Yesterday I put the ‘Nonerini up for public sale:
And I’m happy to announce it appears to be like like we’ve acquired a winner!
I can solely think about how a lot cash we might have raised had I auctioned off one thing extra unique, just like the Normcore Bike:
Nonetheless that received’t be taking place very quickly, as this bike is a priceless piece of velocipedal historical past.
Talking of which, like all bike dork I’ve all the time acquired one eye open for fascinating bikes after I’m strolling across the metropolis, and lately this setup caught my eye:
Within the post-integrated shifting period individuals with previous bikes will usually go to nice lengths to get their gear controls within the neighborhood of their brake levers with out making a pricey funding in STI or its numerous equivalents, and the above is an efficient instance. Whereas I recognize all types of various shifter, I admit I favor mine within the extra canonical places, and as such I’ve by no means been fascinated by choices like these from Gevenalle:
I get it, I applaud it, it’s an important various to pricey and proprietary built-in levers, however I admit I merely can’t get previous the aesthetics, and when you understand it appears to be like like some kind of unhappy robot-insect wanting up at you plaintively you merely can’t unsee it.
I really feel the identical approach concerning the IRD Energy Ratchet:
Once more, it’s a incredible various to one thing that locks you right into a devoted drivetrain and I’m all in favor of it, however I’m additionally a shallow and self-conscious individual and lack the arrogance to equip my bike with a brake lever that appears prefer it has a windshield wiper.
I used to be fascinated by all this as I contemplated this explicit shifter in addition to the stent that ran beneath its raggedy bar tape, and I puzzled why in the event that they needed extra handy shifting they didn’t simply use bar finish shifters as an alternative:
They’re clean-looking, they’re simple to achieve, they usually don’t require operating cable all the best way up the bar. So why use this stuff as an alternative?
Then I figured it out:
Certain, they might not take bar-end shifters, however an underappreciated benefit of the Scott Drop-In bar is that once you yoke your bike to a pole by the stem it’s that a lot tougher to take away the bar to steal the bike:
Until after all the thief merely removes the quill stem, during which case the bike is theirs in a matter of seconds. However at this time’s thieves in all probability don’t even know what a quill stem is, and in reality I’m moderately sure that lately they’re solely fascinated by e-bikes anyway.
Additionally, it’s no worse than locking your bike to the leg of a mailbox, which is how my very own bike acquired stolen again after I labored as a motorcycle messenger:
Both the field wasn’t bolted to the bottom, or else someone unbolted it whereas I used to be inside, however both approach after I got here out my Cannondale was gone. Regardless, as a proud member of the Bonded Trek Siblinghood, I hoped this bicycle didn’t meet with the identical destiny:
Plus, the bike sported not solely the mighty Altus rear derailleur, but additionally my favourite chainstay protector of all time:
See?
There isn’t a design higher than operate particular design.
