The Bikes
The Bike. It is the central tool in pursuit of our craft. A Velominatus meticulously maintains their bicycles and adorns them with the essential, yet minimal, accoutrement. The Rules specify the principles of good taste in configuration and setup of our machines, but within those principles lies almost infinite room for personal taste.
It seems in some ways like a kind of Stockholm Syndrome, the way we honor our machines. We love them to a point that lies well beyond obsession. Upon these machines upon we endure endless suffering, but also find an unending pleasure. The rhythm, the harmony between rider and machine, the outdoors, the wind in our faces and air in our lungs.
The Bikes is devoted entirely to our machines. Ours, The Keepers, and yours, the Community. It features articles devoted to our bikes, and proves a forum for uploading photos of your own machines for discussion. We will be harsh, but fair; this is a place to enforce and enhance our observation of The Rules.
If you’d like to submit an article about your own beloved bike, please feel free to send it to us and we’ll do our best to work with you to include it.
- Rule #12 and the Cascade Effect
That is a very reasonable opening salvo for the Rule about bike ownership. Three is good and certainly a minimum, and we are talking road bikes here, if there was any doubt. They naturally become ordered: the #1 is ichi-ban, top dog, go-to bike for every and all rides. #2 was the old #1, ... - Guest Article: Black Is Not The New Black@kogalover is singing my song here. Bikes are beautiful. ’nuff said. VLVV, Gianni With all those posts on riding in winter and being visible, either by putting Eyes of Sauron or other car melting devices on one’s steed, or by even considering a YJA instead of donning plain black kit, it was about time to finally get ...
- Dialing in the StableThis was going to be an article about Rule #45. It is amazing how much time is wasted and matches burned when professionals stop for that second bike change to get back on their #1. With all the jigs available to team mechanics it would seem they could set up five bikes exactly the same. And ...
- Matching the drapes to the rugAs a longtime titanium bike owner, I’ve always been jealous of a beautiful painted frame but Ti and carbon frames don’t need paint like a steel frame needs paint. But I want some painted beauty. It’s like buying a white car; I can’t do white, need some color. So between a Ti frame and a ...
- Festum Prophetae: Waiting for the HourEveryone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth. – Mike Tyson The one thing everyone should always plan for is that however well-conceived a program might be, things will never go to plan. The high level plan for my Festum Prophetae Hour Ride was as follows: Have a custom Hour Bike built by Don Walker. Because reasons. Reasons like custom ...
@Weldertron
The latter…unless you are in the team who’s kit you are wearing….and even then I would suggest it is dubious because without you on it your bike will look like a cool black frame with a couple of hula hoops stuck to it….
@Weldertron
Impossible to gauge without pics.
Is it me, the height of summer, or have the posts on this page become more and more critical of late?
@The Pressure The problem with the bike is that it’s stationary.
@andrew Depending on where you are, Rule #52 can be a very, very stupid idea.
And yes, part of the club.
@Deakus
The blue tyres (tires) match the sidewalk or are the tyres (tires) bleeding?
@Weldertron I like it! When a bike is all black and grey, you’ve got to spice it up a bit somehow.
Light blue is one of my favorite colors. I painted my kitchen in that same hue.
@Steampunk
Yikes!! The tribe has spoken. Thank-you Steamy as the blue ‘tyres’ may not be as objectionable as the observer is shot off the back.(Do they still use ‘aluminium’ cook ware in the UK?) I love it and yes it is a sweet ride but I will take the V-suggestions under advisement.
@Steampunk rule 52 is just a bad idea down here in Arizona. I ride with a camelbak on my Niner. I can be miles away from even a paved road. Let alonyou place to get water.
@Weldertron yep, that’ll work.
@Steampunk yeah we talked about trying to lower my front end & rotate my hips forward but a big issue for me is I have a heap of neural tension in my hamstrings so stretching that area out could be a fairly uncomfortable idea.
@Weldertron Those I can live with but the more electric blue of @The Pressure I’m not so sure about.
For anyone who doesn’t like them, my advice would be not to get too worried. As they are Pro4s they won’t be around very long anyway.
@Mikael Liddy
Foam roller. Give it a try. Forget the static stretching.
@The Pressure Frame mounted pump! Looks small enough to go in a pocket. Sorry but I’m not a fan of coloured tyres unless the colour is black or black with tan sidewalls, other than that and you laying down plenty of V on it your Cannon d’allez ain’t bad at all.
@Weldertron I’ll make an exception to my dislike or coloured tyres here, now get the steerer cut and you’re golden.
@RedRanger I’m quite certain that camelbacks are considered part of the MTB’er kit. And in AZ, Rule #52 is null and void as far as I’m concerned. Hell, I did a Rule #9 ride a few weeks ago where the temps were as high as 47 (average 35) and let me tell you – I went through so much water, even running out halfway between stops at one point and getting more from a passer-by. I’m just glad I had two bottle cages. I saw others on the ride with one small bidon and cage. I’m pretty sure I saw one of them getting SAG’d back to the start due to heat exhaustion.
@Weldertron I think your colors are fine. The words coming to mind are, “You’re doing it right!”
@Xyverz @RedRanger Yes Rule #52 falls under the Masturbation Principle for me as well.
At this time of year I can do a ride early in the morning, drink loads, get more water on the ride, come home to eat, shower etc and it gets to late afternoon when I have the sudden realisation I haven’t needed to piss for 10 hours.
ChrisO – Nothing worse than when you realize you’ve drank liters of fluids and haven’t needed to rock a piss. I like to stay very well hydrated at all times, feel like it keeps me going strong on & off the bike.
Ha, YES, exactly. If you don’t think you like the color of your Michelin PRs just give it about a week of riding and you’ll be ready to choose a new color tire. Their latex tubes are lackluster too, too big to fit in the tire, makes mounting a major chore.
Steampunk – I think the tone might be more along the lines of lots of people rolling out new bikes, whether because it’s summer (up here) and people have new ones to show or because it’s July and a certain big race is bringing new folks around. A lot to critique when your bike hasn’t been blasted for a year or two, or more. Just my thinking about it.
Cantona – Yup, new Campa gruppos are slick. I like my SRAM, I like my Shimano, I like my older Campa, but my newest Campa shifters, hoods, shifting. Every time I ride them it’s a very pleasant, natural, and soothing experience. Works and feels darn good. Judging by the bike, you’re Gerrans-sized, as I am. Riding Deda shallow bars and the post-2009 redesigned controls was/has been a revelation for me; reaching the levers, paddle and thumb-drive is easy, formerly was a chore with other set-ups.
@Steampunk
I completely understand, and agree with @ChrisO that the Masturbation Principle then applies. @The Pressure posted a picture of his bike in a thread where my limited experience tells me people give feedback on the bike’s aesthetics. I think the bike would look better without an enormous white bottle — you? I understand Rule #52 to be about the look of the bike, not about encouraging people to risk their lives via dehydration, just to be clear.
Better?
Do we have any TCR riders here ?
I have an opportunity to acquire a Giant bike heavily discounted through the team I will be riding with next season. They are planning to mostly ride the new Propels, Giant’s aero road bike. But as I already have a Ridley Noah I think I would rather go for something different like the TCR.
I’m tossing up between the carbon and the new alloy frame which is supposed to be very good. Anyone had experience of them ?
Then my other problem will be that the shop/team is Shimano. I have Campag everywhere else, including on my Enve/Powertap wheelset.
Do I just go for the frameset and fit it out with Campag (which I won’t get discounted) ? It is tempting to take the opportunity to have Di2 at 35% off.
How much of a pain will it be to have a mixed collection – is it even permitted ?
Is it wrong to put Campag on a Giant, like Shimano on a Colnago.
My brain hurts.
@Ron
I’ve been running the same par of Michelin latex tubes for over two years and never had a puncture since I got them. Didn’t have a problem fitting them either n 23mm tyres.
Honestly been hoping to have some sort of malfunction so that I could send you a bit that you could make patches from but nothing yet.
@Fred Looks great, I hope the drops and hoods are comfortable, too!
@ChrisO
Hi Chris, I ride a TCR Advanced. It’s a bloody good bike, to be honest. The steering angle is a bit slacker than I was used to – it’s a great long or tough race bike, very easy to ride. Where I ride there’s a lot of pretty ordinary roads and I don’t feel to beaten up by it – room on there for 25’s, etc. The front end is pretty massively oversized and probably not everyone’s cup of tea aesthetically, but it’s stiffer than a teenage boy in the cheerleader’s changing room. The BB is shimano pressfit standard (is that BB86?) so you’d have to find a way around that for campag- I’m sure there is one, but I haven’t looked.
For me it’s just about the perfect race bike. It does everything very well, makes life easy for me, and because it’s a mass-produced taiwanese thing rather than a handbuilt masterpiece I don’t really give that much of a fuck if I crash it.
As for changing gruppos? Dunno. Can you change the freehub on your powertap?
@Ron
Absolutely — Campy seems to be a much better fit for those of us without massive hands.
@ChrisO
Was I really taking shit about my Cento1 from a guy on a Giant?
Why not plump for a Madone instead? In Livestrong colours.
(tongue firmly in cheek I hope you note….)
@cantona Ha, but no.. I ride a Ridley, when I’m not on a custom-built steel Roberts, so I am an officially qualified hander-out of shit.
The Giant thing is because it is a shop-backed team and their main brands are Giant, Shimano and Mavic. Not unreasonably they would like their riders to be on Giant bikes.
So they are offering us either the Propel (as a ‘loaned’ frameset but we buy or provide the components) or we can buy another Giant bike and it is all basically at cost. Seems like too good an opportunity to pass up.
I know Giant don’t have the brand kudos of others but a lot of people have good things to say about them. Two of the best guys I’ve ever ridden with both swore by TCRs.
And also I would feel a bit awkward riding a Ridley and wearing a Giant logo on my jersey. In spirit I think it contravenes the Rules.
@ChrisO
nice. Highly reasonable motivations to ride a Giant.
Was just checking.
@andrew
You didn’t hear this from me, but I recently purchased one of those seat-post bottle holders that the Cycling Shit Sandwich guys/gals made famous. Here in the Sunny Southland I cannot do a 3-4 hour ride on 2 bottles, and I live far enough out in the country that finding a refueling place is sketchy at best. Having a total of 4 bottles on the bike was very nice, as I could focus entirely on my lack of V during the ride and not be tempted to blame it on insufficient water.
We will never speak of this again.
New and improved with black hoods. A world of difference.
In the small, but better still.
@cantona
Agreed. Keeps the eye on the frame (and wheels).
@Steampunk oh I’m more than familiar with that particular medieval torture device.
@chrisO
http://www.velominati.com/the-bikes/#comment-174878
Tcr advanced sl1 – still the best bike I have ridden.
@Cantona Nearly there – just the cables to go and I’ll be able to forgive those chain stays ! For some reason when I look at the cables I can’t help thinking of a blood transfusion.
@Smithers Cheers for that. Think I will go for the Advanced (carbon not alloy) but without the ISP to make it easier for travelling.
Still the Shimano/Campag-Asian/European dualism to negotiate.
@Fred
Fred, I’ve got a major Steelie looking at that thing. A Benotto! Fucking right! Amazing frame, amazing build – I hope the tape matches the drapes in that its also Benotto.
@ChrisO seat stays I meant.
@ChrisO I’m the sole Shimano rider (due to budget concerns) in a Campag-riding family – it works out. Usually, Campag-freehub wheels are easily converted (temporarily!) to Shimano. I believe Powertap hubs have freehubs that simply slide off, so all you need to race your ENVEs on the other bike is a new freehub and cassette.
I’d do it if I were you. Di2 is the bomb, though the newer mechanical Shimanos are so precise that electric is only really an advantage on integrated and TT bikes.
@DocAdrian Ooh, I quite like that.
@DocAdrian yeah that’ll do, any chance you could provide a pic to the Radiotard boys to show them how to set their bikes up?
@DocAdrian
Saweet!
The cat appears to approve.
@frank
Of course!
@DocAdrian
Dude , you padlock the doors but the walls are made of plastic wrap?!?
OK I need some sartorial advice for the N1. Rear tyre has a herniation so time to replace:
1. Gumwalls on this bike – Too much or pure class? I really cannot decide, the red white and black could mean it looks crap but the pro peloton (Giant and Orbea in particular) are running some beautiful looking gumwalls this season.
2. I want to put on Open Tubs (cotton clinchers) – Vittoria Open Corsas or Veloflex Masters? Or any other like for like suggestions – This is all about the ride quality and I don’t have tub wheels.
All suggestions appreciated.
@Bespoke
Its not the tyres bleeding, its the bike crying !
@piwakawaka :Thanks. Pix was taken at a small grocer’s shop on our local climb. I wouldn’t dare leave that beauty in the open.
@Deakus In my experience Masters and Open Corsas perform very similarly. The gum on the Vittorias are much more ‘yellow’ though and seem to stay cleaner. Look into Challenge Criteriums. I love them
@Deakus
Thanks @Trobs you swung if for me, if I am going to dress her like a slut then yellow has to be better than the browner masters. Everything I had read said the two were pretty similar and I finally just thought damn I sense that gumwalls on her, though a little risque, are going to pay off. 2 x Vittoria Open Corsa SCs duly ordered…not so many offers around on those as the CXs though, £35 each was the best I could find.
@Deakus
Those are both worthy choices especially with latex tubes. But how are the roads where you live? The Vittorias, with which I have experience, are not the most puncture proof tires out there.
@Nate
Yeah, I am basically sacrificing durability and puncture resistance to try and get that “almost tub” feel. I tried the Open Corsa CX Techs over the winter (first cotton clinchers I had ever ridden) and fell in love with them. The roads round here are not too bad, a few flints but generally if you stay out of the crap in the centre of the country lanes I ride it is pretty good.
Main concern was how the gumwalls will look on a red and black bike, but only time will tell. I’ll post a pick when she has been properly dressed in her gummies!
@Nate *cough..that would be red and WHITE bike!