Yesterday I put the ‘Nonerini up for public sale:
And I’m happy to announce it seems like we’ve bought 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:
Nevertheless 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 at all times bought one eye open for attention-grabbing bikes once I’m strolling across the metropolis, and just lately this setup caught my eye:
Within the post-integrated shifting period individuals with outdated bikes will typically go to nice lengths to get their gear controls within the neighborhood of their brake levers with out making a expensive funding in STI or its numerous equivalents, and the above is an effective instance. Whereas I admire all types of various shifter, I admit I choose mine within the extra canonical places, and as such I’ve by no means been occupied with choices like these from Gevenalle:
I get it, I applaud it, it’s a fantastic various to expensive and proprietary built-in levers, however I admit I merely can’t get previous the aesthetics, and when you understand it seems like some kind of unhappy robot-insect trying up at you plaintively you merely can’t unsee it.
I really feel the identical method 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 serious about all this as I contemplated this specific shifter in addition to the stent that ran underneath its raggedy bar tape, and I questioned 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, and so they don’t require operating cable all the best way up the bar. So why use these items 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 while you yoke your bike to a pole by the stem it’s that a lot more durable to take away the bar to steal the bike:
Except in fact the thief merely removes the quill stem, through which case the bike is theirs in a matter of seconds. However right now’s thieves in all probability don’t even know what a quill stem is, and in reality I’m fairly sure that lately they’re solely occupied with 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 bought stolen again once I labored as a motorbike messenger:
Both the field wasn’t bolted to the bottom, or else any individual unbolted it whereas I used to be inside, however both method once 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 in addition my favourite chainstay protector of all time:
See?
There is no such thing as a design higher than operate particular design.
