All Bologna University students have taken this event to heart. We’re talking about the highly awaited bicycle auction held in the San Vitale university area (Piazza Puntoni). For some years now several associations have collected abandoned bikes that no-one has claimed for resale and brought them to this event which in fact isn’t a true auction at all. The winner is not the person who offers the most money as the price is fixed at €15. The “auctioneer” awards the bicycle to he or she who most successfully manages to catch his eye from the crowd – bizarre noises, improvised masks and witty slogans are often used. The scheme is an answer to the stolen and resold bicycles market – scourge of the city’s myriad porticoes and arcades. An imaginative way to combat theft and illegality! See Flickr for a selection of slogans thought up by aspiring buyers during the last version of the event.