DISRAELI GEARS

Tximista

Tximista Profesional derailleur main image Tximista Profesional derailleur main image Tximista Profesional derailleur main image

Tximista was a sub-brand that Triplex launched, possibly in the early to mid 1970s. Triplex was based in Eibar in the Basque country and the word 'Tximista' is the Basque word for lightning. The use of this Basque brand name is possibly significant. Wikipedia comments:

"In Francoist Spain, Basque language use was discouraged by the government's repressive policies. In the Basque Country, Francoist repression was not only political, but also linguistic and cultural. Franco's regime suppressed Basque from official discourse, education, and publishing, making it illegal to register newborn babies under Basque names, and even requiring tombstone engravings in Basque to be removed. In some provinces the public use of Basque was suppressed, with people fined for speaking it."

Happily, Generalissimo Francisco Franco resigned as Prime Minister of Spain in 1973 and died in 1975, so the early to mid 1970s was a time when Basques felt they could finally strike a blow for freedom by using their ancient language.

And how did Triplex leverage this boiling cauldron of revolutionary fervour? Why, of course, by using the Tximista sub-brand on its usual copies of the Campagnolo Nuovo Record and also on a pleasantly awful copy of a Shimano Crane.

How the Tximista sub-brand was supposed to be positioned relative to the main Triplex brand is knowledge long lost to all mankind.