To the C&Vers of BF: do you have a local C&V community or do you go it alone?
12-24-18, 01:16 PM
#51
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Now and then someone tries to coordinate a ride with the "local" bf c&v crowd, though that often means people from several states away, and we do a ride... It's fun, but difficult to repeat. I've been on maybe ten such rides over the years. I like them, and sometimes it leads to more regular riding with one or two of the guys.
But for regular riding I've found it better to drop the C&V aspect of it and just sign up for rides with a club. 'll turn up at a brevet on a 50 year old bike, and some people will notice, others won't, and whatever, it's just a bicycle. If I can't keep up with the kids on carbon, it's more likely the engine than the transmission ....
But for regular riding I've found it better to drop the C&V aspect of it and just sign up for rides with a club. 'll turn up at a brevet on a 50 year old bike, and some people will notice, others won't, and whatever, it's just a bicycle. If I can't keep up with the kids on carbon, it's more likely the engine than the transmission ....
12-24-18, 01:22 PM
#52
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Solo. No C&V interest in my area. Zero. Any shop/group rides...I would be laughed at if I tried to ride a vintage bike. When I have even attempted to discuss vintage bikes with riders in my area, I get this awkward look; kinda "what are saying.....why would you bother with that stuff...."
If I post stuff on CL in my area.....buyers come from urban areas Boston/NYC/New Haven to buy. (I think that is a sort of tell-tale sign of interest in CV)
Are there any Forum members here from Connecticut or Western MA?
If I post stuff on CL in my area.....buyers come from urban areas Boston/NYC/New Haven to buy. (I think that is a sort of tell-tale sign of interest in CV)
Are there any Forum members here from Connecticut or Western MA?
Last edited by vintagerando; 12-24-18 at 01:34 PM.
12-24-18, 01:39 PM
#53
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Solo in terms of C&V, but not always alone - ride frequently with the local club. I do enjoy keeping-up with my carbon-riding friends on my vintage-looking ride.
One club rider is a long-time bike shop owner, so he recognizes/remembers my steel bike and we chat while he spins along on his $6000 (?) Trek Domane! He actually sold me my first decent bike - a Peugeot PH501 - in the mid 80's. A few other riders are interested in, but not actual owners of C&V stuff.
One club rider is a long-time bike shop owner, so he recognizes/remembers my steel bike and we chat while he spins along on his $6000 (?) Trek Domane! He actually sold me my first decent bike - a Peugeot PH501 - in the mid 80's. A few other riders are interested in, but not actual owners of C&V stuff.
12-24-18, 01:42 PM
#54
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Live in a fairly large metro area and there are some vintage guys around, but they are into balloon tire bikes. No classic road bike folks that I know of around there parts. Almost always ride alone as I prefer it after doing the racing scene and go faster group ride scene for 30 years. Would enjoy a C&V club were we could BS about the good ol' stuff, but just not enough people into it here. I do see youngsters out on C&V bikes converted to single speed, but they don't know the C&V stuff.
The guys I raced with are all on BS bikes and have shed the steel. One big advantage is that there are no routing arguments, disagreements on destinations, or pacing issues when riding alone. KISS made easy.
The guys I raced with are all on BS bikes and have shed the steel. One big advantage is that there are no routing arguments, disagreements on destinations, or pacing issues when riding alone. KISS made easy.
12-24-18, 02:28 PM
#55
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Was on a steelhead trip on the Brule this fall and lucked into this one.
Dirt cheap and mostly original, except for the Kmart pedals and bike horn!
edit: btw, I think my MB1 has the Koski fork, so I think it's a little older than 25 years. Probably an 1989 or so.
Last edited by gomango; 12-24-18 at 05:07 PM.
12-24-18, 03:06 PM
#56
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Well, Connecticut isn't a big state, there's this little annual event:
__________________
If someone tells you that you have enough bicycles and you don't need any more, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
If someone tells you that you have enough bicycles and you don't need any more, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
12-24-18, 03:43 PM
#57
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I'm lucky. There are several C&V fans here and most of 'em are younger than I (I'm 61). Great folks.
My rides are about 75% solo, 25% group rides, mostly casual groups.
I've tagged onto a few fast club rides but even the B group is a stretch for me -- I usually get dropped and have successfully finished only a couple. Usually after I get dropped I go my own way. I'll ride the same distance, 25-50 miles, but at my own pace. I'm fine with 14-16 mph average, but the 15-18 mph average on the B group is just enough faster that I can't close a gap after it opens so I lose the draft and get dropped.
I've missed a lot of group rides this year due to injury and illness. I'm looking forward to making up for that in 2019.
My rides are about 75% solo, 25% group rides, mostly casual groups.
I've tagged onto a few fast club rides but even the B group is a stretch for me -- I usually get dropped and have successfully finished only a couple. Usually after I get dropped I go my own way. I'll ride the same distance, 25-50 miles, but at my own pace. I'm fine with 14-16 mph average, but the 15-18 mph average on the B group is just enough faster that I can't close a gap after it opens so I lose the draft and get dropped.
I've missed a lot of group rides this year due to injury and illness. I'm looking forward to making up for that in 2019.
12-24-18, 04:26 PM
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Just me, and the ghost of a much younger/stronger me, who I am eternally trying to outmatch using a "more disciplined" approach! I ride alone most of the time, mostly because my commitment to riding is pretty "spur of the moment" stuff, and trying to work out timing with my sometimes riding partner (and full time neighbor) is hectic in the best of times. We have a "vintage paper route bicycle" group in this here city, and very recently, a vintage bmx group has formed. But, according to the owner of the local bicycle shop (where I worked many decades ago) I'm the only person he knows that talks/walks/drinks/lives/and dreams C&V.
12-25-18, 11:20 AM
#59
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I ride with groups, but can't keep up with the racers/ faster rec guys. Nothing to do with my bike, I can blame it all on fitness. I'm usually the only one on old steel, might see one other. What sometimes happens is that fairly new riders that show up C&V "graduate" to newer bikes after a short while, so it's back to just me.
12-25-18, 11:49 AM
#60
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First of all, thank you to all of you here. I'm relatively new to the C&V world of bicycles, and have dived in head first (acquiring over 15 bikes in the last couple of years with no stop in sight. I never knew it could be this fun. I'm able to combine something nerdy (like this) w/ something utilitarian (commuting to work) and it is a beautiful harmony. I'm not even that big of a bicycle rider, probably averaging 500mi a year or less.
I love learning everything I can and I have already learned so much. Just tonight, I found a great idea on here on how to fix a flat spot in a rim on the cheap. Literally every single topic on this forum is interesting to me. That said, I don't know of a single other person around me that does this (although I'm sure there are some). I see a lot of thread topics around getting together, wrenching on old bikes, shooting the breeze, etc. It all sounds so fun. Something in the 'gentle note' post really resonated with me, primarily that this is a lonely hobby.
That being said, I hope it isn't always that way, and I'm sure I'm responsible for any lack of community I sense. I do really enjoy going to the local co-op and volunteering when I can, and that helps.
I'm curious - do you have a local C&V community or do you primarily go it alone? To those that have a community around this interest, how did that happen and what would you recommend to start? There is so much going for this hobby - cheap bikes (the 'cheap' being optional
), exercise and health benefits, alternatives to the car commute grind, and increasing mechanical skills, to name a few.
Thanks and Merry Christmas!
I love learning everything I can and I have already learned so much. Just tonight, I found a great idea on here on how to fix a flat spot in a rim on the cheap. Literally every single topic on this forum is interesting to me. That said, I don't know of a single other person around me that does this (although I'm sure there are some). I see a lot of thread topics around getting together, wrenching on old bikes, shooting the breeze, etc. It all sounds so fun. Something in the 'gentle note' post really resonated with me, primarily that this is a lonely hobby.
That being said, I hope it isn't always that way, and I'm sure I'm responsible for any lack of community I sense. I do really enjoy going to the local co-op and volunteering when I can, and that helps.
I'm curious - do you have a local C&V community or do you primarily go it alone? To those that have a community around this interest, how did that happen and what would you recommend to start? There is so much going for this hobby - cheap bikes (the 'cheap' being optional
), exercise and health benefits, alternatives to the car commute grind, and increasing mechanical skills, to name a few.Thanks and Merry Christmas!
Here around Dayton, Ohio - my Dayton Cycling Club Tuesday/Thursday night ride did have one vintage ride but it was 2 years ago. Most folks who participated just brought their rain bikes or back up bikes which more often than not were their first serious road bikes from the 80’s or 90’s. One guy rode a Schwinn Continental that had chrome handlebars and no handlebar tape. He had a Brooks saddle on that bike and for the most part (at least the first 75% of the ride)he kept up with everybody. They slowed the ride pace to a more leisurely 15mph average so as to include everyone.
I rode my 1999 Cannondale R1000 CAAD3 that was set up 1980’s retro with SunTour XC Pro/Superbe Pro/Command Accushift 2x8. The build was so subtle and the component choices were ambiguously not fully old school yet not modern either. The fact that this bike is fast as hell further made it blend in with BMC/Cervelo/Canyon/Madone, Domane/Specialized crowd. My inboard Command shifters stood out to a few, but others had no clue. Luckily the few pacelines that I jumped into I was able to maintain speed, cadence and hold the wheel in front of me and even take pulls at the front with no embarrassing mis-shifts.
12-25-18, 11:55 AM
#61
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12-25-18, 12:16 PM
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I certainly ENJOY the modern and latest. Having a blast with my new 29er carbon hardtail MTB. Scary enough that I'm eying a few near new 2017-18 FS. I don't know any locals in my age bracket riding technical off road so I risk solo but do occasionally ride with two younger and far talented riders. Good company.
Road- vintage / modern. Though I just don't have racer justification for a new carbon road, they're great machines. I get my -nostalgia- and workout riding an old classic, sometimes even a clunker. A few are really plush and can hold a fair speed with groups. I'm happy at that level and really don't need anything more.
Thursday night shootouts is where I get dusted. The team riders are of course on the latest steeds and vaporize. I've had saddle time in demo Di2 and 16-17 lbs CF bikes.... really, really like but again, I'm not racing. Also an area where it humbles with very competitive fellows. Drop ride.
An area I've been considering is track but on vintage. Perhaps one evening per week. I know of others with vintage pista but don't ride them. Would be fun to get together on a regular basis.
Road- vintage / modern. Though I just don't have racer justification for a new carbon road, they're great machines. I get my -nostalgia- and workout riding an old classic, sometimes even a clunker. A few are really plush and can hold a fair speed with groups. I'm happy at that level and really don't need anything more.
Thursday night shootouts is where I get dusted. The team riders are of course on the latest steeds and vaporize. I've had saddle time in demo Di2 and 16-17 lbs CF bikes.... really, really like but again, I'm not racing. Also an area where it humbles with very competitive fellows. Drop ride.
An area I've been considering is track but on vintage. Perhaps one evening per week. I know of others with vintage pista but don't ride them. Would be fun to get together on a regular basis.
12-25-18, 12:19 PM
#63
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12-25-18, 12:20 PM
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I am alone in my unbridled enthusiasm, but i have a local shop that supports my habit and the guys' there are really pumped on the nicer vintage stuff.
being a collge town, the shop sees vintage steel almost daily though as college kids still routinely keep recycling 30 and 40y/o peugeots and other cool old bike. Saw a nice Kabuki on the rack there recently in pristine condition- wasnt high end at all, but i just liked seeing it getting new cables and tires as it signified it was getting some use still
but their main business is new carbon on the high end although the owner confided the margins are much better by percentage on low and mid range bikes than the trick stuff
being a collge town, the shop sees vintage steel almost daily though as college kids still routinely keep recycling 30 and 40y/o peugeots and other cool old bike. Saw a nice Kabuki on the rack there recently in pristine condition- wasnt high end at all, but i just liked seeing it getting new cables and tires as it signified it was getting some use still
but their main business is new carbon on the high end although the owner confided the margins are much better by percentage on low and mid range bikes than the trick stuff
12-25-18, 01:11 PM
#65
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As far as a C&V community, not too much. I used to ride retro roadie/brifterized steel exclusively and remained competitive, generating interest in upgrading C&V bikes. But in the last five years the average carbon bike has improved drastically, and I needed to get up to date to remain relevant in my group. Dropping 5 lbs off the bike helped me climb some on the shorter stuff and the aero impacts are real. Probably the combination made it as noticeable an improvement as it was. Times improved across the board.
My vintage steel bikes are mainly ridden in late fall when I am riding alone. The fact I often ride with people half to two thirds my age makes me feel every gain and loss of aero and weight. Trying to hang on as a solid ‘a’ rider and still see others 15 years older than me doing it partially with the check book along with mental and physical fortitude.
The favorite old rides still see real riding time but staying relevant on the club night rides seems more important now. It sux getting older.
My vintage steel bikes are mainly ridden in late fall when I am riding alone. The fact I often ride with people half to two thirds my age makes me feel every gain and loss of aero and weight. Trying to hang on as a solid ‘a’ rider and still see others 15 years older than me doing it partially with the check book along with mental and physical fortitude.
The favorite old rides still see real riding time but staying relevant on the club night rides seems more important now. It sux getting older.
Last edited by Chrome Molly; 12-25-18 at 01:32 PM.
12-25-18, 01:37 PM
#66
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Eugene, Oregon is rich in bicycle culture. Yet C&V is a very small niche here.
Predominantly, cycling appears primarily as a means of alternative transportation among local enthusiasts, and commuting seems the main purpose. Outside of that, I presume triathletes, and mountain bikers make up the remaining majority of die hards.
The proprietor of a local business hosts an annual C&V social which included old films, a raffle, and a swap meet I believe. I’ve yet to attend so I couldn’t speak to the size of the turn out.
I know we’re here. I can tell from observing Craigslist ads, changing inventory at the co-op, and more simply by the bike’s I spot in the wild daily. But...
I’d imagine that unless my neighbors are connected with group functions up north in Portland, they’re probably going it alone much as I am (so far).
Predominantly, cycling appears primarily as a means of alternative transportation among local enthusiasts, and commuting seems the main purpose. Outside of that, I presume triathletes, and mountain bikers make up the remaining majority of die hards.
The proprietor of a local business hosts an annual C&V social which included old films, a raffle, and a swap meet I believe. I’ve yet to attend so I couldn’t speak to the size of the turn out.
I know we’re here. I can tell from observing Craigslist ads, changing inventory at the co-op, and more simply by the bike’s I spot in the wild daily. But...
I’d imagine that unless my neighbors are connected with group functions up north in Portland, they’re probably going it alone much as I am (so far).
12-25-18, 10:53 PM
#67
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I ride my '84 Trek 400 because there really isn't much in the way of high end steel bikes here. At least not that I've seen. And very little in my size. I'm not a strong rider. I really don't want to slow anyone else down. So I find myself hitting the Lake Wobegon Trail when I get the chance because there aren't that many people on it at the times when I ride. It's a great place to clear one's thoughts.
I dunno, I guess I cherish the solitary rides more than I realize.
I dunno, I guess I cherish the solitary rides more than I realize.
12-26-18, 08:56 AM
#68
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There is a pretty active club of riders here that the average age is about 55, but I've never joined them for a ride. I don't know what sort of bikes they ride, but their website has pics... https://silverwheelscyclingclub.wildapricot.org/
I prefer to ride where I want to, and when I want to. All I have are C&V lugged steel bikes.
The regular bike shops in the area* look at me like I'm some sort of Luddite for riding a 30+ year-old bike. Of course they don't stock anything for old bike. Heck, 'old' to them is anything older than five years. Needless to say that I've given up even trying to shop at any of them. * - I live out in a rural area, so the nearest bike shop is at least ten miles away. There used to be a shop that catered to the C&V rider, but he retired and closed shop about five years ago.
That's why I'm active here on BF.net in the C&V sub-forum. Camaraderie for us older-bike aficionados.
.
I prefer to ride where I want to, and when I want to. All I have are C&V lugged steel bikes.
The regular bike shops in the area* look at me like I'm some sort of Luddite for riding a 30+ year-old bike. Of course they don't stock anything for old bike. Heck, 'old' to them is anything older than five years. Needless to say that I've given up even trying to shop at any of them. * - I live out in a rural area, so the nearest bike shop is at least ten miles away. There used to be a shop that catered to the C&V rider, but he retired and closed shop about five years ago.
That's why I'm active here on BF.net in the C&V sub-forum. Camaraderie for us older-bike aficionados.
.
12-26-18, 05:17 PM
#69
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There's no such community here, not that I know of anyway. Couple of young dudes at the local bike co-op "get it"; they get a little bit of everything of course, and they recognize a good old bike when one crosses their path. Seems like everyone else wants a fat-bike, or a hunk of black carbon, or a hipster fixie.
There are a lot of people riding older bikes, but it's pretty clear they're just riding them, they're not interested in them for what they are.
There are a lot of people riding older bikes, but it's pretty clear they're just riding them, they're not interested in them for what they are.
12-26-18, 05:43 PM
#70
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The shop is Main Street Bicycles in Carpentersville. He is right on the Fox River Trail. Has a nice collection of vintage hanging on his shop walls. They have vintage parts bins too. Real nice people. They are very involved in the community, maintaining the trails in the local forest preserve as well as hosting a big Cross Race in the area.
https://www.mainstbicycles.com/
https://www.mainstbicycles.com/
Steve in Peoria
(that was a pretty cool shop!)
12-26-18, 05:59 PM
#71
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I have a buddy here I got hooked on C&V who I ride with. Unfortunately he pulled a groin muscle in September and it's been a slow road back for him - so it's just me for now. There are a couple of others I see around on occasion but usually only on club rides, though I do those regularly. I keep up just fine with the non-ferrous folks and often wind up setting the pace - it's the engine, not the chassis. 
Last edited by PilotFishBob; 12-26-18 at 06:00 PM. Reason: Typo
12-27-18, 05:07 PM
#72
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Solo. Since moving down to the coast it really has been a one man show. Nobody else is doing vintage riding directly around here but I do have a buddy up the road who is into C&V. We did a group ride, he was on a lugged Steele, not me.
i like riding most of the day. Stopping to visit, shop or load up on coffee, going home then back out again. Sometimes on different bikes. But always on my schedule.
As as long as I can ride even if it is with people or solo, I am happy.
i like riding most of the day. Stopping to visit, shop or load up on coffee, going home then back out again. Sometimes on different bikes. But always on my schedule.
As as long as I can ride even if it is with people or solo, I am happy.
12-27-18, 10:32 PM
#73
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Solo. No C&V interest in my area. Zero. Any shop/group rides...I would be laughed at if I tried to ride a vintage bike. When I have even attempted to discuss vintage bikes with riders in my area, I get this awkward look; kinda "what are saying.....why would you bother with that stuff...."
If I post stuff on CL in my area.....buyers come from urban areas Boston/NYC/New Haven to buy. (I think that is a sort of tell-tale sign of interest in CV)
Are there any Forum members here from Connecticut or Western MA?
If I post stuff on CL in my area.....buyers come from urban areas Boston/NYC/New Haven to buy. (I think that is a sort of tell-tale sign of interest in CV)
Are there any Forum members here from Connecticut or Western MA?
12-27-18, 11:49 PM
#74
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Hi. That particular photo wasn't mine. But, I am just 15 miles NW of you. I am always riding if you are interested.
12-28-18, 12:23 AM
#75
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I am pretty much a lone rider. I do ride with my wife or daughter occasionally. I have to slow it down when riding with my wife. When riding with my 30 year old daughter I am really pushing it. She is quite the athlete and is a very fast runner and rider. We all ride vintage/classic steel bikes.