In a message dated 7/24/01 9:47:56 AM Eastern Daylight Time, tom_s_dalton@yahoo.com writes:
> That's my point. Buy the new stuff that most appeals to you and ride it.
The new tigged aluminum or carbon fiber frames with 1 1/8" head tubes, threadless carbon fiber steerers, long top tubes and short seat tubes don't appeal to me. I don't want to ride them as much as I do my older frames/bikes. I worked in a shop here for a year or two, so I had plenty of opportunity to check out the latest Trek, Specialized, Giant and Cannondale bikes. I could have bought any of them at "Employee Purchase" pricing, but did not because I didn't like them, compared to classic bikes I own. I guess I'm just odd.
> period-correct, and retire it before it's
> dead, you
> might have a nice showpiece later.
A what ? A "showpiece" ? What would I want with a "showpiece" ? Is that why you keep your older bikes, so you can look at them and show them to folks ? If so, I can see that point of view, but I don't share it at this point.
> But don't your bikes start to have more importance to you after you've
> saddle?
>
Yes they do ! This makes me want to be able to spend many MORE miles in
their saddles. It does NOT make me want to hang them somewhere for viewing
as art or historical artifacts. I guess I just don't look at my Trek 910 or
my Raleigh Competition as being possible to wear out in 5 or 25 years, unless
at some point the consumables such as chains and freewheels and headsets and
tires are rendered unreplacable by marketing-driven "advancements".
You really think a threadless 1 1/8" stem, steerer and head tube is significantly superior to a 1" threaded system with a quill stem ? I mean, to the rider - not just to the bike industry ?
I think a Cannondale MTB with a Headshock will be a real cool oddity in a few years, maybe even a valuable collectible, particularly a still-working one. Or a GT MTB with an I-Drive. But I don't want to own or ride one. Should I buy a Cannondale Raven with a Lefty and store it away as an investment hoping it will appreciate ?
Glenn Jordan - Durham, NC {not looking for an 1890's high-wheeler either, come to think of it...}