I'm a recovering roadie. Growing up in the suburbs, had multiple road bikes, single speeds, cyclocross bikes, etc., most of which I grew bored of quickly. I was constantly upgrading and optimizing; I changed bikes like I changed clothes.
Times have changed. I'm now a part-time grad student and delivery worker living in very tiny apartment in lower Manhattan. I don't have a lot of time to browse cycling sites. I only have physical space for one bike, and no time or money for tinkering and upgrading. But I admit it; I still love gear and a carefully tailored build. So I wanted to put together a bicycle that would be everything at once: fast, practical in every condition, and a trusty, long-term companion.
Enter the badass ****** hybrid.
This is my Cinelli Zydeco. I tried to draw upon insights from each of the worlds of cycling. I wanted a bicycle with the raw speed of a road bike, the responsiveness of a mountain bike, the simplicity of a single speed, the practicality of a commuter bike, the vibe of a BMX bike. I wanted to break all the "rules" of what a proper setup should be without creating a Frankenbike. I wanted to emerge with something coherent and beautiful.
I chose the Zydeco gravel frameset for its durability, wheelbase, and good looks. I chose Mavic Aksiums for their cheapness, toughness, and relative ease of repair. I run Michelin Pro 4 Endurance 700x28 tires; quick, comfy, brilliant grip in the corners, and surprisingly good flat resistance. Only had one flat in more than 18 months of riding New York's beer bottle-strewn streets, knock on wood.
The riser bars are the key to the setup. I run Cinelli Peppers which are pretty narrow (44 cm), perfect for lane splitting. Overall I run a relatively short reach and high stack which makes a tremendous difference for my endurance: I can lay down power and enjoy a full view of the road without craning my neck, while keeping my upper body relaxed. I use Oury grips which are comfortable as hell. The saddle is a trusty Selle Italia Max Flite that I've been riding since I was 15.
The star of the show is the Deore XT brakeset. Switching to these mountain disc brakes after years of running STI/Ergolever dual pivot calipers was a game changer. We're talking insanely precise modulation with as little as one finger curled around a short-reach lever, that works predictably in all kinds of weather conditions. Being able to stop faster means being able to go faster; having more control over braking means more control over handling.
I also jumped on the 1x trend, which is really one of the best things to happen to bike tech in the last decade. Goodbye cross-chaining, goodbye derailments. One 11 speed cassette gives me every ratio I need; the single XTR Rapidfire trigger is a joy to use. Short throws right at your fingertips, no need to rotate your hands — which makes a difference when you're manuvering through dicey traffic. I chose Shimano over SRAM for its ability to dump cogs both ways; the upshift lever can be pushed or pulled. I picked a SRAM Rival 1x crankset because Shimano doesn't offer one in the tooth count I want.
The most controversial part might be the fenders — but I don't have a rain bike; this is my rain bike. My fenders are Simworks Honjos. They're svelte, they don't rattle, they look great, and they keep my ass (and drivetrain) dry. And the final touch are the NS Radiance platform pedals in the "Oil slick" colorway. Clipless is a nonstarter for me; I need my bike to be something I can grab and go.
For security — since it's NYC — I use Abus Nutfix gravity locks on my front and rear axles, and the seatpost collar. I also lock up with not one, but two U-locks: the Abus Granit 540 and the Kryptonite Messenger. So far no problems.
Sure, the bike isn't aero or particularly light. But the result is exactly what I wanted: a bike that lets me ride monstrously fast in the streets, stays confident in the trickiest situations, and is fun as hell. So consider, my road bike-loving brethren, that our true liberation may not mean carbon and drop bars, but letting go of the dictates of our subculture, and following our true desires!
tl;dr: everyone should build a badass ****** hybrid.