non-fixie 

Well, mrs non-fixie and I are. We hadn't originally planned to, but the disappointment of there being no Retroronde this year was too much to bear. Mrs non-fixie got her ticket last week and I clicked myself successfully into the event yesterday:



The bike I'm planning to bring along is this Jacques Anquetil:



So, who else is going?

1989Pre 

Good going, Non-Fix!! Have a great time. What will be your gearing?

non-fixie 

Thanks! The plan is to use this 49/36T compact 'Record' double with a 14-28 freewheel. That's 34 - 94 gear inches, which worked well for me last time.

phoog

I registered yesterday, this will be my 5th year now.
I'm always forced to spend the whole week there because of the flight times, it's awful, just me, the bike, Italian food, wine, scenery and weather, It's a miracle I can survive a whole week really

juvela

Good to see non-fixie!

Look forward to following the build.

When I first saw the header I thought "His Vittorio and his Joco are too limited in gearing; if he takes one of them it will mean lots of hoofing."

Has the braine trust figured out Jack's creator? IIRC the experts have posted that there was more than one vendor for these...

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merziac

Oh the humanity!

non-fixie 

Yes, that's probably why it so cheap, compared to the California version. No French fries

What route will you be taking?

non-fixie 

Exactly, and mounting a 3x7 Deore drivetrain on one of those would probably lead to bloodshed. And I want to build the Jacques Anquetil, as I need a green bike anyway.

Not yet. But the Campagnolo ends and the 26.4 seat post give me enough confidence that it will be a decent ride.

juvela

Shall look forward to the report on the first shakedown excursion...

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phoog

I've signed up for the 200, although I might do the 135, which is what I did last year (and the year before !), I'll make my mind up on the Sunday morning, I've got 3-4 days touring after so I don't really want to "over-do it"
Can't wait, It's always a top top week

Bianchi84

Does anyone know any L'Eroica-type events in the US other than the California one? I'm in NC now (via NY) and don't see anything even close. I'd think it would be more popular!

non-fixie 

It is. I'm actually more happy than I thought I would be, after changing our minds about not going.

merziac

No other L'Eroica events in the US at this time, may be other vintage rides or ones with a strong C+V presence. The one in Cal is plenty popular as it fills up well by many accounts.

non-fixie 

With all the Eroica threads going on I thought it would be a good opportunity to see if anyone else will be joining @phoog and us non-fixies in Gaiole in a couple of months time.

In the meantime I've got Jacques in proper running order and he performed splendidly at Eroica Limburg:



We might be going all French this time, with mrs non-fixie on her Mercier mixte. That is, if I can find a chain that'll play nice with both the chainset and the derailleurs. So far it's been an either/or situation:

non-fixie 

Just a little more than a week away from the start, and mrs non-fixie and I have just arrived in Tuscany for a little preparatory work. A week of touring the hilly countryside to get in proper shape for the event.

I found the right chain for mrs non-fixie's Mercier, and she managed quite well with the Huret transmission, so she's all set:




Jacques has been built, tested and turned out to be a very nice ride, so I'm good to go as well:



@phoog: what bike will you be bringing?

Anyone else coming?

phoog

I haven't really decided which one I'm taking yet, it's a toss up between . .
1950 Holdsworth cyclone, a 1986 CIOCC (delta brakes and gearing not really ideal, but suitably Italian and a 1980 Raleigh Gran Tour (with a hill/touring friendly treble)
I'll do some last minute tinkering on Sunday and decide then.
Can't wait, I'm jealous of anyone that's there already !

non-fixie 

Why not bring 'em all, and postpone the decision?

As a matter of fact, I brought two, and if needed, I can have the mudguards off my touring bike in a jiffy:

phoog

If I was driving there (which I did in August) then i probably would, but I'm flying into Pisa and then cycling up from Siena train station, I could probably in theory carry another bike in bits on my back, but think it would take the edge off an otherwise nice ride

non-fixie 

Wow, that Holdsworth is really beautiful, and looks to have decent gearing for a bike of that vintage.

Sorry for the tardy reply, BTW. The internet availability has been lousy the past few days. When will you be arriving? Time for a beer?

Mrs non-fixie and will be arriving on Friday.

Spaghetti Legs 

I got at my first Eroica eligible C+V bike (mid 80's Moser) a few years ago with intentions to ride the following year, but the plan fizzled. Maybe next year.

Have fun and I look forward to pics and stories!

I would also appreciate any pointers regarding shipping your bike to Italy.

non-fixie 

Thanks, will do!

WRT bike shipping: for me it's easy, I just put the bikes in the back of the car, but perhaps one of your fellow countrymen who've previously flown in with their bikes can lend a hand. Some I have met here in previous years - and I distinctly remember them having bikes with them - like @Stevensb, @bibliobob or @davester, but there were quite a few others as well.

phoog

The Holdsworth was really meant to be the plan A, but I think it'll be the Raleigh (again) as the brakes really aren't right yet
I should arrive in Gaiole late Friday, I'll set up the tent on the football pitch, as far from the loo's/bar as possible, which means I'll be at the Pizza take away (top end of the High St, past bar Jolly on the right, the seats are opposite) I would imagine about 9-9.30 ish and then either the bar jolly or the one if you turn up by the Butchers (about 50yds up the hill) I'll have been up since 2am though, so I doubt it'll be a late one
I'll be easy to spot as I'll probably have a Holdsworth tee/cap on,

MiloFrance

Bob and I will be there in his camper van. He'll be on his Alain Redolfi, and I'll take the Holdsworth Special '76 and the Faggin. Should get there Thursday night, so if theres space on the football field we'll park there, if not we'll be in the car park below.

jefnvk

Jealous! I actually found a great deal on airfare to Italy for that week, under $600 from Toronto, but the fiancee reminded me she already let me go on one bike adventure to Europe without her this summer. I'll get there one of these years!

There are a lot of threads with good information in the Touring subforum. Best way from the US is to take it with you on the plane. I prefer going to the LBS and getting a box and packing material from them, they're generally more than happy to give it away free as it is just going in the dumpster anyhow. Trip home last time I had good luck with just a clear plastic bag, but I dunno that I would trust a C&V beauty to that.

davester

The way I did it was to borrow a bike hardcase, which I shared with a fellow Eroica participant. We pretty completely disassembled our bikes which enabled us to fit two bikes and tools into a single-bike case (except for two wheels which were carried in a small bag). We then took the bikes on the plane and paid the ($150 going, 100 euro return) airline fee. We accidentally neglected to mention to the baggage checkers that we had two bikes in the one box. I must say that I did not enjoy carting that bike hardcase around. It was way too heavy and bulky all by itself, let alone with two bikes in it. If I did it again I'd probably use a softcase and wrap a lot of foam padding around the bike, plus use spacers for the dropouts. If you take the fork off you might even be able to sneak a soft case through as regular luggage since the dimensions of a disassembled bike can be made barely bigger than the maximum permissible checked baggage size.