Love for the bike people.

I think cycling and the world of bicycles contains a whole lot of interesting people; disproportionately so.  I come from the world of health care, where most people don't seem to be that creative or take the time to look outside of their own specialized world.  I know these are generalizations that should not be applied unfairly, but I am amazed each day when I read the cycling blogs written by professionals and amateurs alike.  Red Kite Prayer (RKP) is one of my favorites ... Padraig is a real gem of a writer and a professional; not to mention some of the other writers that write for RKP.  I am also keen to read things by Gary Fisher, hear about Tom Ritchey's exploits, or thoughts by Ben Serotta.

All of these people are famous in the world of cycling for a reason.  They are pioneers and passionate about the two wheel world, much like me.  I don't plan on being famous in the world of cycling, but I certainly enjoy writing and reading more about cycling and bicycles than most other subjects.  These famous bike people are either successful athletes turned business people or craftsmen turned athletes or some combination of the two.  The are a form of the modern renaissance person that has many talents.

In retrospect, I should have been a mechanical engineer.  It would have been more useful for being in the bike world and designing frames or components.  Although I am convinced that a job is just a job. I don't care if you are a carpenter, nurse, social worker, or doctor ... your days are very much the same one day to the next.  And as such, maybe if I was a bike engineer, I may have lost interest in it?  No ... probably not.

I am also impressed by the various creative individuals in the world of cycling that have funneled their passions to make a living based on their true love.  I think some of the smaller apparel companies are pretty impressive.  I like companies that focus their creativity to be different, but remain true to functionality and form (based on actually cycling experience?).  Stand outs for me include:

Handlebar Mustache
www.hbstache.com

Twin Six
www.twinsix.com

Morvelo
www.morvelo.com

Rodeo Adventure Labs
www.rodeo-labs.com

Tenspeed Hero
www.tenspeedhero.com

Some of the current or past pro riders are also extremely interesting personalities.  As an example, consider Phil Gaimon - writer of books, racer of bicycles, and comedian of all sorts.  Evelyn Stevens - a wall street analyst who just decided to become a world class cyclist.  Michael Barry - a rare Canadian world tour rider who not only survived as a pro cyclist for a long time, but is also a fantastic writer (I hope he throws me a mini-blog post some day).  There are many others.  I am referring more to the current riders than the past.  The past is full of characters; both good and bad.  I think we need to bring back the "great" nicknames in full force.  "The Badger," "the Sheriff", or "the Cannibal," sound so much more descriptive and menacing than "El Pistolero" or "the Cowboy."  If Lance was called "the Boss," then that may very well be perfect.  By "boss" do we mean leader of the team / peleton or power thug? (http://bikeraceinfo.com/riderhistories/cyclist-nicknames.html).

Creativity is the stuff that makes us move forward to invent, improve and instruct.  Most of us have some form of creative outlet that allows that part of our brain to express itself.  Some of us have made a living on it, and some just produce "art" of many forms just for our own good.  It's so cool to see the eclectic mix of personalities that build bikes, race bikes or just plain ride bikes.

I think the universal passion that people share about bikes is a little crazy and a lot cool.  How many non-bike people think its completely nuts to spend thousands on a bike?  Most.  How many people have friends that don't ride a bike that give you the weirdest look when you say you rode 100+ kilometers yesterday?  Most.  However, we all understand each other.  That's cool.  I'm glad I belong to a group that understands my spending and rides their bikes for hundreds of kilometers.

I love bike people: they are creative, tough, and adventurous.

Build the next bike yourself.

When I was in graduate school, I took up fly fishing.  I liked it quite a bit and it felt like something I would do for a long time and keep for life as a hobby.  So, I went to a fly shop in Portland and bought everything I thought I needed to build a 4 weight fly rod.  After learning a lot about fly rod building, I finally used that rod to actually catch a nice rainbow trout in a beautiful mountain stream on a perfect day.  It was the best fish I've caught so far.  The rod is terrible compared to some Sage and Orvis rods I've used, but I built that sucker from scratch, and it caught some fish too.

How many of you have built a bike from the ground up?

I've tooled around with a plethora of replacement parts for all of my most loved bikes - always trying to get just the right feel, size or even weight.  I have only built one bike so far from nothing to complete.  My cyclocross ride is an Ibis Hakkalugi non-disc version.

Ibis Hakkalugi - cyclocross season is coming!

I was selling bikes at my favorite LBS when I decided to build the Hakkalugi.  The frame was a good deal because I got the employee discount.  I used the SRAM Rival components, 3T stem, Dedacciai handlebar, Easton seatpost, TRP brakes, old Easton clincher wheels.  Nothing exceptional, but a lot of fun to ride.

There's something to be said for riding a bike that you built with parts you chose from the beginning. I know every part, every adjustment, and every small detail of why the bike rides the way it does or feels the way it does.  I take full responsibility if something is out of alignment or not working the way I want it to.  That being said, I love riding this bike.  It fits perfectly and feels like a million bucks.  It handles the way I want it to.  The brakes are smooth and powerful.  The reach on the bar / stem is exactly where I want it.  The gearing is crisp and accurate.  The only problem is the rider, never as strong as he should be...

I learned a fair amount about a few things. Mainly to do with brakes (short pull mini brakes to go with road levers - the first set of cantilevers were also pretty weak, making the Ibis "hand-job" unsatisfying).  Also, SRAM Rival is a huge step down from Force in my mind - not even close. Force to Red = small step.  Thick bar tape is also nice for the 'cross bike.  Seems to absorb some of the vibrations over roots, rocks and holes as you cruise over everything as fast as you can.

I also learned that your LBS is your best friend some times.  In my case, the shop I had been working at, went broke just a month after I had left (pretty sure it wasn't my fault).  I was taking my sweet time building the bike and needed advice on certain things, as well as a few tools to make sure things were installed correctly.  I ended up going to another shop and getting the help I needed.

In the end, it was both rewarding and educational to build this bike.  This won't be the last one I build, and I'm sure the next one will be even better.  I have learned which parts feel the best to me and have the fit characteristics that suit me best.  I really like SRAM components (yes loud, but exact), 3T, Ritchey, and some of Specialized's parts.  The next build will be a road bike.  Probably aero, probably OEM Carbon, and maybe painted with a name sake that is related to this blog. Although, the aforementioned theft of my mountain bike may change some of these things.

I encourage everyone who has any interest in bikes to build your own.  You will learn a ton about the mechanics of your bike and know how to fix it when necessary.  You can customize things just the way you want them.  You can source out parts from different suppliers to save money.  You can be proud of the bike you build and probably enjoy riding it more.  If you do it just right, you may be able to land that special trout as well!


Let me see your builds.  Any advice for people building their own bikes?