars boots of the 1970s.
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But there is a second lucky hit for the master shoemaker from Maser: his son, who is passionate about motorcycles and sports. Gabriele, born in 1962, has been involved in the spectacular racing events from a very early age and grows up enthusiastically in the world Alpinestars will catapult forward mightily. For example in the paddock of the road world championships. True to the motto “win on sunday, sell on monday”, company boss Sante is expanding the commitment of Al-pine-stars here as well. Kenny Roberts was the first to wear the edelweiss brand on his foot. Asolo is particularly proud of the results of the 2011 MotoGP season: with world champion Casey Stoner, runner-up Jorge Lorenzo, Andrea Dovizioso, Dani Pedrosa and Ben Spies, the top five of the field are all in Alpinestars. Presence is no longer limited to protecting the feet. In the 1980s, Alpinestars expanded its range to include gloves, and ten years later the first textile driver’s suits came onto the market. In 1999, the Catalan Carlos Checa was the first rider to compete in the 500cc World Championship in an Alpinestars one-piece leather suit, and in 2011 he won the Superbike World Championship title in an edelweiss outfit.
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Star hype: in 2011 seven of the 16 MotoGP riders were on the road with Alpinestars. The rate for professional crossers is almost 100 percent.
In general, the Alpinestars field of drivers reads like a who’s who of the racing scene: 2011 Dakar winner Marc Coma, trials world champion Toni Bou, women’s cross world champion Steffi Laier, Formula 1 world champion Sebastian Vettel. The appearance on the international racing floor also shapes the atmosphere within the company – at the old headquarters in Maser, where racing suits are manufactured and boots and gloves are developed today – as well as in the modern, stylish headquarters in the neighboring town of Asolo: The 500 Alpinestars employees (including of the USA branch founded in 1986) come from 22 nations, which is why the official language is English. Production is now in 13 countries, still in Italy, but also in China. 400,000 pairs of boots are manufactured every year, the core business is and will remain the cross section with 150,000 pairs.
In 1993 Sante Mazzarolo said goodbye to the dazzling racing scene and has since been traveling the Third World to teach young people in Africa, South America and India the art of shoemaking. He transfers the company to his son Gabriele, who is still not only the sole owner, but also an important test driver of Alpinestars. Because as a passionate and kilometer-guzzling motorcyclist (from the Montesa Cota trial bike to the BMW K 1600 GT luxury tourer) he understands where the shoe can pinch.
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