mwg

so today after swimming with the boys we drove to blackmans. i just wanted to touch some bikes. lol. i am sure you all understand. pretty tragic really and don’t tell managment.

again the roadie was the focus. and i saw this. i was almost shaking.

scott CR1 - team 08 model weighing in at around 8.3kg … nuts!

it is bloody beautiful. it’s pretty much carbo but in a roadie form.
now where’s that list again?:
carbon seat stays [check + full carbon ah.. bonus], mavic aksium wheels [check], 105 full running gear [check], looks like sex [CHECK!].

so this is the one, + it has a white seat, i love bikes with white seats. i spoke to a different sales guy, phil was busy, so we discussed a fair bit of stuff, i questioned him on the best price so he then went and spoke to phil. phil’s asked me was there anything else, i said just shoes, he laughed and asked if i wanted pedals with them. we both giggled then he told me the price… my jaw dropped. with pedals and a good pair of shoes [as phil says a good pair] 2.5k. that is just unbelievable value for what this bike is.

now i have a target and a mission. i know this bike has been in the store for a little while & without getting my hopes up to high if i can raise the funds from my freelance jobs this week, it will be in my bike room very shortly.

but again being realistic i also had a good suss of the giant TCR alliance 2. a bit cheaper but still a very nice steed indeed. it did feel a fair bit heavier than the scott but the components were almost as good. if the scott doesn’t happen it is down to the wire with the masi and the giant.

please pay the bills freelance clients… please?

side on from the website

the last 2 images are of the serious fore-runner the 3VC 105.
more time equals more research and that means more indecision. i spent the majority of last night scouring for more roadie options then i suddenly hit an old friend. masi bikes. i was toying with a few of their bikes, in above featured order:

GRAN CORSA: more designed for comfort and a little bit cheaper than their others but has all the gear. carbon seatstays, carbon forks. 105 shifters and ultegra rear.
GRAN CRITERIUM: vintage decals with carbon seatstays and chainstays, carbon forks but with sram rival 10 running gear. the frame style is a little more race and the wheels are a little more “look at me kimmy” but i am still fine with that.
then the piece de resistance…

the 3VC 105:
full carbon frame, 105 shifting, derailleurs, and a truvativ 2.2 compact cranks set.

when i saw the 3VC 105 it really started to come together quiet nicely. this is a carbon roadie that wreaks of style and i love the burgundy/dark feel. the rear stays curves are a bloody nice touch, and the spec is outstanding value for money now it is just a mater of finding the mulla!

yeah, i know the giant is a great buy [i hear you paul] but it is still a commodore. it will do the job, [i will probably end up with one] but i am not that keen on a generic styled bike. i like to be a little left of field and the 3VC is seriously one of the best looking bikes i can find, much like all the masi range.

i enquired today about one. mccyclery [mr foxes friend’s and clients] are a masi dealer and grant who i spoke to was unreal. not pushie [no pun intended] but he seemed geniune and interested in helping me. i will find out on tuesday what the price of one is. i am a little concerned it could be out of my range… but as i said before, tarini is a smallish back-up fund… maybe????

so now i am in the market for a new roadie. my target is to have it before the new year. i will need to start the training ritual first up in the new year. i would like to have a bed of 6 months before the dirt works but that just aint going to happen yet!

the roadie bizarrely enough will end up being the most ridden bike in the stable. for this reason i am going to focus on a new bike. something with warranty. the minimum spec i would really like it to have is:

• a full 105 group set
• mavic aksium wheels [hopefully]
• carbon rear stays
• carbon seat post
• carbon forks

at purchase time i will also need to have the funds to buy a pair of road shoes as well. i am not going to ride to work once a week without having good ROAD shoes/cleats. not mtb shoes on a roadie bike.

as in the last post i called into blaxland cycles the other day. he is a dealer for the new “oppy” malvern star range and i am really interested in the bol d’or but he explained to me they have all sold out and may not be brought back into AUS. also if they are they would be way over the current price which was $2000 for a full carbon bike, mavic aksium wheels and 105 throughout. unbeatable value… sad news really

sadly i have also been thinking that if i really do want to go hard on the roadie possibly tarini may need to be sold? its a little weird even mentioning it but it just seems as though the level bike i want is just slightly out of my price range… aint that always the way!

so i am now on the hunt. i have a few bikes i am eyeing off…

pinarello FP1 - so far my No.1 pic. sweet… but very racing geometry wise

emc2 - etap pro - quite loud visually

scott CR1 Comp - full carbon frame but lower specs…

scott speedster s20 - the other scott option… all alloy but a good spec’d frame

specialized Allez Elite 2009 - red … very very red

Giant TCR alliance 2 - almost impossible to pass up. value for money, and at least it isn’t red!

man. roadie bikes are seriously gaudy hey. i know… lets make the graphics even louder.

this week again has been not the best. karen has been really ill, so i had to spend wednesday at home and doing all the family work as she was bed bound. it was bitter sweet, i hate anyone from my family being sick, but it also meant i could spend more time with the boys and karen.

aidan called me in the evening to come home, karen was really bad and when we spoke he took it upon himself to tell me at the end of the call that he will call me around 7.30. so as it turns out, that is around about where the train goes through the lapstone/glenbrook tunnel so the phone drops out. when i came out the other side i had a message from him. it seems so trivial but it was a real highlight in my life. one of my boys was really starting to grown up, is able to be relied on, and is really maturing. this is his call. lol. so bloody cute!

aidan my little man

when i dropped off the boys to school. i followed through to precision to pick up the raleigh. i had dropped it off earlier in the week and it was ready to be picked up after a sand blast. here she is ready for precision.

all ready for the blast

my head badge protection taping - do you see the problem? read on

so i picked up the frame. it cost a total of $66 which was a little more than i expected but i was really surprised with the result. i though it would be bare metal but it wasn’t. it had a kind of film? on it. i was a little confused but i knew it was as clean as so i knew i could work with it. i paid up and returned home but on the way i picked up some items to start working on the frame, steel wool, sand paper block etc. as well as a sneeky drop into a bike store at blaxland.

once i was at home i checked with work and there wasn’t anything i could do from home so i started to prep the forks. the idea i had was to patina finish the frame with hand polished [not high buff style, just autosol’d by hand] lugs and fork crown etc. the look was inspired by fast boy

fast boy cycles patina frame. just stunning

using the steel wool, i worked on cleaning/clearing the weirdish finish that was left from the sand blasting then light buffing the fork crown. i had a metal patina style paint i had picked up earlier from bunnings and i started to apply it to the main for stays. it was working exactly as planned but i also know i was going to have my work cut out steeling down the entire frame. i also had to clean off some of the old paint work from under the head badge so i was going to start there. when i started inspecting the badge my face dropped and a really horrible feeling came over me…

more crack than a plumber on a hot summers day

THE FRAME HAD A MASSIVE CRACK IN THE HEAD TUBE!

FFS! … i just walked around the deck a few times swearing. man did i have the shits. all this effort only to have the bitch have a crack… NOOOOOOO!

…

…

…

i went upstairs and made a tea. as the kettle boiled i smiled. man… at least i didn’t find out whilst i was going 60km+ an hour down mitchels pass! now that could have been really seriously nasty.

so…

i spoke to justin and when he went out to pick up the paino he actually spoke to peter about it and peter did mention that he could fix it. thanks mate for asking hey, that did make my day! but all in all the bike cost $200 all up, it isn’t 531 tubing, it’s not a ultra special frame by any means. after a fair bit of thought on the train home tonight i think i will just list it on ebay. someone may buy it. i will also list any parts that came with it as well and hopefully i will recover some money and right it off as a big learning curve.

i knew i should have just brought the carbon bars with the money from scottie!

it has also made me pull my finger out and i am determined to finish all frelance work off. i have permission from management to use one of the payments to buy a new bike, so it is looking like i will be getting a new road after all. just when will be the big thing. hopefully very soon… but i will see.