Tell your wife that this one could be tax-deductible …

The 27th of November is the last day to bid on Valentino Rossi’s helmet made for the 2007 Gran Premio d’Italia in Mugello. Dainese, owner of AGV, organizes the auction, and the proceeds from the sale will be devolved to a non-profit association involved in the restructure of the Giannini Gaslini Hospital, specializing in children, located in Genoa, Italy. Only 3 helmets were made for that race: one was thrown to the crowd right after the race, Rossi keeps another and the third one will be assigned to the winner of the auction.
By giving away his personal gears Rossi’s generosity surpassed his well known superstition. After donating, for the same cause, his leather suit in 2006, I wouldn’t be surprised if the seven time World Champion will become more and more inclined in using his influence and money to help other people.

News found by Almos.
Via| Ebay

Dainese buys AGV from the Belgian group Imag

As reported by Il Sole 24 Ore on 7/28/2007, Dainese has concluded the acquisition of AGV from the Belgian Imag, bringing back to Italy the ownership of the company specialized in motorcycle helmet. Indeed Dainese has had for a long time its line of helmets but they has never reached volume of sales similar to those attained by the apparel line. Dainese and AGV has been Valentino Rossi’s brands for as long as I remember, so, from a marketing perspective, it was the most logic move to make for Dainese to improve the return of image from its own investments. Other major brands are ARAI used by Hayden and probably the most fashionable; Nolan used by Stoner and then Suomy, Shark, Z-Lite. The helmet, more then the leather suit is linked to the rider’s personality, as matter of fact often we have to pay almost twice the price to buy a specific graphic used by our heros.
Dainese now can count on 2300 stores world wide, a number that it’s going to increase in the future: in NYC, a new store will be open in 2008. As of now, in the west coast we can order Dainese suits from any supplier that carry the Italian brand, but only a few people are so lucky to enjoy a perfect fit right out of the box. This is most likely the reason why the custom-made Vanson leather suits have been the choice of most American riders. In Vanson they use a very thick cow leather that is definitely sturdy but, at the same time, a bit too heavy. I have never weighted mine, even thought I am positive that it’s not even close to the Rossi’s 7.7-pound Dainese leather suit or the Pedrosa’s 6.6-pound made by Alpinestar: both of them are in kangaroo skin leather, a much lighter material that also offers more resistance and flexibility than cowhide.
Together, Dainese and AGC have almost 100 years of experience in creating and manufacturing products aimed to reduce the risks involved in motorcycle racing, a tremendous amount of knowledge now available under the same umbrella.