Does Mariposa have a website ? Are there any good websites showing Mariposa bikes ? Other than this list I've seen very little about these bikes.
John Price Denver, CO
-----Original Message----- From: Kenneth Stagg [mailto:kstagg@harbornet.com] Sent: Thursday, June 20, 2002 6:58 PM To: Classic Rendezvous Subject: Re: RE: [CR]Herse and parts thread/now-"contructeurs?"
6/20/02 5:04:35 PM, Jan Heine <heine@mindspring.com> wrote:
>It is not that nobody CAN make a randonneur bike in the U.S., but
>that nobody DOES (this is not true of Canada - Mariposa). Ernest
>Csuka of Singer said that he spends more time on the racks, stem and
>other parts than he does on the frame and fork. When three to four
>people worked at the Singer shop full time, they could put out about
>100-120 bikes a year, and that was working 50 hours a week! Now you
>realize why those bikes are expensive!
Well, I don't know how much an Alex Singer will cost today but a Mariposa, while certainly not inexpensive, isn't too ridiculous while the Canadian dollar is still in the dumps. Well, it isn't too ridiculous for a buyer from the United States. I don't know quite what the final bill will be on mine as there have been some changes since Mike gave me a quote (I don't expect to see the bike for about a month still) but I expect that it - with the custom racks, fender fittings and lighting - will come in at about the same or just
less than what I'd pay for one of the high end custom builders in the United
States.
>Also, randonneur bikes are not for everybody. They really are
>intended for mature riders who know what they want.
<snip>
>What you get is a bike that is wonderful for non-competitive riding
>on any terrain for any distance in any weather, during the day or at
>night.
I don't know if I qualify as a mature rider yet. Partly I'm looking for the
type of ride that Jan describes but I'll admit to also having been struck by
the elegance and style of these bikes. Maybe it has something to do with living in the Pacific Northwest but I've decided that I want a bike that does more than just accomodate fenders - I want a bike where the fenders are an integral part of the look of the bike. My bike won't be purely classical as
I've followed Larry Strung's direction (and Mike Barry's advice) on the component selection. I don't think that that will detract from my appreciation of it as a bike in the classic style, however.
Actually I'm probably at least as interested in learning about the Japanese variations of these bikes, and their builders, as I am in learning more about the French builders who created the genre. Some day I'd love to have a TOEI
and an Alps to go along with the Mariposa. As long as I'm dreaming I'd like a Sachs and ....
Ken Stagg
Tacoma, Washington