What connects cycling, military aviation and space flights? No, not what you're thinking. At least not today, we're not telling you about aerospace studies for bicycle aerodynamics and various materials. Today we're telling you about a client-cyclist relationship that became mutual respect and friendship…

There's a man from Tennessee, from the fields sung about by Franco Battiato and from the city of Chattanooga featured in coach Dan Peterson's Lipton commercial, but who studied in Colorado and lives in New Hampshire, a land of American-style cycling. His name is Scott "Kidd" Poteet and for 18 of his current 52 years of age, he has streaked across the skies of half the world for the US Air Force. Since 2022, he has instead started flying much, much higher, piloting spacecraft that take wealthy space tourists on their first orbital journeys as private citizens. His first mission as an astronaut is documented in the Netflix docuseries Countdown: Inspiration4 Mission to Space.

During his honored career flying F16s, A4s, T38s, T37s, T3s and Alpha Jets, Scott Poteet spent two three-year periods (1999-2002 and 2013-2016) at the American base in Aviano. Just a stone's throw from Piancavallo, where this Saturday the 30th we'll see the final uphill finish of the upcoming Giro d'Italia. Three or four steps away from Sacile, where one of those bicycle shops is located that becomes a point of reference for the experience of those who run it and the depth of service offered — repairs and bike customizations beyond mere sales: Granciclismo Salvador. Ring a bell?

Ennio Salvador, born in 1960, winner of two Gran Premio Montelupo and a Trofeo Matteotti, a valued domestique of Francesco Moser. Shortly after retiring, at just thirty years old, he started the business that occupies him with pride even today. The man from Cordignano (TV) and the one from Chattanooga crossed paths because Poteet is a passionate triathlete: he has competed in 16 Ironman races, including 4 World Championships. During his time in Aviano, he found in Salvador a formidable bike craftsman, who built custom frames for him and his wife Kristen.

"Americans really appreciate Italian craftsmanship," Ennio Salvador explains to us. "When last March he had to return for a celebration at the Aviano base, Scott took the opportunity to come see me to have his bike fixed: I dedicated myself to it heart and soul for three days. He was so satisfied that about six months later, in autumn 2025, he returned to Italy and came personally to give me a framed picture with two photos and a dedication in Italian: 'Ennio Salvador, the best mechanic on the planet! Kidd, astronaut'".

In the meantime, word spread among the American military at Aviano, and several of them became Salvador's clients. Being a man of integrity and values, he doesn't seek visibility. In fact, when we ask him which other "VIPs" frequent his shop-workshop, he maintains a religious respect for privacy and simply tells us: "I'd have plenty of anecdotes to tell from 1990 onwards... I'll just share the emotion I felt when a couple of years ago another great teammate came to visit me: Roger De Vlaeminck". The words and emotion of a… planetary mechanic.