© Guillermo Gutierrez

Two days after his glorious victory in Madrid, Juan Jose Cobo met with representatives of the Cantabrian government at Peña Herbosa in Santander. Cobo’s Vuelta victory was a matter of great pride for the region of Cantabria, overjoyed by the triumph of their hometown heroes. GEOX-TMC’s service course is  located in the heart of Cantabria in Hoznayo, just a few kilometers from Santander, and Cobo had the great privilege of riding in red through the streets of his hometown region during the final week of the Vuelta a Espana, greeted by the warmest chants and cheers from his greatest fans.

© Guillermo Gutierrez

The president of the local government, Ignacio Diego, congratulated Cobo and expressed enormous pride in the team’s victory. Cobo gave the President an autographed red jersey, and in exchange, “El Bisonte” received a reproduction of the Bison of Altamira.

Cobo was joined by Sport Director Matxin, Cantabrian teammates David de la Fuente and David Gutierrez, and all the Cantabrian members of the GEOX-TMC staff: Miguel Aguado, Fermin Gomez, Fernando Gomez, Adolfo Crespo, Roberto San Emeterio, Daniel Campos, and Santiago Mijares.

In the evening, Cobo attended a party organized in his honor in his hometown of Cabezon de la Sal. Thousands of fans flooded the streets chanting and cheering in celebration of their champion. Check out the remarkable photos HERE!

And the following evening, Cobo was a guest of honor at the Santander vs. Real Madrid fúbol match at El Sardinero stadium. Real Madrid later gave Cobo a jersey with his name on the back and the number one.

© Bettini

When Juan Jose Cobo assumed the podium as the champion of the season’s final grand tour, it was not only a life-changing moment for the Spanish rider who only months ago considered giving up the sport. It was a defining moment for his bike sponsor, Fuji.

Fuji has been working with the team for the past three years, developing their top-of-the-line road bike – the Fuji Altamira – based on input from the team’s staff, mechanics, and most importantly, the riders.

In January of 2010, Fuji V.P. of Marketing Karen Bliss traveled to Spain for team training camp, and while there, toured Cantabria’s prehistoric 35,000-year-old Altamira caves that feature Paleolithic drawings of animals – most prominently, bison.

Upon discovery of the caves at the end of the 19^th century, the Altamira caves were deemed the earliest example of human development and creative expression.

With their new racing platform as the pinnacle of Fuji’s product development, Fuji decided that “Altamira” was the perfect name for their new road racing bike, and the brand wanted to pay tribute to the Cantabrian-based team they partnered with to design it.

And so the Fuji Altamira was born. And on Sunday, September 11, 2011, it won its first grand tour – and by the rider known as “The Bison” no less.

Just like the cave is a monument to the development of mankind, the Fuji Altamira – a perfect marriage of lightness, stiffness, and handling – marks a milestone in the development of Fuji carbon road bikes. And last Sunday, it earned Fuji its first ever grand tour victory.

© Bettini

Want the bike of the Vuelta champ? Learn more about getting your very own Altamira Team Replica HERE.

And in honor of the brand’s Vuelta winner, Fuji will be releasing limited edition Fuji Altamira “Red Bison” framesets. More details coming to the team blog very soon.