The BAM! Program, the Alaska Around the Corner, and Other Cycling-Philosophical Musings

Imagine an old countryside villa, the kind you can find in many Italian towns.
Places often abandoned, that for years belonged to no one, playgrounds for kids looking for adventure and for lovers looking for privacy.

In Chiari, near Brescia in northern Italy, there was Villa Mazzotti. In the 1970s, for two boys, Guglielmo and Tiziano, it became their playground.

A vast wild space: climbing over the walls meant going somewhere far away.

When it snowed, Guglielmo would wait for the evening, bring Tiziano with him, and help him climb over. He wanted to be the first to leave footprints in the snow.
And he wanted his brother there with him.

That was their secret: for a few hours, the snow would be only theirs.

Fifty years later, Guglielmo, known to many as Willy, and Tiziano Mulonia have a story that starts right there, from those footprints and from that feeling of adventure created by climbing those walls and walking a few steps into the white.

If you’ve read his book, you already know: Willy Mulonia has lived an incredible life, full of escapes, journeys, accidents and new beginnings, distant skies and poetry, deserts and frozen oceans.

After crossing the Americas by bike from Ushuaia, Alaska left a mark on him and became his chosen home, the place he returns to every year, as he likes to say, “to sharpen the pencil”.

Maybe that’s why he has taken part in the Iditarod — 1600 km in ice and extreme cold — nine times, bringing his brother with him once again and becoming Co-Winners in 2025 (together with their friend Roberto Gazzoli).

You know it: as adults, brotherhood, especially between siblings, can be complicated.
Sometimes you grow apart, sometimes you become different, and the bond doesn’t always get stronger.

For Willy and Tiziano, it was that land, that wind and that uncertainty that brought them closer again, as if they had gone back to climbing those walls and walking in the snow hand in hand ❄️

Willy and Tiziano will be at BAM! to tell this story,
the story of two brothers where, at some point, one becomes a father figure for the other.

❤️ Wrong Roads make good stories

Se volete leggere la storia di Willy Mulonia,
👉 his book is here👈

It’s a beautiful adventure book,
but also a reflection on life,
on the courage to change
and on finding your way back.

THE BAM! PROGRAM

One month to go before BAM!,
and this week the full program will finally be online 💪

As always, we’re proud
to host so many stories, experiences and dreams of escape.

There will be big journeys, but also human experiences whose beauty doesn’t depend on distance:
“just around the corner” can be a very interesting place, sometimes.

And then workshops of all kinds
(photography, drawing, first aid, meteorology, mechanics, botany and much more),
to go back home having learned something,
rides and of course
💥 the usual big party.

On Saturday night there will be a special concert ❗❗
💥💥💥💥

Remember to book your camping spot:
space is limited.

If you prefer, there are also pre-set tents available,
in collaboration with VAUDE and FERRINO.

Book your spot in the BAM! Camp Area.

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ROAD TO BAM! with KOMOOT

BAM! is, above all, this: leaving from home by bike,
with a friend, with your kids, your brother or your partner.

Leaving, getting lost, arriving at BAM! after traveling,
even just for a few kilometers, forgetting everything and feeling more alive than ever.

There are no rules. Just go.

In the meantime, think about the route you will take. In its own way, it’s an escape plan, and having an escape plan always feels good: upload your track on KOMOOT and tag BAM!’s profile.

You’ll let others know which way you’re going and maybe find a travel companion along the way.

👉 The ROAD to BAM! 2026 is here 👈

🚀 A few good and interesting things. Or just interesting. Or just good. 🚀

👜 Tech – Waist bag, mon amour
For a long time it was looked down on, almost like a leather pouch, often seen as the kind of object that would seriously reduce your chances of having a sex life.

But when it comes to bike travel, we think it’s an essential accessory, useful as extra space, but also to always keep the most important things with you: documents, phone, money and candies 😃
There are many out there, but we recommend the one made by our friends at Montanus.
👉  Find it here

⚙️ Tech – The Pinion gearbox
The drivetrain has always been the weak point.
The thing that breaks when you’re far away, the thing that forces you to stop when you don’t want to.

Pinion tries to change this logic: bringing everything inside, simplifying.
It’s not perfect, and it’s not for everyone. But it’s one of the few serious attempts to rethink the bike for real travel. Bikepacking.com explains it in detail, with all the pros and cons.
👉 Read the Pinion test

💯 And the rack?
For a while it seemed gone.
Replaced by compact bags, minimalism, pure bikepacking.

Then, slowly, it came back.

Because in the end, carrying things properly, without going crazy, is still one of the best inventions we have.

Restrap, with the Switch rack, offers a smarter, simpler, faster solution.
It’s not a revolution. It’s just a smart solution.
👉 What do you think?

🌍  BECAUSE WE ARE NOT JUST TRAVELERS

🎬 Chloé Zhao – Nomadland
t’s not a film about bikes.
It’s a film about what happens when you stop having a fixed place in the world.
Fran loses everything and doesn’t go back.
Roads, parking lots, deserts, encounters: a suspended life that, for some, is precarity, for others, freedom.
It’s one of those films that makes you want to leave,
and at the same time makes you realize how hard it actually is. You can find it on Disney+, or rent it on YouTube, Prime and Apple TV.

📚 Will Ferguson – Autostop con Buddha
A Canadian writer tells the story of his journey across Japan by hitchhiking, from south to north, following the cherry blossom.
One of those stories that makes you want to leave without really knowing why.
It’s not a “mystical” book: it’s ironic, sometimes surreal, but underneath there is a genuine, almost unconscious search.
It talks about encounters, chance, trust in the journey and everything that happens when you stop trying to control the direction.