FW: [CR]Masi vs. Waterford (a little long...)

(Example: Framebuilders:Tony Beek)

Subject: FW: [CR]Masi vs. Waterford (a little long...)
Date: Wed, 29 Aug 2001 14:01:58 -0400
Thread-Topic: [CR]Masi vs. Waterford (a little long...)
Thread-Index: AcEwtZM+67bu1Zx6EdW/rQBQBLC6Xg==
content-class: urn:content-classes:message
From: "Rich Rose" <rrose@normandassociates.com>
To: <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>


Dear listmembers, with Thomas Rawsons' encouragement (see below), I am forwarding my response to Thomas regarding the Waterford vs. Masi question. I was not sure that this was the kind of thing that the entire list would be interested in, and I did not want to embarass our very own e-richie. A couple of clarifications; I meant to say "Ugo", not "Ago". And Richie does not e-mail me every Monday to brag about his racing conquest's, but we do get to chat frequestly, which I think is the point. I originally had simply replied that I would take the Waterford & Thomas asked that I explan why, which I did. He then asked me to elaborate, and the below text is what came from that. So, hoping that I am not overstepping any bounds... Richard Rose (Toledo, Ohio) -----Original Message----- From: Thomas Rawson [mailto:twrawson@worldnet.att.net] Sent: Wednesday, August 29, 2001 12:30 PM To: Rich Rose Subject: Re: [CR]Masi vs. Waterford

Rich,
Awesome awesome this should be on the list!
Tom


----- Original Message -----
From: Rich Rose
To: Thomas
Sent: Wednesday, August 29, 2001 6:19 AM
Subject: RE: [CR]Masi vs. Waterford


Tom, I have had several conversations with Richard (Sachs), that deal with this issue somewhat. Certainly, "myth" and "group think" have much to do with what you are talking about. Most of us who like and admire bikes have been caught up in it. For me, it started with my PX10 in the seventies. It had to be really good, Thevenet won the tour on the bike, right? And all of that business about the consumer frames being built right along side the team bikes on the same assembly line - remember that? Then came the DeRosa in the mid 1980's. I thought when I saw it, slightly used & sitting in the window of the LBS, "here is my chance to own one of the best bikes of all time, ridden to victory by Eddy himself". It was not until recently that I have come to understand that my particular bike was probably one of the earlier units that used investment cast parts vs. the earlier stamped lugs, etc... I had been under the spell of Ago himself hand filing / brazing & otherwise working his magic in the little workshop behind the house in 'ol Italy. And I had read "Zen & the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance", I thought I knew what quality was. It (the DeRosa), is a very nice bike, but I was reading more into it than what was really there - I think that that is certainly true of most Masi's & their followers. The media is the message? In the Sachs, I am convinced that I finally have the "real thing". Not only was it made in the little shop behind the house (or was it in the basement), but I can pick up the phone & talk to the guy. And even though it is truly beautiful to look at, Richard has convinced me that the true "quality" is much more than skin deep. It is all about everything that has gone into the building of "my" frame, the culmination of everything Richard has learned over the past 30 or so years. Now, am I still gullible? Is it possible that I am still having the wool pulled over my eyes, so to speak? Maybe. But in the Sachs, which is of my time, I am living the myth, right along with the builder himself who races the very same bikes on weekends and writes to tell me about it on Monday. I think that that is way cooler than remembering / fantasizing about the legends of the past. So, if Faliero built the Masi for me, I might take it over the Waterford. But, I'd give you 5 of each for my Sachs. Gee, this is kind of fun. Richard Rose