Hello Listmembers,
My name is Mike and I hail from the beautiful city of Austin, Texas. I've had an interest in older bikes since becoming a cyclist in 1990. My first couple of lightweight road machines were off-topic, USA mass-produced aluminum machines that were fantastic and responsive (if not a bit ungainly in appearance).
In 1991, I happened across a good deal on an early 80s Cinelli that opened my eyes to what a difference there was between a mass-produced, aluminum machine and a hand-made, classic Italian steel bike. I quickly fell in love with the beauty, history, ride quality, and responsiveness of the Cinelli and have been a convert to the lugged-steel religion ever since (with occasional forays into other areas).
I've owned an array of different lugged-steel European machines that have usually fallen into the later than 1983 cut-off for this list, but would have qualified for KOF status at least (w/later, off-topic components).
Today I have a few interesting bikes that fit into the CR category:
-late 50s/early 60s Olmo track bike (rumored to have belonged to Jack Disney), -late 70s Pogliaghi track bike (nice but not perfect original w/Campy pista group and Nisis), -1982 Cinelli SC (currently undergoing a restoration due to it being past the "patina" stage).
I also have a couple of Merckx MX Leaders (KOF?) from the mid 90s that are actual team bikes from the Motorola and Telekom teams, and a 1986 Pinarello Montello.
That's about it. This list and base of knowledge has been a tremendous help and I look forward to contributing as much as possible.
Best Regards,
Mike Spess Austin, Texas USA
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