So the show was a success for me even though there was an exhaustion about me that kept everything slightly distracted from my attention. Just not 100% there, more like 96.5% perhaps. Nonetheless, my objectives were attained: enjoy checking out bikes, meet some people, and show off and explain my passion to my family.

I think they left the show knowing more about bikes and bike culture than they were expecting, but they now understand, I think, that there’s more to bicycles than just recreation and repair. There’s an actual viable future with them; now they just need to get on bikes more themselves and then everything will gel!

It was a wholly tiring weekend as I’ve mentioned, I could tell the exhibitors themselves were dogged at times too. I was a little disappointed in the Velo Orange booth, not sure if my weariness was transferring to the guy there, but his friendliness was a little lackluster, but perhaps not everyone in the bike industry is a people person (shocking!) or more simply he was just as tired as I. He wasn’t nearly as disappointing however as the guy at the Shimano booth was though. It was a little off-putting when I asked why they didn’t opt for a platform pedal on the Di2 test bike to be told brusquely and dismissively that they wanted to present their new black Ultegra pedal. Not a soul was walking around that convention wearing road pedals with Shimano cleats on them; why not display the new pedals in a case or something? Didn’t make a whole lot of sense to me, but they’re the title sponsor so they know best I guess. Most people were friendly though, especially so on Friday compared to mob ruled Saturday. My talk with Lee at Highway 2 I’m sure will be well received by the guys I work with. Grilling Tone and Ed at the SRAM exhibit was illuminating, not really sure why the hell they didn’t have their new group Apex available there to view—I guess that’s why they weren’t the title sponsor, right? Chris Igleheart was a rad dude too. Meeting John at Sylvan was memorable, he was appreciative of my comparative of his frame’s tubes with pencils. The Yipsan booth were especially friendly and helpful in enlightening my sister and brother on bikes. Their town bike was one of our favorites, described as a “happy bike” it was no wonder it won the “Best City Bike” and the “People’s Choice” awards.

These two booth’s bikes were some of my favorites; the Sylvan I think was a very unique approach to this alternative material—as he said, wood: the original composite. I like it. Other favorites included Engin especially for it’s paint being reminiscent of those old Singer’s and Herse’s. Another favorite bike was the blue town bike at Signal, his booth was especially rad too (love the T-Rex) and the overall layout’s classiness. On the whole I was pleased at having the accurate prediction that there’d be an abundance of cyclocross bikes and town/city bikes. Both are easily working to becoming my favorite styles of bike—I’m also already considering exchanging the CAAD9 road bike I’ve just gotten for something similar to my classic Italian steel.

Richmond itself was a unexpectedly interesting town. From the Jerry Springer-esque brawl between two shoe-throwing ladies at some soul-food pizza shop we ate at (Leone’s Sportsbar?!) to the ceiling tile bashing party-goers at our hotel, there was a few classy gems thrown in between. One of which was the throw-back to the eighties family restaurant Byram’s where there was piano playing amongst the tasty greek faire. They had atmosphere in spades that really made you feel at home. We managed to find an outstanding alternative to the Comfort Inn’s coffee at Lift. But the best beyond that was the breakfast we had before our departure back to Louisville: Millie’s Diner, don’t let the word “diner” belie it’s true value to you. If within a hundred miles of Richmond, take the detour and get yourself the Ben Gurion lox bagel benedict. It won’t fail to impress. Fast and incredibly thoughtful/friendly/entertaining service was a great way to start a ten hour road trip.

Millie's wall menu, bring your bi-focals.

The Handbuilt show, once again, did not fail to impress. As usual, there were scads of beautiful bikes to ogle, lot’s of details on those frames to examine, and plenty of assemblies and component installations to scrutinize. While I am fairly exhausted from the weekend, I can truthfully say, I don’t think I’ll ever tire of ogling, examining, or scrutinizing the bikes at this show. Keep ‘em coming.

Granted as the weekend wears on, that scrutiny of components and such diminishes a bit, but it’s one of those things I think I enjoy most about the show. Observing the sometimes curious choice the craftspeople use of components:

… a vintage XT group on this gorgeous Signal.

… unique Gipiemme shifters on this Bilenky.

… not necessarily the most up-to-date group set on Cielo.

… the pairing of XT rear derailleur, a 9-speed cassette, and Centaur 11-speed shifter at Palermo.

… Igleheart’s utilization of SunRace components was quite the exception too.

I also appreciate how cleverly the bikes are sometimes displayed. The use of one-off mounting and securing of the rig for display can be really brilliant.

… a beautifully painted old frame with mounting brackets brazed on it’s side at VeloColour.

… custom stands to clip the pedals into at Shamrock.

… elegant swoop rack at Engin. (Great paint too!)

… not to forget Signal’s custom mounting brackets.

Those that are making their own components are also not to be overlooked. High ATD (Attention To Detail) always well-received in my book.

… customizable modular hubs, brakes, etc from Cykelmageren.

… lugs and wood tubes at Sylvan. (One of my favorites.)

… sharp bullet bars at Black Sheep.

All in all, great show, greater bikes, strange town. There’s plenty more photos of items I probably missed pointing out in this to be seen on my photo set; needless to say there’s surely a ton of other photos out there of the show.

Due to the slow internet connection here at the Comfort Inn I’ll keep this brief.

Richmond, VA—NAHBS—the North American Handmade Bicycle Show. We made it to the last few hours of day one after a nine hour or so drive across the Appalachians. So far so good—nay, so great; so here are some photos of the show so far:

Sylvan

Cykelmageren

VAR

Speedvagen

Richard Sachs

Igleheart

More to come on the flickr account as the rest of the weekend goes by….

The other day I got an unexpected gift in the mail from my friend James, so excited I was I tore open the envelope to reveal a copy of Yehuda Moon & the Kickstand Cyclery (July 1, 2008 – January 2, 2009). This is a compendium of sorts of the daily comics chronicling the happenings of Yehuda, Joe, Thistle and all the other characters surrounding the Kickstand Cyclery bike shop. A book like this immediately earns a position in my bike library.

I do enjoy this comic, I make sure to check the action everyday and am usually pretty amused. Having it in print is the next best thing to having Yehuda himself visit me in person. Now I’m going to have to get my hands on the first edition. Evidently the author, Rick Smith visited the shop where James works and was signing copies—icing on the cake.

So make sure to check out this daily online comic, it’s a good one for sure; and pretty relatable if you work in a shop I think. Also to find out more info on its creator, here’s a little interview I did with him a couple of years ago—I bet he’s been up to some new and exciting stuff since then, but nonetheless….

And James, thanks for the great gift. Cottered cranks indeed!

This weekend is the North American Handbuilt Bicycle Show. I’ve attended the last two years in Portland, OR; and Indianapolis, IN; for some reason to me that seems like a big deal. This will be the first year it’s not exactly geographically convenient for me to attend, but I am attending nonetheless. Ol’ Drew and I are making the trip crack of dawn hoping to make the show on it’s first day. Richmond, VA is probably a cool town, I’ve not been there in who knows how long, but I’m meeting some of my family there to show them what all this insanity for bikes is all about that I’ve developed. I’m expecting a dashingly good time; I’ve also just gotten a new digital camera (rumour has it, they’ve stopped even manufacturing film cameras!) so I’ll have, I’m sure, a ton of unique photos of beautiful bikes, components, and other cycling accoutrements.

Here are a couple pics from year’s past:

Pegoretti @ Portland, OR

Handbuilt photos in 2008

Velo Orange @ Indianapolis, IN

Handbuilt photos in 2009

Resistance training. I’ve been doing a lot of it lately. Is that an actual name for a style of training regimen? My version works like this: ride a cross bike all the time, heavy traction tires, with a bag full of whatever, and a set of sluggish hubs. Lately I’ve also topped it off with thicker than recommended chain lube in the winter. Fight through that and you’ve gotta be building strength, right?

Salty. Maybe this Yehuda Moon put it together for me, but don’t we have a lot of salt on our roads? My lips are not only dry, but they’re actually salty from them it seems. How’s that for the crops? My bike has seen better—less desiccated—days.

Today’s ride home however, was a champ-fest. Rocketing across and off the 2nd street bridge was exhilarating, just pushing it! Laying it down. Where was the competition? Apart from the slavish motorists, all in my head. This is my training, remember! The ride home had one further point of awesomeness to it. No hat, first time in a long time I’ve gotten to ride with nothing under my helmet! Is it happening? Probably too early, especially considering that flea-bag Phil, I’ll take Chuck’s forecast this year.

I’ve just been loaned a book. The Wonderful Ride, the “true journal of Mr. George T. Loher who in 1895 cycled from coast to coast on his Yellow Fellow Wheel”. Sounds pretty cool, might inspire me to take that first step to ride some god-awful distance this spring I’ve been thinking about. We’ll just have to see how Mr. Loher fares.

I love those little Campy part labels

My good buddy Drew over at On Your Left suggested a good idea to me that I am real excited about. I’ve sold the wheels the CAAD9 came with and was planning on, but reluctant to, buying a set of MAVIC Ksyriums. Good wheels to have, no doubt, but I’m a fan of hand-built wheels—preferably my own. There was also a financial issue buying a new set of wheels. Settling that debate was Drew’s suggestion of the brilliance of Campagnolo—or more accurately, he suggested trying a Fulcrum freehub body on my Campy rear hub. Enter the assumed Campagnolo part number 1011225. This will allow me to keep the wheels rolling I built for my recently demised Coppi. Centaur hubs on Aeroheads; thirty-two hole spectacularness!

Oh, and I’ve got a birthday coming up, was the AARP invitation I got in the mail the other day some kind of joke? WTF?

Awesome news here locally. Most here locally have already heard, but for those who haven’t: the Cyclocross World Championships will be held here in Louisville in 2013.

That’s cool news right? I’m happy to hear it, but must admit it seems like a slightly unlikely choice. What’s New England think of that decision? Or New Jersey and Oregon?

Hey, it’s still the here in the ‘States, right? First time it will not be in Europe What would top that for me personally, is if I was sent to Europe for the first time ever.

Last night I built my new * Cannondale CAAD9. Had a good time hanging out with Drew and a few Fat Tires (glad I live near a state that sells that fine beer; god forbid the state I live in allow it, right?) I took my time, it was just about hanging out to me, no rush putting it together really. I found out some of the minor limitations and inefficiencies of the workstand I’ve got at home, all things I suspected of course, but pragmatically discovered last night. It’s great for most repairs still though.

Creature of the night (15" exposure)

As far as the C-dale goes, I’m keeping it mostly stock at this point, but I have already come to the conclusion myself what most people already told me, and that is the brakes suck. Sometimes I like to come to my own opinions though: the brakes suck. And I haven’t even ridden them yet. I’ll see how they operate soon enough, however, it’ll be hard to clear my mind of the already subjective mushiness I feel in the calipers. But it’s all part of the process of what I said: forming my own opinion. Keeping it stock. The wheels have also been deemed “junk” from several third parties, I honestly don’t care for how they look on the bike, but they seem acceptable for the moment, I’ll ride them soon enough to really lay judgement—personally I like my hand-built wheels best.

It looks pretty sweet on the whole though; what’s not stock on it is the Thomson stem and seatpost. Many of you will know I’m not a fan of carbon, and that stock Cannondale seatpost was carbon—and heavy. The stem to match is really just necessary aesthetics and class. I was sorely tempted to run it with Force instead of Rival, but that upgrade at the moment is cost prohibitive for me. For what it’s worth, the tape isn’t stock; I can’t roll white tape, especially factory generic tape. White was replaced by fi’zi:k Microtex, color grey. Looks good I think, feels great too. Soft and suede-y. Beyond that, the saddle will likely not stay stock either, the Prologo Kappa Pas looks good, feels good, but I’ve learned to like another and am not sure I’m ready to test a new saddle line.

All of this however is for nought, as the celebration that a inaugural ride on a spanking new bike is diminished in a sense when the roads are wet and the sky is dark with rain. It’s supposed to clear up though. I’m always a little saddened for a customer when they come to pick up their new bike on a rainy day. Is that silly? Perhaps. I know that I’m going to ride that new bike in the rain some day, and I’m alright with that, but it’s first ride should be bluebird. (Freshly paved streets is likely asking too much of course.) Clear skies and a comfortable temperature for a maiden voyage just seems like the way it should be. It’s only right for the bicycle gods to deliver a sudden 70˚ and dry afternoon.

* (Mileage on the Coppi’s computer: 1,093.7, for those unaware, the CAAD9 described above is a replacement for the Coppi’s demise.)

I’m getting a bicycle tomorrow* and suspect to be riding it this weekend. It’s a Cannondale CAAD9 4, it comes stock with Rival shifting and Cannondale’s BB30 bottom bracket standard (with SRAM Force cranks). I’m looking forward to it, especially the part of learning more about BB30: what it rides like, what it’s durability is like, what it’s maintenance is all about.

I don’t anticipate this standard will wipe away any opinions I have about good ol’ square tapers, but I do think it will surprise me for the positive. Checking out the several I’ve worked on at the shop the past few months has impressed me a bit already. Installation, while blunt and ungraceful, seems like a piece of cake. Extraction, equally so.

I’ll be happy if it spins even half as smooth and fast as the UN54 that’s been neglected and un-inspected for four + years in my fixie. And I’ll surely be happy if it spins faster than the outboards on the ‘cross bikes in this household. We shall soon see.

* or rather it’s shipping tomorrow.

Have lately been conflicted with a bout of writer’s block. Just having trouble resigning myself to sitting in front of the computer lately. In need of some inspiration or something. Maybe the French class or the welding class will do that.

Will return soon.