Can a bike be too pretty to actually ride?
02-21-21, 04:18 PM
#1
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Can a bike be too pretty to actually ride?
I fear that my newly painted and updated bike is in fact to pretty to ride.
good looking
good looking
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02-21-21, 04:29 PM
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Well, it would certainly be a waste for me to ride a pretty bike. At the end of each ride it would be a pretty hike covered with either dust or mud. OTOH, that looks like it should be out somewhere nicer, not stuck inside.
Otto
Otto
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02-21-21, 04:42 PM
#3
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When I got my new Gios Compact Pro, it did indeed look too pretty to ride. The beautiful blue paint, chrome stays. The gold hardware on the seat post clamp and derailleur hangers. The red-anodized Mavic Helium wheels went well with the blue paint, and the Campy Record Carbon components were beautiful. This was a team-issue bike, with one of the few carbon 9 speed kits produced.
It was pretty, but I rode it hard from day one, and 23 years later I am still riding it. It still looks pretty. I wish I was as pretty as I was 23 years ago.
It was pretty, but I rode it hard from day one, and 23 years later I am still riding it. It still looks pretty. I wish I was as pretty as I was 23 years ago.
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02-21-21, 04:48 PM
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Can a bike be to pretty to actually ride?
No.
And a bike can’t be too pretty to ride, either.
btw: just personal opinion, but there is too much Celeste going on there. Need more contrast with some different bar tape and/or bottle cages.
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02-21-21, 04:52 PM
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No fenders"? One 40 mile ride right after the first rain in weeks will solve your issues fast! (I raced a silver-grey metal flake painted bike. I loved that it didn't show dirt. I used to get compliments on how clean I kept it when I'd just done that ride that morning.)
02-21-21, 04:56 PM
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02-21-21, 05:01 PM
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No, not too pretty to ride, but too pretty trash, that they can be.
My wife just the other day dropped a ladder and dented the rear, vinyl-wrapped fender on a bike I was kind of obsessing over keeping pretty and new. I won’t even post an “after” pic because it still is too painful to face!
My wife just the other day dropped a ladder and dented the rear, vinyl-wrapped fender on a bike I was kind of obsessing over keeping pretty and new. I won’t even post an “after” pic because it still is too painful to face!
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02-21-21, 05:33 PM
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no personally owned bicycle is too pretty, rare, or unique to ride.
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02-21-21, 05:37 PM
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Can a bike be to pretty to actually ride?
I'm usually relieved when anything new gets it's first scratch or ding. Then I can stop worrying.
02-21-21, 05:54 PM
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Clark W. Griswold
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The microshift and thick slicks bring it back into reality. It is like seeing someone out of the corner of your eye and saying "woah" and then actually getting a proper look and you say "well not bad but not what I first saw". It needs more silver components, some polished bits and matching brakes. Also tan wall tan wall and tan wall, thick slicks are for the kids who just bought their first "fixie gear, bro". Also a silver polished headset or more gold details would be nice. Also no quick release on the seatpost.
It is a neat bike and probably is a great ride but just doesn't quite do it in the looks department for me but that doesn't matter so long as you enjoy it and ride the crap out of it.
It is a neat bike and probably is a great ride but just doesn't quite do it in the looks department for me but that doesn't matter so long as you enjoy it and ride the crap out of it.
02-21-21, 06:02 PM
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That bike? Negatory, Big Ben.
Love,
The Rubber Duck
Love,
The Rubber Duck
02-21-21, 06:34 PM
#12
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I actually like a bit of patina on the items I own as it shows I've actually used them. Every ding or scratch has its own little story. While I try and care for my items so they can keep doing their job, I accept that through the course of use accidents happen. In the end, it's just an item and my items don't own me.
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02-21-21, 06:50 PM
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I’m sure it’s possible, but I certainly haven’t seen it yet.
02-21-21, 07:23 PM
#14
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too pretty to ride? yes, but if you can afford a Hetchins, then you will be too busy at work to ride it anyway so the problem solves itself.
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02-21-21, 07:32 PM
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"Pretty" is, after all, in the eye of the beholder. I agree with the above comments - the black bars, black brakes, black stem and black rims over power the Celeste green and seem out of place on that frame. For a classic color like Celeste you want silver. Ride it - it's not a museum piece and you're not trying to preserve the original condition so who cares?
Last edited by Biketiger; 02-21-21 at 07:40 PM.
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02-21-21, 07:47 PM
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02-21-21, 08:54 PM
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02-21-21, 08:57 PM
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"You ain't a beauty, but hey you're alright." - The Boss
Drop the thickslick solid tires, shorten the front brake cable past the bolt, and use matching brakes(v plus canti?). Black bottle cages would be better too..
Even then, I wouldn't ever view that as too pretty to ride, but it'd be closer to that point for sure.
Drop the thickslick solid tires, shorten the front brake cable past the bolt, and use matching brakes(v plus canti?). Black bottle cages would be better too..
Even then, I wouldn't ever view that as too pretty to ride, but it'd be closer to that point for sure.
02-21-21, 08:58 PM
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Musicians worked this out long ago. "A musician is a person who puts a $10000 instrument in a $1000 car and drives 100 miles to play for 10 bucks." 
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02-21-21, 09:08 PM
#22
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My recommendation: buy more bikes. I have two bikes I categorically refuse to take out in bad weather. Mainly because they're just too pretty and too expensive to destroy. My other bikes? Happy to thrash them through gritty snow, deep puddles and mud bogs, don't mind the scratches, noises and general wear.
02-21-21, 09:27 PM
#23
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Yeah. Why not just sit on the sofa and look at it. No worries. It's all good. (Sorry.........You're not gaining any points here).
02-21-21, 09:27 PM
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"You ain't a beauty, but hey you're alright." - The Boss
Drop the thickslick solid tires, shorten the front brake cable past the bolt, and use matching brakes(v plus canti?). Black bottle cages would be better too..
Even then, I wouldn't ever view that as too pretty to ride, but it'd be closer to that point for sure.
Drop the thickslick solid tires, shorten the front brake cable past the bolt, and use matching brakes(v plus canti?). Black bottle cages would be better too..
Even then, I wouldn't ever view that as too pretty to ride, but it'd be closer to that point for sure.
02-21-21, 09:43 PM
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They can definitely be too pretty to wreck.