Back about 40 blogs ago, I wrote about JB, the bike frame Painter. Today the Subject is Bill the bike frame Welder. I know that's a simplification of what he does, but it will suffice to get us started. Bill has kindly loaned me a bike that will take me into the 21st Century.
Thanks to Blogger, you can come along too. The bike is a Holland road bicycle - composite materials allied with titanium (for the frame) and the latest and greatest for the components.
Campagnolo group with electric shifting, power brakes (just kidding but it feels like it), carbon and titanium everywhere except for my old seat and my old pedals (since he's not loaning me his shoes and shorts, thank goodness).
Just to get it out of the way, here's the car of the day - the beautiful Aston Martin again, in better light and from two angles.
Here it is from the back side, along with one of the owners' many Cadillacs. Sorry for the goofy angles but I didn't stop to compose the shot, just got it on the fly.
BTW, while driving my car today, I saw a rider who had a helmet camera, three flashing red lights on his back, and all kinds of trick accessory gear on his bike. He looked safe, fast, and had a kind of crazed look in his eyes. I suppose that's natural if you ride a lot in traffic.
I did a loop around my area using the long straights and avoiding any massive hills. It's during rush hour so I had to work hard to keep from getting run over. Now I have not only myself to worry about, but a friend's bicycle as well.
I can report that the electric shifting is great fun, but it doesn't make the hills any easier. The shifters are kind of goofy at first try (couldn't there be a better format for the switches?) but then I remember it's built by Italians, for Italians and it seems more sensible. I'm noticing more than anything that the handlebars are much wider than those on my other bikes. These are about 17 inches wide where mine are 14 inches. It makes a big difference in the feel of the bike. I'm also noticing the lack of brake and shift cables on the handlebar levers.
The bike itself is 18 lbs, so that cuts about 5 pounds (Paramount) or 8 pounds (Platano) off the weight I'm used to pedaling along.
Hmmm. Looks like I have Salsa quick releases on 24 spoke DT hubs, red alloy nipples and who knows what rims that are wearing Vredestein tires.
I've got a few days to try it out, so I will report my findings as I get more experience and miles under the saddle.
While you are waiting, check out this great video about Jack Taylor Cycles
