What's the Buzz?

   I've been a busy bee since we returned from Europe, not only because I was playing catch-up with all of the parts that came in while we were gone, but a good number of folks needed repairs or recruited me for bike searches. I had also tried to organize (some successful, some not-so-much) a few group rides on the weekends.

   Anyhow, I have nearly cleared out my Eli Whitney-like assembly line of parts that had been lined-up and ready to go on my long work table with nearly four complete bikes-worth of components! The only parts row remaining is for a Look KG 271 to which I'm am still attempting to match up some touch-up paint before building the bike.

   The latest project to reach completion is a mid-1980s Battaglin. I had explained here a couple of months ago that it was from the shop of the late Luciano Conati. However, I neglected to include the photos I found online of the pro cyclist in his prime:

   The bike build would have been fairly simple, had a dishonest seller not supplied me with a lefthand shifter that had a crack in the body near the lever. It was not new damage, as closer inspection showed that someone attempted to glue it back together. It wasn't something I had noticed when I looked everything over months ago when the packaged groupset arrived at my door, as the rubber hood covered the area

    I buy component groups when I find quality, affordable products and set them aside for my future projects. However, before storing away a groupset, I make sure to insert cables in the levers and make sure the shifting and braking function properly. In this case nothing appeared wrong until I installed the brakes and applied real stopping pressure to the wheel then heard a popping sound.

   Unfortunately, after all this time I no longer have any recourse through eBay, but I sent a note to the seller, as sometimes you find out folks are quite reasonable. With the way the damage was concealed, I'm not feeling too confident.

   I did have an identical lever in stock to swap in from that in-limbo Coppi bicycle, so I wasn't further frustrated by having to put everything on hold. Later that night I even found a replacement-for-the-replacement part on eBay.

   The other bicycle I finished off is a really nice 1999 Cannondale R600. I see this bike as the ancestor to the "Green Machine" that was custom made for Peter Sagan to ride during the final stage of the 2013 Tour de France, where he claimed the green points jersey.

   I had an older Shimano 105 groupset set aside for a friend's build, but he changed his mind, so I was on the lookout for another era-appropriate project. This frameset is in a rare color for this Cannondale model and is also in fantastic condition for its age.

My rafters are crammed with bikes, and I'm still working on a couple things - check out my For Sale page, as I'm ready to make a deal!

Killing It

   After watching Team Sky's evil empire dominate grand tour races this summer, I had a discussion this weekend with my brother-in-law about how their performance is negatively affecting pro cycling. By coincidence, on Steephill.tv a link appeared to an interesting podcast on the same subject – the words “dollar doping” came up during the conversation.

   I most often watch British Eurosport coverage of pro cycling, and the commentators don’t seem to mind, in fact they practically slobber over Chris Froome and “their guys” on Team Sky. However, as I’ve mentioned before, Brits like their top-heavy pro sports – not counting Leicester’s miraculous win two seasons ago, only FOUR different teams have claimed the top spot in the last TWENTY-NINE seasons, and they see nothing wrong with that?!!

   Being cynical, I could point out that the performance-enhancing drug talk has vanished as mysteriously as the “accidental steroid order” appeared at Team Sky’s door. More realistically, I will point at the team’s huge budget and their ridiculously strong lineup, which is absolutely loaded with riders who have won World Tour events, Olympic medals, national and world championships.

   When one team is so dominant, not only does it create boring races for non-Froome/Sky fans, but it also turns away sponsors, who want results and exposure for the athletes that wear their product logos on their jerseys and shorts. As much as the smaller teams get by with putting their riders out in breakaways during the Tour de France, etc., I don’t think World Tour teams will survive with such racing scraps.

   This is important to consider when Cannondale-Drapac, one of pro cycling’s most visible teams, recently announced that the withdrawal of a major sponsor would leave a $7 million budget deficit for 2018. Amazingly, their parent company, Slipstream Sports, has raised over $5 million through a crowd-funding campaign, but what a sad situation to be in when donations are needed to save one of your sport’s standard squads!

   Perhaps there is a promising trend occurring within the Sky ranks, as several high-profile members have become tired of playing second (third, fourth?) fiddle to teammates and decided to move on to more prominent roles with other teams. So far, I’ve counted the departures of Mikel Landa, Ilia Viviani, Peter Kennaugh, Mikel Nieve and Diego Rosa – not easy holes to fill, until they just start throwing more money around.

   I completed the swap of parts between the two Colnago bicycles, and most of the work went smoothly, although I accidentally grabbed the wrong set of cable housings that I had pre-cut for another project. They didn’t have the proper amount of slack to allow smooth turning of the handlebars, so I knew that the mistake had been made right away. A bit of wasted time, but no big deal.

   The rain cleared out today, so I was able to give the Master X-Light a test spin on my favorite Belgium-ish Route that features a bunch of short climbs and some rough roads – the ride quality was fantastic! No, I couldn’t quite dance up the hills like when I’m on my carbon fiber Cannondale, but this Colnago isn’t exactly a beast. Its frame is made from some of the lightest steel tubing available, and punchy climbers like myself can appreciate that there is virtually no flex in the bottom bracket, so there is minimal loss of power in the pedal stroke.

   However, the real difference is felt in the way the bike absorbs vibration. I’ve ridden on this route, which traverses a good amount of broken asphalt, with aluminum and carbon fiber bikes plenty of times in the past, and there is nothing like the plush ride of a steel frame!

   As mentioned last week when considering moving the parts between the bikes, I just didn’t think the triple group originally included on the MX-L was appropriate for a racing bike. Instead, I purchased a Campagnolo Centaur double group for the blue C-97, much like the components featured on the bike when I built it years ago (during another Colnago part swap) but had upgraded since.

   At last I was able to find some Mavic 451 brake levers and put the long-term Vitus 992 Lotto Team bicycle project to rest. The bike looks fantastic, if I do say so myself:

The bikes mentioned above are now listed on my FOR SALE page. I received a bunch of other parts in the mail today, and will have an opportunity to polish off a couple other builds that had been on hold for a while. Check in next week!