I bought my first "real" bike in 1986. I was a blue SR400 with Suntour Cyclone, Sugino cranks, Dia Compe brakes and Miche hubs. I rode that for a few years and made a few upgrades, but I never really liked the steering.
Around 1990 a bike shop was blowing out all the old style Cannondales and I bought a new white 1988 Cannondale Criterium for $100 with a steel (CroMo?) fork. It doesn't have any serial numbers and I think it was part of the Klein lawsuit. I could be wrong but, I vaguely recall Klein got $5 a frame settlement for every frame Cannondale sold. Cannondale had won every part of the lawsuit except the rear stays. As a result, they were coming out with their new cantilever dropouts so I got the old style cheap, which was a windfall for me.
The '86 evolved into my beater/fat boy bike and was built in various configurations and it is now a flat bar urban/commuter. Actually rides better this way. Bontrager crank with 30/42 rings, Sun CRT16II rims, LX triggers, LX rapid rise derailleur, Suntour thumb shifter. I even stuffed 28mm Kenda Karvs into it.
My ’88 was ridden for a lot of miles, it is a rocket and turns on a dime, but in the mid 90’s I hung it up from the rafters and it did not get the abuse that my blue one did. I built that bike with Dura Ace 7400 components from the pedals to the non-aero brakes, Superbe Pro hubs laced to MA40’s (my first wheel build), Simplex retro-friction, and my beloved Brooks saddle.
I lost 70 lbs over the past year and a half and decided to get the Criterium back on the road. I swapped out the 42/52 rings for a 38/48, changed out the 3ttt for a shallower Cinelli 64, added a Sachs 12-30 freewheel (yes, running a 30t with a DA 7402). I’m still riding with toe clips. After the photo was taken I actually moved into the late 80’s with DA downtube index shifters, and (gasp) I replaced the Brooks with a WTB Pure V.
That bike is still phenomenal. For all of the talk about the harsh ride, I never really experienced it. Riding in SoCal does help with smoother roads. I have ridden my brother’s steel frame bikes and I may get one someday (my mtb’s are steel), but even at 63 I am not quite there yet.
John