John Wirt asked for component suggestions for his new 1991 Marinoni, and mentioned he wanted to avoid Shimano. I couldn't resist the opportunity to write a quick message about my 1991 Marinoni Special, which has all sorts of Shimano components on it -- a nearly full Sante group, in fact.
It can be seen here:
This was my first ever road bike. I bought it my second year of university, not knowing that it was made of steel, that it was lugged, or that it was "KOF." At this point, none of these distinctions had any meaning for me. I just knew that I didn't like the way the majority of road bikes looked, but that bikes with "skinny tubes" were the most beautiful (and fast-looking) ones. I bought this on eBay for $300 -- I guess that in 2002, the market for steel bikes wasn't quite what it is now.
For about five years, it was my only bike. I did everything on it: commuted to and from school, went on club rides, and even did a tour from Los Angeles to Eugene, Oregon. Since it's an eyelet-less racing bike (again: distinctions like racing vs. touring bikes were learned later) I did this tour with all my gear loaded onto a seatpost-mounted rack. (The first pedal-stroke I took on the loaded bike ended with me on the ground -- the weight distribution was atrocious, and balance difficult.)
The more I've learned about bikes in the ensuing years, the more I've realized how special my Marinoni is. As I learned about construction methods, types of tubing, geometry, etc., I was always happy to discover "Hey! My bike is steel / is lugged steel / is made from Columbus SP / is a custom-made, hand-made, Canadian-made bike." I now own several more bikes, but my Marinoni and I have a special connection!
I wore out the Shimano 600 STI group it arrived over the many years and miles of riding, so last summer I put on a Shimano Sante group. Some might object to this and find it somewhat garish, but what drew me to this bike in the first place were its bold and somewhat silly colours. I think the Sante group looks great.
So, no, this bike is not on-topic (save its KOF-ness), but it's the bike that brought me to this list. (For my most on-topic bike -- a one- off by a local builder -- see my other gallery on the above link.)
I should add that, as a 26 year old collector of lugged steel bikes, it's aesthetics, ride, and history in an abstract rather than personal sense that attract me to the bikes I choose. I don't have that experience of desiring the bikes I admired in my youth -- there were rarely cycling races on TV where I grew up in northern Ontario, I myself only got into cycling in my early twenties, and my own tastes now gravitate mostly to the decades before I was born. But I bet if I'd really been paying attention in 1991, when I was 10, I would have liked my Marinoni.
Adam Hammond
Toronto, Ontario, Canada