Where does a classic road bike fit in your cycling life?

[Clean39T]

Originally Posted by nmrt

quiver killer is just that -- a killer that kills all the bikes and out of that is birthed a beast slouching it way into nothingness.

there is nothing as pure on the road as a pure thoroughbred race bike. In all my bikes and all their iterations of 650b and 700c with this mm of tire and that mm of internal rim width, nothing approaches the sensation of pure speed and agility like a road bike made for the race.

for me, nothing other than another road race bike will replace my road race bike.

This was too good not to quote and cross-post.

[marciero]

Originally Posted by Clean39T

Lots of interesting and intriguing responses here. I think I did a disservice to my question though by saying "classic" - it seems in most peoples' minds here, that means full steel and tubulars and retro/nostalgia. It's almost easier for me to feel the pull to those. I was thinking more modern-classic I guess, from the '00s through the '10s...

One could go farther and argue that all of these are modern race bikes. Though the materials and components have changed, the basic design, including geometry, wheel and tire size, has not changed since about the mid 20th century or whenever skinny tires came into vogue.

[weisan]

Originally Posted by Clean39T

Good thing I'm moving into a home with an oversized two car garage shortly.

------

That's the answer to everything, including your original question.

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by weisan

That's the answer to everything, including your original question.

How much for the box fan...

[R56Blues]

I see this drew lots of old dudes like me out to post. No need to get too long winded, but it is fun to read.

Classic (for me '80's) road bikes are what we grew up on. What our heros raced on. We love them for that reason and for that great steel ride only a quality tubeset can yield. The twang when you hit uneven pavement. The responsive steering combined with all day comfort.......

For me classics fill a void. I couldn't afford them in my 30's. I read the catalogs and brochures over and over, then hopped on my only bike. Peugot, Trek, Miele or Canondale and dreamed on.

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[Kirk007]

Originally Posted by weisan

That's the answer to everything, including your original question.

Ah Weisan, thank you. I feel much better now and will file this photo away for the next time I get needled with the question of how many bikes I have. I feel positively tidy.

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[gbcoupe]

Originally Posted by oldpotatoe

How much for the box fan...

Pretty sure that's a Park Tool box fan. They're pricey!

[robt57]

Vintage VS Classic, as noted:

Try to keep this quick. I sited my Nago as it IS as modern a classic and a modern classic. Take my Strong Road, tig instead of lugs, slope TT and long post, but contact points, WB/CS and rake trail not different between the two.

Now the 1972 Paramount IMO less classic and more vintage. 80s is when they all got it right IMO. Rake and trails especially..

[charliedid]

I was one that assumed for whatever reason lugged steel with tubulars, even with your examples. I should pay attention.

So to answer your question I think my Emonda is that bike for me and will always have such a bike. Quick, light enough and 25-28 I'm all in.

[Clean39T]

Originally Posted by oldpotatoe

How much for the box fan...

If you can strap a Merv-13 to it, it's worth it's weight in gold round these parts.

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[shinomaster]

Originally Posted by Clean39T

On the heels of XX's evolution of the tire thread and after gawking at the '86 Nova project, I've been thinking a fair bit about what place a classic road bike has in my garage going forward.....and I'm curious to hear other perspectives.

When I say "classic road bike", I'm thinking of what most of us rode on the road for the last twenty years - 23-25mm tires, standard or compact gears maybe maxing out at a 34x28, steepish angles, and an efficient position for riding at 18-20mph solo over varied terrain.

I didn't think I would ever be without a bike like that - and yet here I am now, at N=1 with what could be described as a semi-modern all-road bike that has sub-compact gears and pretty fat 30mm tires, and handles more like the bike you want for a spirited century than an invigorating romp through the twisties. My #2 and #3 bikes on the way (gee, who-wouldda-thought..) are all-road disc/gravel/deep-gravel options that I'm picking up to hit the trails and dirt-roads in Central OR. Which means I'd be getting to bike #4 before selecting a "classic road bike" and that has me wondering if or why I'd even need or want that in my garage at that point.

One argument I can find is that such a bike makes a great trainer - something to put on the rollers and to go out and hammer hill repeats on when the only goal is really to ride hard just for the sake of it. Of course, I can do that on bikes #1-#3 above too, but in general, one can keep a trainer running cheaper than the buffed out specialty bikes that take up the first few hooks.

Or for those who still race on the road in packs - or who may race again next year, if such a thing is a thing again - I guess that bike is still a passport to a reasonably competitive time in the lower categories where skill and experience can overcome the losses of round tubes, spokes, seatposts, and handlebars - or off too-narrow tires. It is certainly cheaper to replace and repair a classic than something that may break in half if you sit on the top tube, or if the bars swing round the wrong way.

Another argument is that such bikes keep us connected to the heart and soul of road riding as we once knew it to be - the times when our heroes were young and we dreamed of all things Italian. Maybe the shock of small irregularities in the pavement jarring up through 23s at 100psi still serves a purpose - or of wrestling a 39x25 up a 10% grade. Maybe it connects us to the images we have of ourself on the bike - or of what it means to ride with panache, efficiency (and cartilage) be dam'd.

Maybe there's an aspect of this too that is regional - I'm moving somewhere with aluring dirt, but if I were in SoCal or parts of the NE, or certainly if I was in France or Italy, it would be a different calculus. And we can't negate that road bikes must be ridden on the road - where big dumb animals are piloting big dumb death missiles - and must have reasonably decent roads to be ridden, which city and county budgets are struggling to keep providing.

Anyway, I'd hoped by the time I got to this point in the post I'd have come up with an answer.

The truth is, I don't know if or where a classic road bike fits in my cycling life at this point.

Also me - I want this Mondonico!

All my road bikes fit this description! I'll always want a proper road bike no matter what, I'm just super old school it turns out. All these new bikes I see with monster head tubes and disc brakes and curious looking tires and components sorta make me cringe in a way. I realize that form follows function so I get it, but as an artist aesthetics mean a lot to me. My Zank CX which I hope to rebuild soon is my almost perfect do everything bike. One summer I used it as a road bike and it was fantastic and I can ride down a bumpy street picking my nose its that stable. The cantis do stink in the rain though. Maybe I will put a chorus 12 group on it so I can climb up everything and anything. PS. That Mondonico is sweet, get it for grocery store runs and cruising.

[thirdgenbird]

Originally Posted by shinomaster

My Zank CX which I hope to rebuild soon is my almost perfect do everything bike. One summer I used it as a road bike and it was fantastic and I can ride down a bumpy street picking my nose its that stable. The cantis do stink in the rain though. Maybe I will put a chorus 12 group on it so I can climb up everything and anything.

Do it.



This covers nearly all of my riding.

[colker]

Originally Posted by gbcoupe

Pretty sure that's a Park Tool box fan. They're pricey!

What about the Campagnolo box fan? I cannot not use Campy around my bikes. I am the classic type.

[shinomaster]

Originally Posted by thirdgenbird

Do it.



This covers nearly all of my riding.

Nice!

[Fixed]

I asked my friend that Question he said buy a New S Works and you will have one .

Cheers