Germany_chris

P!N20

Ago15

....

Kabuki12

Ventura College performing arts building from my ride today

FrejusFlyer

Old bike on a fence!

The Delage

DQRider 

Some of you (most?), may empathize with the following: I have built several bikes, of different types, for different reasons. It's nice to be spoiled for choice on any given morning when the weather is conducive to riding. But unless the ride itself has a theme, requiring a certain type, age, or nationality of manufacture, the choice of which bike to ride becomes obvious if I have built one to my perfect specifications for the conditions I usually ride in, and the aesthetics that most appeal to me.



Ol' Blue is, more often than not, that bike for me. Near as I can tell, this is a 1981 Trek 412, built of Ishiwata 022 double-butted chrome-moly tubing, built in Waterford, Wisconsin. I have outfitted it with a modern component set that met my ergonomic and aesthetic requirements as I put it together. The paint finish is amazing for a 40+ year-old bike, and the geometry feels like it was tailor-made for me. Because of its 1x9 drivetrain, some would dismiss it as a city-bike, or "Townie". But I have never encountered a hill that I cannot plod up in low-gear, or a descent where I wasn't perfectly happy spinning out top-gear and then coasting the rest of the way down.



The challenge I have with presenting it in this thread, is that close-up photos of specific details do not tell the whole story of the bike. I have marveled at DD's recent images of a Colnago headtube with Campy headset as perfect minimalist expressions of the purpose, quality, and aesthetics of the bike as a whole - everything you need to know is right there. Light and fast, smooth and strong are the impressions we receive visually as our minds process what the eye sees with what the memory recalls of bicycle dynamics and quality based on years of exposure and experience.



In Ol' Blue's case, unless you view the entire bike as a purpose-built machine, it doesn't necessarily make sense. But when I climb aboard and settle onto that old Brooks saddle, grab ahold of those cork grips, and stomp on those new-style platform pedals, everything blends into a harmonious whole that quickly becomes an extension of my desire for motion and will for control - truly a "one with the machine" sensation that happens when you concentrate on the essentials of the build, and dismiss the requirements of convention or fashion.



Or something like that... This is definitely my favorite bike right now.
*
*
*

SJX426 

P1020183 on Flickr

DQRider 

*
*
*

sced

Kabuki12

^^^ I'm a sucker for orange bikes!!

DQRider 

*
*
*

DQRider 

BrewsterII

cooperryder

DQRider ,all of that in your above message which I did not copy entirely was so very well said. A veritable treatise describing a terrific bike , well thought out and built up in a way that brings you great enjoyment to ride and even to just look at all the details you like about it.

You have struck on what is the essence of what I enjoy about my bikes, ie, finding a worthy bike of the right size, rebuilding it into a bike with parts that really work for you specifically and then getting out there and riding it with a big smile on one's face.

With multiple bikes one bike can sometimes really stand out from the rest when all the elements involved just come together.

Then of course you must occasionally stop and photograph it with an interesting background and share with the rest of us like minded bike nuts.

Enjoy and thanks for sharing your bikes with us.

That goes for the rest of you folks that take the time to share your outstanding bikes and and pictures. It's inspiring.

Kdogbikes

sced

Tango1

DQRider 

Did you take a nice, relaxing nap before or after this shot? I mean, that is what it looks like... Nice bike, and nice shot.
*
*
*

gaucho777 

rccardr 

botty kayer

Deal4Fuji

raqball

yesterbik

It s a pleasure to see all great photos of great bikes. Thank you for sharing and happy biking.

DQRider 

*
*
*