Any man who would buy a bike like that for his father to ride around the neighborhood when he comes to visit, is a devoted son. Obviously the same goes for any woman.
You are lucky to have a father in his 70's who can still ride a bike. Recently my dad tried to ride my wife's mixte, and fell down in the driveway. He is in decent shape, but he has not been on a bike in over 30 years. Maybe you do eventually forget how to ride a bike.
Marcus Helman Huntington Woods, MI
Jay wrote:
A while back there was some discussion regarding the copper finish on an
'80s Wilier Triestina bike. Some suggested the frame was copper plated
(ramata), other suggested the finish is a copper lacquer over chrome
(cromovellato). Well, I made a deal with the seller, Luigi, and the bike is
now safely ensconced within the cozy confines of my garage. I can state
with reasonable certainty that the finish is cromovellato, a copper colored
lacquer painted over chrome. The bike is nearly flawless, save for a 3mm
wide spot where the finish wore away revealing the chrome underneath. The
areas under the fork crown and the inside of the seattube also show signs
consistant with a sprayed on finish. The only other copper bike I've seen
in person was a copper plated Harry Quinn, and that bike's tubes looked
just like the copper L pipe used to plumb a house. This Wilier looks
completely different. I've posted pictures of it on my website. For those
who worry about such things, the bike wont!
be a
garage queen. I bought the bike for my dad when he comes over to visit; he
now has something his size to ride around the neighborhood. At 76 he still
rides around 10 miles a day, sometimes more ( he still has to hear about
his little brother, who at 72 rides 50km each day back in Belgium). So,
it's a very nice bike but the search continues for a ramata Wilier. Any
leads?
http://www.theracingbicycle.com/
Jay Van De Velde
Seal Beach,CA