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 ...
@RedRanger
Now that is awesome! I thought I was the only one who could rock lime green knicks plus match my bum bag with my socks!? Guess it’s back to the originality wardrobe…. and who needs to choose between Campa, Shimano or Sram when a double stick shift will negate all other 10 speed debates?
@Xponti
@mouse
hope your legs are the correct length
looks pretty foxy
@Dr C
Yeah, I’m pretty short.
About 3-5 cm coming off the seat mast.
I’m a happy man
While we’re on the topic of Cervélo, I’ve been waiting to post a photo of mine until I bought some classic bend bars and re-wrapped them in white. The first hasn’t happened yet, but the second did. It’s my first time to wrap bar tape all on my own. I’m pretty happy with how it turned out but would appreciate criticism.
[album: http://filemanager.dutchmonkey.com/photoalbums.php?currdir=velominati.com/wp-content/uploads/readers/topfunky/2011.07.04.00.47.14/|width=595|height=512]
I think you did a fine job. But, of course, you’ll need to ship it directly to me for a better inspection. I’ll keep it for two or three months to see how it holds up under daily rides of one to three hours. Understand that this is quite a burden for me, but I’ll find a way.
@G’rilla
Dammit. Forgot to hit Reply again.
@G’rilla
Now that’s just leaving yourself open.
Full Screen
@G’rilla
nice wrap – sets the V decal off well
@G’rilla
Nicely done.
@RedRanger
You now need to fix your gear cabling so that you get a nice single crossover of the cables and then cross them back underneath the down tube.
Not directly related to The Bikes but thought that various Velominati might be interested in this little race snippet from Southern Vets – a club in Melbourne.
“This is not a race report as such, more an acknowledgement of an outstanding effort delivered by John Porter. As the club’s most senior competitor John entered for today’s race at Lang Lang, by far and away our hardest circuit. John completed the distance and was not far behind some F grade riders. Unfortunately we missed getting all his statistics, we did however manage to get his race distance 58 kilometres and his age 83 years young. Well done John, an inspiring effort.”
How is that for some Rule #5 action?
@brett
So then: the bike that looks like a specialized, according to you, looks like a poo on wheels. The Specialized Tarmac that look like a Specialized Roubaix, two of which you have owned. By extension, your bike looks like a poo on wheels I don’t think that’s too long a bow to draw.
:-D
@Marcus
That guy rocks. And your story has reminded me about an event held in Italy each year called L’Eroica, which no doubt the Velominati have already heard of. Check it out here: http://www.eroica-ciclismo.it/english/home.asp
They reserve a portion of the entries for the over 60s which is awesome. Particularly when you consider the route and rules as it’s intended as a throw back to a golden era of cycling. The full distance is 205km with plenty of climbing, including one of around 500m over about 13km (on the profile this looks continuous) along with secteurs of strade bianche. The feedstations don’t have energy bars and isotonic drinks, oh no, its red wine, salami and cheese. If I’ve understood correctly, should you complete the course in under 12 hours you’re given a food hamper.
And there’s rules about the bikes – nothing manufactured after 1987, strictly no STI type shifters, no mechanical assistance etc.
I love the sound of this, but would have to buy a bike that meets the entry rules (good old n+1) and then apply tonnes of the V to get any where near completing that. But I believe those over 60s rip it up.
Okay, today we get to see if the yellow jersey gets to ride on that minger of a Cervelo roadbike (unlesss Praudhomme bans it on aesthetics grounds)
@Minion
Reminds me of Happy Gilmore and Shooter McGavan:
Shooter: “I eat pieces of shit like you for breakfast.”
Happy: “do you eat shit for breakfast?”
@Jonny
That looks fantastic. Great country to ride through – though pretty lumpy. Not easy on an old steel bike. Will take me until I’m at least 60 to get hard enough …
@RedRanger
Also a reminder that it’s podiumed on every race it’s started. Makes me hate it a bit less.
@frank
no doubt its an awesome performing bike. just not so good looking.
@frank
Being, one from one? Tyler won on an S3, Thor’s been switching, has it entered any other races apart from the tour?
@minion
I assume the S5 is two better than the S3, but two what?
Might at throw myself into the fire and get a picture of my steed online here.
Bottle cages are intentionally mismatched. A white one for the seat tube, that is all white. A black one with white highlights for the down tube, which has the same color scheme.
Hand-built wheels from the LBS that are wayyyy better than the Mavic Ksyrium SSLs previously on there. Full Force 2010.
Everything except a few blue highlights is black or white.
From the same trip, on a ride the next day, what is now my favorite road sign. If only all roads had such signs and were true:
@Jeff in PetroMetro
Cervelo’s scared of even numbers. They’re not aero
@frank
I am actually coming around, I think it looks good – in a 56. The other sizes, just wrong.
I was just looking at yesterday’s crasharama madsprint stage again this morning, keeping me soooo late for work
Didn’t see any of the Garmin Cervelo boys on one of these ugly, face-like-a-busted-sofa ugly motherf’ers, they are all on S3s (can hardly blame them)
Needless to say, I had to watch endless footage to get a side angle, as being GCervelo, they’ll never be in a breakaway, and clearly trying to get a close up side shot, whilst motorcycling up the verge beside the peleton is not without it’s risks…..
@Collin
Damn that looks like a fine place to flog your Roubaix – is that an Expert or Pro?
I got a Roubaix Comp and just lurve it – though one does look like a twat in a bunch at a race, albeit you can see better than everyone else, as you adopt the body position of a Tank Commander – think I might have to apply Rule #12 and go for a Tarmac next year for the Jet Fighter stuff, as not sure shifting the spacers doesn’t defeat the purpose of the Roubaix – great little climbing bikes though
@Dr C
Does your Roubaix come with the shims that fit inside the stem? Endless possibilities and you can get pretty low on those things.
@Dr C
It’s a Comp frame. Started as an Elite frame in ’05, then had it replaced for free last year when the bottom bracket came unglued from the frame. The only other original parts are the seatpost and stem.
I can get plenty low on it. When your knees are hitting you in the chest, I don’t see how you could really get any lower and keep pedaling. My preferred rides are >6 hours, so a bit more upright position by default is useful.
@Minion
@Collin
indeed I can shift them to above the bars, probably 3cm I think, and might do so, but I think I’d rather apply Rule #12 on this one – besides, I like to ride up and down hills mostly, and it helps me climb well for my weight
Only issue I have was when I was doing 65kph down a 18% hill the other day and the frame started making wierd shapes at me – must have been because I was doing warp factor zulu or some shit – or more probably my crap use of the brakes – have since addressed this in due respect of Rule #85 and folk generally get the hell out of the way now
Thor was on the S5 today – by Merckx that thing was ugly
not quite so bad if viewed against a black background
clearly Gervelo didn’t expect Thor to be able to defend the MJ for too long, so he will have to settle for some yellow decals meantime
Since it’s been the biggest story of the first week of the tour, Cervelo’s winning regardless. We’re all talking about their bike. Velonews, to their credit however, did give it the most lukewarm ride review I think I’ve ever read of a top line bike.
@Dr C, @Minion
I’m a huge Cervelo fan, and absolutely love my R3 – there’s no other bike I’ve ever ridden that even comes close to it.
That said, I’m very lukewarm about their trend the last years. The R3 developments since the R3SL feel more like “let’s make it even MORE R3-ish” than it does “evolution”…the thin stays are more thin, the squoval more squoval…just doing it because they do it.
But my biggest beef with them is the tall head tube they’re moving to. Anyone who likes a low position is getting fucked by this trend, which I simply just can’t understand. There are lots of options to get your bars higher if you want them like that, but you can only go as low as you can go with a 17 degree stem and no spacers – which is where all the Pros are, by the way. I’ll probably never buy another Cervelo so long as they continue with this trend, and that to me is a very sad thought.
Finally to the point, the S5 is not nearly as ugly when built up like a Pro’s bike, as Hushovd’s is; the sample photo that’s been posted here before ugly partly because the headtube is too long for how long the stem is, you need some balance there to get it to look right. Hushovd, with his slammed down 13 or 14cm stem, has a fine looking bike.
But regardless, that seat tube is just too much for me; I’m all for progress and evolution, but some things are sad to see go the way of the whippoorwill: I just like me some straight tubes that look at least more or less roundish.
@frank
interested to hear your thoughts on the super thin seat stays on the R3 – not sure they are as whacky thin as the ones van Summeren was using in P-R this year, but massively thinner than the dogs on Hushovd’s bike
Were the thin seat stays for vibration absorption? and if so, do they make the ride feel soft, and are TH’s seat stays massive because he is back on smooth tarmac? I don’t undertand this, as surely when he’s giving it the full chat, it’s the chainstays and BB that are transmitting all the power? No?
I loved vanS’s R3 (or was it an S3) at P-R, with it’s supersexy seat stays, and thought, that’ll be my next bike, but than this fuckface of a thing appeared
@Dr C
The story behind the thin seatstays is actually pretty interesting. Cerverlo started with the R2.5 which was a lugged carbon frame. From there, they said, “Right, lets build up the BB and chain stays until the the BB stops flexing and the stays stop compressing. Once they got there, they realized that the stays were so beefy that they didn’t really need seatstays to support the weight of the rider; they flexed upward like the rear on a suspension triangle would, but didn’t compress under load. So, they added some thin stays on there to meet frame building regulations more than anything else, and ended up with a wonderfully compliant ride, which is why they like to take them over the cobbles.
So, the seat stays are not thin to dampen vibration (carbon does that already naturally); they are thin in order to allow the chain stays to act as shock absorbers (shocks being one step up from vibrations in terms of severity, and one level below “ouch”).
The ride does not feel soft in the least, in fact, it’s incredibly comfortable and completely stiff. I’m a big guy, and I’m pretty strong (I just broke the pawls off my freehub body for the second time doing hill intervals); flex is my worst enemy with the long tubes I’m riding. I can tell you this is one stiff frame. But it’s also incredibly comfortable and even when you sprint, the thin stays allow the rear wheel to stay completely glued to the road. It’s amazing. I also ride an aluminum bar, which serves the purpose of adding some liveliness to the all-carbon ride, making it feel almost exactly like a steel frame on the front end.
As for the S3/S5, those also have super beefy chain stays, but they are designed first and foremost to be aero over comfortable or light (all Cervelos are held to the same stiffness requirements). So, rather than setting skinny little stays on the bike, they’ve made them tall vertically for better aerodynamics. It’s a different goal.
But, most of the GC riders for Gamrvelo are choosing the R3 California project bike over the other more aero bikes. Total speculation on my part, but I would guess that based on the considerable increase in comfort (I’ve riden both frame designs pretty extensively), it would add up to quite a bit over the course of a three-week tour, and every little bit of love you can keep in the tank will matter in the end. If it was me, I’d definitely choose the R3 models over the aeros any day of the week.
Which I did, actually, because I bought an R3 and not a S. One other point, all the joints on the R3 were wrapped in kevlar to protect against catastrophic failures. If something breaks, your frame will stay together so you can at least stop. Not sure if they’re still doing that, but that was a selling point for me as well.
Here are Hope of a Nation and Christian Banged and Felled on their Californias.
Yeah i’m not always convinced by what Cervelo do, but that is probably a signal that they’re early adaptors/innovators, and since I’m not either of those things that’s fair enough. I have read somewhere that the further you space the bearings apart, be it at the BB or headtube, the stiffer that tube becomes which may explain part of the rationale behind the tall headtubes with negative stems – something they would not have been able to do before -17 was around, and could also counter the impression carried over from the Soloists that the front end of those bikes were noodly as all get out. It could also be a concession to the fact that they sell a lot of bikes to keen amateurs (and Velominati…) who would simply be better served by a taller head tube than pros. Bear in mind I’m no engineer and this is all rampant speculation.
@Minion
I think their longer head tube approach is more for accommodating the sit up and beg position – especially since they only increased the length of the head tube on the bigger frames (58 & 61, I believe).
The trick about a tube becoming stiffer if you move the bearings to the ends is only true for the same length tube; a longer tube at the same diameter is always more flexy than a shorter tube of the same diameter; but if you place the bearings out farther on the tube, its stiffness increases.
And not to be pedantic, but they’ve always had -17 degree stems!
Have there always been -17 deg a-head stems? I’ve got a -25 degreee pista stem at home, though you’re right I’m assuming that since the pros started using them they’ve only recently become widely available. I just don’t get the tall headtube thing, is it aero trumping fit? Or aero and fit for punters? I can understand the gusset on the track bike, but that is in no way revolutionary, or new – I’m guessing just possible to go large with recent hydroforming methods on production bikes.
Cheers on the tip about tube stiffness, that makes sense with all the retarded BB standards as well.
@minion
Yes, there has always been steep stems.
I had a 25 degree stem back in the mid ’80’s on my road bike.
It was far too much drop to be comfortable, but DAMN it looked good.
@mouse
Ouch! My -25 is a 90 mm for aero bars, I have to admit they do look pretty pimp.
@CJ
Ooooooh! When’s that get built up? And with what?
I spot the Rolls saddle. Mmmmmm. Me likey. Got one of those myself.
White cable housing and white tape?
Oh, and take the box with the shock away from the wall. We want to see the posters.
@CJ
Looks like that beauty may be lying on Oli’s bench…
Official bike brand of The V?
Stay tuned…
@Jeff in PetroMetro
@brett
Yeah, went and hung around Oli’s shop til she was all done this afternoon.
The group is nothing special, mongrel mix of DA7700; ultegra; and whatever we could find that would fit.
Went for black cables and tape, I find the brake-cable routing along the top of the tt a bit awkward, didn’t want to draw attention to it.
Have only spent about 15 minutes on it so far, but its gorgeous.
@CJ
Oh wow, it’s already done! Very cool! It looks about a 57 to maybe a 59cm c-t at the angle of the pic.
Where’d you find the frame?
@Jeff in PetroMetro
st 58 (c2c) tt 56.6 (c2c).
A bit tighter than my previous frame, so I need to go stem shopping.
Cost me $200 on trademe, in pretty rough shape. Projects!
@CJ
doesn’t LOOK in rough shape!!
@frank
doesn’t LOOK in rough shape!!
Thanks mate! Looks just fine now, especially after Oli’s had his sordid way with it, but it’s been a bit of a mission getting it there, was in fairly woeful nick when I bought it.
Eddy!