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 ...
@Dr C
The tb14 is eyeletted (double I believe), but as mentioned before, it’s a box section rim.
Sorry to distract from the rather excellent discussion about bikes but you all may enjoy this interview with Erik Zabel had no better clue where to place it. Finally, the truth.
http://pvcycling.wordpress.com/2013/07/31/zabel-re-confesses-to-doping/
Carry on.
@PT Hilarious!
Glad you liked it. I cried laughing.
Cannot resist posting an excerpt.
**************************
ZDF: How often did you dope?
Zabel: Every single day. I doped in the off season. I doped during the season. I doped even after quitting a race, just to make sure I didn’t fall behind. I doped on my honeymoon. Viagra.
VN (American Cycling Publication): So what you’re saying is that you cheated, with drugs?
Zabel: Absolutely. My entire career. The only time I didn’t use drugs before a race was during a winter training crit in Dortmund, in 2001. My pharmacist had run out of drugs. I fired him, you can be sure.
VN: You didn’t really know you were cheating, though, did you?
Zabel: Of course I did, you numbnuts. That’s why we did it on the down low. We learned as small children in East Germany that cheating was morally wrong and completely unconscionable unless you never got caught, in which case you made millions and got to boink the podium girls. I even married one.
VN: You were forced into doping by the evil East German system, weren’t you?
Zabel: Not at all. Nobody forced me to do anything. I wanted to win and didn’t care what I had to sacrifice. I would have sold my grandparents into slavery or drunk American beer if that’s what it took.
ZDF: American beer?
Zabel: Okay, I’m exaggerating. But you get the point.
@PT
Rad.
@anotherguy
Or that the front wheel somehow floats above the rear?
Do you use the top tube to go white water rafting with mice?
@razmaspaz
You obviously live in the Antipodes.
@wiscot
This is all your own doing, my friend. You failed to return to Keepers Tour, and then you failed to even post enough to keep a status high enough to earn just a color with no number. Status is something you maintain, not earn. Much like your bicycle.
Fucking great to have you back, though, you leprechaun freak.
@frank
Maybe that’s what happened to Joey!
@Dr C
Despite your redundant statement (stronger legs than Frank, like saying “pinker pink than pink”) I’ll submit this:
Assuming you are racing: you life your bike a lot and you accelerate it a lot. There is no sport in Cycling where the weight of your wheels has a greater impact than in CX – Get a good mid-depth rim but make sure its light light light. You are constantly slowing down, getting off, jumping back on, going into a turn, accelerating out of it. Rotating weight matters in this case, mate.
Get the lightest and stiffest wheels you can. This calls for building your own or working with a wheel builder if you’re talking about ideal wheels. My CX/Arenberg wheels are the wheels on my CX bike and I took them on Keepers Tour this year without fail. They are the best wheels I’ve ever owned – in fact, Dan from Cafe Roubaix is modeling my road wheels after them, but tuning them to road riding (I.e. not front.rear 3x).
@minion
I’ll second this. He’s right up there with @Cyclops on the Nutter Butter Scale but fuck me, I’d hate it if was any different. Merckx bless ’em de dodeam.
@frank
Did someone say pink? FWIW, I rather like my deep carbons, though I admit they’re a bit overkill. Look mean though…
Must agree with Frank actually about the Cafe Roubaix’s.
Just get a pair of those. For the price and the weight, you’re not going to do much better.
@mouse I would love to see a picture of them on your bike!
@frank
Fronk, I’ll have to pull you up on your misquote I’m afraid, which appears to show some deep seated psychological fear that Grilla is getting clser to your back wheel than you care to admit
@frank
I’m going to admit I have been spending too much time on FB recently – our club went from non functioning forum to FB group last season, resulting in a leap in one year from the steady state of 100-120 members to 380 ffs!! Slagging and banter has been tremenduous, but I do miss the slightly more direct tones and affection of the V-site – nobody ever calls me a Leprechaun Freak there (I guess that is because they are all Leprechaun Freaks there too) – we now have a club obsessed with the V Rules, and a few lurkers here too – I even received a copy of the book as a gift from one of them…??
Wife is now a VMH, restricting my riding significantly, leaviung me with the kids whilst she rides her bike (which I bought for her as MY winter bike – a bad backfire epic fail plan) and I am now finding it hard to drop my ten year old son on the climbs, and he has turned into a shameful wheelsucker like his father, so I can’t ride him off my wheel on the flats now either
Anyway, enough about me, I’m after my Black Sea Urchin, so you’ll be wishing I would fuck off again sometime soon
VLVV
Back to Cx wheels, looks like I need a set of tubulars and to hell with worrying about punctures – I’ll need to review Youtube to remind myself how to wrap a tubular under my saddle so it doesn’t stick to my shorts when I wander into the cafe for my DEx
Sigma Sport in the UK just posted this on their Twitter feed. Come on, own up; which of you lucky bastards is the owner?!?!
@Mike_P
There’s a name on the top tube that I can’t quite make out – its a Union Flag so unlikely to be one of us plaid wearing types.
@the Engine A Mr McCord of Fife, so yes a plaid wearing unionist.
@Mike_P
Lucky? Geez, I must have some inverted sense of taste when it comes to bicycle lust.
@PT I think we need one of those computerized dialogues on the Youtube for it, akin to this.
@mouse
great photo, great bike.
@frank
im sure it is iPhone funny business. I’ll try to get a new picture today with a real camera.
@Mike_P
Your specs must be a stronger prescription than mine but I’ll believe you – as previously discussed a plaid’s a bugger to ride in whatever flag one flies.
@the Engine
@PT
Jesus that’s good stuff!
”
CN (Australian online cycling web site): Mr. Zabel, isn’t it true that everyone was doping and you had to use drugs? The system was rigged, wasn’t it? You were just a victim, weren’t you?
Zabel: I suppose you could say it was rigged, but it’s a lie that everyone was doping. My masseuse never doped. Anyway, what did I care? I won MSR. Four fucking times. You know what that feels like?
CN: What?
Zabel: It’s like having a hundred orgasms at once. Times a million billion trillion.”
Killed me!
@Eli Curt I said lucky due to the custom paint job, not cos I’m any particular fan of the Pinarello. They don’t manufacture this colour scheme as a stock frame, so the owner has gone out of their way to have this done. For that, they have my respect.
@Buck Rogers This has got to be some kind of wind-up. If not, it’s plain hilarious and Erik has clearly swapped his performance enhancing stash for a huge bag of weed !
@anotherguy Love your bike! The color scheme rocks! So much better than the all-black or white/black models that are flooding the market these days.
@Mike_P
And why are we looking at the non-drive side of the bike in a photo?
Since I’m new here and I’ve done the obligatory intro post, I suppose my next post should be a pic of my bike! So, here she is, “El Toro”. I named her that because every time I assume the standard riding position with hands on the brake hoods I feel like I’m taking the bull by the horns! She’s an entry level Specialized Secteur Elite alloy framed bike with SRAM Apex gruppo. I bought her to re-enter the road cycling realm after having ridden a Cannondale H300 hybrid for 14 years. I didn’t want to drop big bucks on a Ti or carbon bike until I knew I wanted to get fully back into road cycling. The geometry is quite relaxed, making the original setup a “plush” ride. This matched the position I had on the hybrid, so over the past 3 years with modifying the riding position it helped me gradually transition into a more aerodynamic, racier position. Had I started with an aggressive geometry I may have experienced back problems and never got into riding as much as I have. Anyway, the things I’ve mod’ed since buying her: saddle (original to Adamo Century XL to Selle Italia SMP Pro), seatpost (original broke, replaced with a Ritchey Comp), cassette (original Apex was more like mtn bike gearing at 11-33. Replaced with Shimano 105 12-27), and wheels (original Mavix CXP-22. Replaced with custom built Psimet wheels. Love them!). The stem has been slammed as far as it can go, putting me into a better aero position. But it’s still not enough due to the geometry. So, I’m on the hunt for a new bike for Christmas. Anyway, El Toro has been a great friend, taking me from the beginning 20 miles solo rides to longer group rides, 3 centuries and starting some racing with a local team for fun (non-UCI).
@Mike_P
not normally a Dogma fan, but that one will do!
@Scooby Consider… just consider… changing the inner ring and rear derailleur. Adapt and never look back.
@Mikael Liddy
I still think they look like they’re melting in the sun.
@Scooby
Welcome! No shame in riding what you’ve got to help you better decide what you want. You can get a -17 degree stem for the Secteur to bring the bars down about 2cm more if you need to (based on my assumption that you’ve got a -6 degree stem on there now).
@Mike_P
How they inflate tyres in Fife…
@the Engine – Oach, sacrilege… my eyes!
That is a lovely set with siver and ivory mounts and should only be used on the #1.
@Mike_P Ah. Fair enough. I’m not up to date with (any of) the Pinarello offerings.
In case anyone wants to see some pretty great pictures accompanying some pretty terrible writing, I reported on last night’s race, as I do for all of mine.
@Scooby Welcome! How tall are you dude!?
@Scooby
Welcome! That’s a fine entry-level steed you have there. No point in spending huge $$ until you’re hooked – which I suspect you soon will be. I’ll wager that before long this bike will be your #2.
Smart move doing anything and everything “non-UCI”
@Scooby
Nice. Have your LBS trim that steerer tube.
Sorry for the homeless post, but I have to vent.
This is part of the price of living in the boonies: I’m calling all over the area looking for someone who does body fat percentage testing. (Just as one measure of fitness, right? Check it a couple times a year, for motivational porpoises?)
Jeezus. You’d think I was asking for zero-gravity neural magnetic assonance testing according to the Venusian Protocol.
@PeakInTwoYears
You could post a picture here. Lots of folks could/would weigh in (pardon the pun) to guess the %.
If you insist. Here I am at the beach:
@the Engine Here’s the other way:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnF9Qu0V0oM&t=1m50s
Hmm..was supposed to link to 1:50 in the video.
@PeakInTwoYears
I think the reason you’re having trouble finding someone to do a fat test is because you don’t have any. Has anyone ever told you you look like Tom Cruise?
@VeloVita cos that’s how the photographer lined her up. Not my bike, not my photo, not guilty your honour.
@wiscot It’s a mark in your favor that you can’t distinguish between movie stars.
@PeakInTwoYears Did you lose some weight since the Cogal last week?