top506

Wrong end of the country, and me without an Ironman.....

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riva

Nope. Not gonna. Not even..

canklecat

That's good stuff. You might also like Tarantella, a side project of folkie Kal Cahoone. Her vocals are spooky and seductive. The overall sound is like Led Zeppelin covering Mexican folk songs instead of ripping off bluesmen. Alas they did only one album and rarely tour with Tarantella material.

This is one of those songs that gets stuck in my head while I'm churning up a climb at low cadence. That John Bonham style drunkbeat and deliberately mushy mix just click for me. Ironman music, if Tony Stark rode a bike.

texaspandj

OH WOW!!! That riff sounds almost exactly like a song my son wrote in the 90s. The bass line is so similar. I never played the song, instead our first roadie would play it when I needed a bathroom break. It was played as an instrumental. My son called it Hocus Pocus. Man that's weird.
But not the first time that's happened. There's a song that Amy Winehouse made famous but was written by the Zutons called Valarie. I remember my son calling me and saying Dad somebody stole my song.
How many notes are in music?....7!

TriBiker19 

Reducing your collection means you have room for a new one, though. Maybe the MV you were hoping for?

top506

Hard to downsize when free bikes appear. My LBS recently gifted me with an'96 Cannondale SR500 Silk Road and a Trek 1420.

https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...es-my-lbs.html

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seedsbelize 

A truly magnificent day for a ride. I spent most of it inside re-doing the shop. The whole shop and nothing but the shop. But I did get out, finally, on a magnificent steed. The 88 Expert.

TriBiker19 

Jealous!

TXsailor

I worked in the yard all morning but the afternoon here was nice too so I put 30 miles on my 88 Master. Well the frame is a Master the rest of it is a mix of Dura Ace & Ultegra 10 speed. Sweet ride!

seedsbelize 

When I speak of a bike, it is always the frame set I am referring to. All of them are frankens.

texaspandj

Yeah, yeah yeah yeah.

Hackman61

Finally had a very brief chance to ride my 87 Ironman Expert today after about 10 days with a sinus/head cold and basic crud. I spent some time cleaning, detailing, putting on a new chain, put on some new 25c Conti GP 4 seasons and adjusted the brakes. Got out for a quick run up and down the street just to check the 105 SIS shifters. Wow. This bike is a rocket. I'm not quite accustomed to the aggressive forward lean but I'll get used to it once I get in some longer rides. Now all it needs is a little touch up paint. Overall, a pretty good CL score.

RobbieTunes

Good job, guys.

I did a chilly 57+ in southern Illinois (Madison County) on trails, saw the dedication of a new section near O'Fallon.... A bit of snow, a bit of ice.

Front tire (tubular) which was new in June, and went across Indiana on RAIN, flatted once, and it was basically too cold to add sealant and re-pump, so I figured I'd just run it up to high psi and move on. Then my brand new CO2 and inflator didn't work, so I borrowed a crusty one and topped her off with about 20 to go, did it again with about 8 to go, and the last mile or so, flat again. I got behind a guy who was OK with pulling, and sat as far back on the saddle as I could, and we hammered it home. I'll check it tomorrow, it's flat as a pancake now, of course, and I just don't feel like it.

markwesti

Cool lookin' Expert @Hackman61 .

VintageTTfan

That looks nice....mostly original parts right? Love the blue marble! Is darker than my Prestige (not boasting or maybe I am) but I like both. Nice job on that.

texaspandj

The prestige is more aqua compared to the Summertime Blues Iromans Cobalt blue.

VintageTTfan

Just a blurb...took out my new Purple Haze Ironman Master today for the second time on the San Diego Harbor area and parks etc...only bout 10 miler .......and that thing is smooth. It rides like cutting butter and is effortless on the flats and good on the hills. It was a total pleasure and it really rode flawless. It is rare I have that experience nowadays. It is such a beautiful bike that I had to get off of it once to just stare at it. I am sure people thought I was nuts (which I am).

For some reason my standard road Turbo does not feel nearly as nice. Not saying that isn't a great Centurion too but that is my experience. Anyone have a similar experience. Maybe it is the way I have it set up or the parts on it which I thought were all original. What are the opinions here on the ride difference between the two bikes i.e. the standard Centurion Turbo and the Purple Haze Ironman?

This is the area I was in:

VintageTTfan

Yep Yep, and they are both nice .....little story....took my Prestige into a paint specialist for touch up one day (didn't let them do anything in the end...they were going to desecrate it ) and the girl there who was an apprentice was like "Whooooah!" I swear. I am sure she had seen a lot of high end bikes but she was blown away by the Prestige paint scheme. Her overseer said "Yeah Centurion did a lot of cool stuff back in the day." Ha ha ha.. I had to laugh.

VintageTTfan

Yeah let me know what compliments you get on that Expert in public because it is sweet. I used to get compliments on my Centurions in public which was gratifying in a world tragically overrun with cookie cutter factory bikes with no soul....am I biased....heck yah....will I apologize.....heck no. It would be nice to hear from some of the forum members some of the remarks they have received out in public on Centurions.
This should be the required look...just sayin:

TXsailor

I have had quite a few people say "cool bike" or something to that effect when they see my purple haze or blue smoke on the water Ironmans but for some reason when I rode with my sister in law at the Hotter N' Hell 100 last summer she was getting lots of comments about her Miami vice and no one said anything about my purple haze Ironman. Maybe cause she is a pretty blonde and I am a crusty old man with grey.
Getting ready to ride the HHH. Left to right Granddaughter Me Daughter Sister in Law Daughter didn't get to ride she had to go help deliver a baby

texaspandj

I guess the Ironman qualifies as a TT bike because a triathlon is a basically a TT. And because of that, we were always making little changes to try to go faster. Things that seemed out of the norm of plain road racing. Mostly aero stuff or lightweight stuff. Sometimes nutritional. In fact id venture to say a certain Pro cyclist being a former Pro Triathlete, was used to not sticking to tradition for traditions sake, changed Pro road racing preperation forever.
Given that, I absolutely have no problem with upgrading an Ironman with a modern or different groupset, it's part of the history of Ironman. Tubulars good, aerobars I'm there, less spokes count me in, titanium parts done it. Basically whatever makes you faster, lighter, more confident, or just pcyched up, I say go for it.
On the other hand, running completely stock is A.O.K. too. The Ironman consistently through out its run had solid good/great components. Unlike now, there weren't a lot of component levels to get to pro level. Take the '86 (which I have) was almost all Shimano 600 components, only one step away from Shimano sponsored pros were running (Dura Ace). The '87 split of master and expert, brought with it a greater difference to pro level with Shimano 105 (expert) however, not only was the 105 reliable, solid, and just as nice looking as shimanos top of the line Dura Ace but it was completely compatible. Meaning, for Triathletes, you could upgrade one component at a time and never miss a shift, (ask me how I know).
Done with medicinally induced ramble......for now.

VintageTTfan

Nice picture....very cool that you have a family that enjoys something together. I bought my brother a German Centurion Turbo Time Trial frame and I am hoping to buy the parts for him and have my mechanic put it together for him. I have one already done for myself and then we can ride together. That is the hope ...which I think would be good for our relationship. Sorry to go off topic but your family picture brought that out.

Yeah, compliments are funny...they are very unpredictable. For people to say "cool bike" is something IMO because so many bikes all look the same now... Specialized, Trek, etc. Unless you show up with a ten thousand dollar new carbon thing people tend not to notice. I am of the school that vintage bicycles were works of art. The great Japanese and Italian designers were artists really. To me, Centurion is really a Japanese bicycle (some might hang me for saying that). I prefer the Purple Haze to the Miami Vice but that is just my taste. The Miami Vice is cool though. When I first got a red and white Ironman, I would see the color variations of other Centurions, and I was like "Wow!" Then I saw the Purple Smoke and I was in awe. When I finally saw the Centurion Turbo Time Trial I fell head over heels in love. So it has been a progression. I like other bikes too...I have a 1963 cherry mint condition purple Peugeot road racing bike and a Paletti 1989ish lo pro TT bike. I owe this obsession to my mechanic.

Sorry for rambling on...but it is after midnight here and I am in a different kind of purple haze (sleep deprived induced only). Thanks for sharing.

VintageTTfan

This will be short (as I am sure a lot of you will be grateful for), as I am in a sleep deprived state of my own. I understand the logic and practicality of updating a Centurion frame with new modern parts and modifying for weight reduction. It makes sense if you are racing your bike. I am not a racer though. The vintage bikes are fast enough for my low ability. Also, I feel, if they were good enough for LeMond then they are plenty good enough for me to say the least. My Paletti is of that quality. I am coming from the point of view of a lover of the art of the bicycle and a collector who likes to ride. From that stand point it would be bad to use modern parts. I admit that in that sense I am a purist. So neither side is wrong because there are different goals with different ways to achieve them.

texaspandj

For me it's not so much about racing, appearance, or fads....it's more about performance. And since I'm only familiar with '80s bike technology, that's what I gravitate towards. That's probably true for for most, in that the era you started your cycling journey is what you tend to replicate.
Fortunately for Ironman owners stock components were very good and performance oriented.
The heart and soul of a Ironman/bike is its frame. The steel Ironman was built with three things in mind, performance, comfort, and affordability. And in that order is what's important To ME. I Want a bike whose performance only limits are dictated by my condition. And I Need a bike with geometry that is comfortable for at least 112 miles in the saddle. I Have to have a bike that is inexpensive enough that I can ride it hard and put away wet because I may need to purchase another.
Although I loved Lemond and Hinault who were excellent TT players, they were on a team. My idols were time trialist who had only their individual selves to rely on. No team for encouragement, no team car for flat or mechanical repairs, no massage therapist, no personal assistant. Just like me but way more cardio gifted. Dave Scott, Mark Allen, Scott Tinley, Scott Molina, and Mike Pigg come to mind.
I've been under the weather but I'm feeling better now. Sunny day predicted and hopefully I'll be able to post pics of my bikes today.

lostronin

This is my ‘86 Silver and Grey. I switched out the 110mm Nitto stem for a 90mm to tighten up the reach.