“Los adoquines siempre han sido mi pasión, es mi ambiente natural,” says Fausto Ledesma. (Cobblestones have been my passion, it’s my natural environment).
“El Monje de Soto Agüe”, Asturias; that’s Fausto Ledesma. In this small village of about 400 people, Fausto is by far the most popular and famous of them. His ability to set a hard pace on cobbles comes naturally, as Soto Agüe has many paved cobble roads. A confessed fan of Cristobal Zubizarreta, the famous pioneer in Spain for his amazing career in the OCM as cobbler, Ledesma never missed any of his races, even if that meant to be up until late night or wake up very early. His father helped him to build his first bike and the boy would ride across the village, pretending to be his favorite cyclist.
“Tenía el impulso y las ganas de ser como mi héroe, pero no sabía si mi talento sería suficiente llegar a su ...
Read more“Los adoquines siempre han sido mi pasión, es mi ambiente natural,” says Fausto Ledesma. (Cobblestones have been my passion, it’s my natural environment).
“El Monje de Soto Agüe”, Asturias; that’s Fausto Ledesma. In this small village of about 400 people, Fausto is by far the most popular and famous of them. His ability to set a hard pace on cobbles comes naturally, as Soto Agüe has many paved cobble roads. A confessed fan of Cristobal Zubizarreta, the famous pioneer in Spain for his amazing career in the OCM as cobbler, Ledesma never missed any of his races, even if that meant to be up until late night or wake up very early. His father helped him to build his first bike and the boy would ride across the village, pretending to be his favorite cyclist.
“Tenía el impulso y las ganas de ser como mi héroe, pero no sabía si mi talento sería suficiente llegar a su nivel,” Fausto confesses (I had the impulse, the will to be like my hero, but I didn’t know if my talent would be enough to reach his level).
Joining Swedish team Movistar Kelme Team, Fausto was ready to make his name legendary. The challenge? Dethrone veteran superstar Gale Reason from Jonas Pro Cycling, a not so easy task as he was experiencing a second youth with his second Tweedaagse van Antwerpen in a row, fourth in his palmares. But his dream was racing along with his hero, Zubi; who was performing his last races.
Spain had many cobble champions, but Fausto would be unique. He showed strength, courage and intelligence to be the first rider winning four TvA in a row, giving no chance to others contenders to be able to counter attack. Manager Rogero describes Fausto as “his most glorious rider" and Jempie, from Comfius; Fausto was the reason of Marcio Fialho’s defeats. Away from races, Ledesma was close to his fans and he spent every summer in his village, racing his neighbors and training.
He was a man of few words, because of his lack of English. But he never refused an interview if he had the time. In his last years, his performance level decreased but Fausto, as competitive as any other spaniard, refused to retire without a good performance to dedicate to his fans. Top form, 35 years old… Fausto was able to ride at the level of younger riders and finished in a good 4th place. He retired as the best Spanish cobbler, with 4 TvA won; thousands of dollars and prestigious trophies, but the most important… leaving a mark in OCM’s history.
Spain