The Adventures of Sir Maldoror

Carlos Martell (right) , aka Sir Maldoror is Brian Baylis' (left) protege at the new San Diego-based framebuilders & painters cooperative .

Lately Carlos has been putting some of their framebuilding and restoration work online at maldororbicycles.com.

Without giving away too many of Baylis' hard-earned professional secrets, Sir Maldoror shows some of the processes involved in restoring vintage bikes after after a lifetime of hard use.

Some of these jobs, like paintstripping by hand are just nasty, while others, such as masking lugs, require incredible attention to detail in what seems like a mundane task.

More links to Baylis' work:
Large Fella on a Bike Framebuilders questionaire

Sheldon Brown's Baylis-restored Raleigh Professional

Baylis gallery at the Pacenti Cycle Design site.

Photo of Brian and Carlos by Matt Gorski, from WoolJersey

Okoroire Mid-Winter Fun Ride 2007

Due to truly Biblical weather, a number of people stayed abed yesterday and missed the Okoroire Fun Ride.

I was not one of them.

Arising at 5:45 to the sound of torrential rain, I breakfasted, packed my bag and awaited the arrival of Richard Oddy with the Pedaltours van. Collecting Richard's son-in-law Ivan from Ngaruawahia, we headed for Okoroire, where it was merely drizzling, in good time. By the 10am start, it was raining steadily, and as the day went on, the wind and rain increased steadily .

Usually I ride the fixie at Okoroire, but this time I rode the Hurlow. With my present lack of fitness and the strong wind, I made frequent of the 12 gears as I shamelessly wheelsucked my way to the finish. This strategy got me to the last couple of kms, but a strong effort up the last rise (and past the official photographer) finished me off, and I crawled to the finish.

RESULTS 'alla Francaise'

I could not have said it better myself...

BRUTUS appears to be a lifestyle magazine for stylish young Japanese persons.

This issue looks like it has plenty of meat for the Kanji-literate cycling enthusiast, though the back issues on offer indicate that it usually concerns itself with mundanity like cars, clothes & coffee.

MapMyRun

This is meant to show a map of the Retro Ride route, generated by Map My Run, a cunning web based device that seems to piggyback on Google Earth.
Unfortunately the embed code generated by their site does not work, but regardless, it's a very cool thing for mapping out routes.









In the absence of a functional embed code, here's the link .
Use the Map Settings to the left to turn off the annoying Distance Markers.
'Display Elevation' produces a course profile, while 'Map Type' allows you to switch from a street map to various Googloid satellite views.

Chris Money's new steel bike

On Saturday afternoon, we swapped Money's late 20th Century Avanti Kona frame for this fine Salsa Casseroll.

Needless to say, these jobs are never straightforward.
The Shimano BB was frozen into the Avanti frame, so I stripped the Campagnolo AC-H cartridge and Suntour Superbe Pro cranks off my neglected windtrainer bike.

The Casseroll frame makes a great all-round road bike.
It has a full set of rack and mudguard eyelets, and clearance for 32mm tyres with mudguards, or 35mm without.
Long, stainless steel, horizontal dropouts allow easy conversion to single speed or fixedgear.

Sizing is, maybe, a bit weird.
A 55cm Casseroll fits almost identically to my 60cm Ritchey Breakaway.
The frames are large for their nominal size, and I would recommend paying attention to top tube and head tube lengths when ordering.

Mafac Top 63 brakes

A few years ago Jonty Ritchie gave me two sets of old Mafac brakes that he had no use for.

The set of pimpy gold Mafac Competitions found their way onto a Witcomb I owned for a while, but these Top 63s stayed in their plastic bag until I saw a set go for ₤273 on ebay.
Not that I will be cashing in- they will go on the Hurlow when I have found a few small parts that are missing.

Top 63s were the most expensive centre pull available in their day.
According to Mick Butler:

'Regarding the 1969 prices of the various makes of centre pull brakes in that year. Balila Q.R. 49/6. Universal Q.R. 55/-. Mafac Racer 55/-. G.B. Coureur 66 60/-. & Mafac Top "63" at a whopping 75/-. '

This works out at a little over ₤6, pretty cheap compared to the 27 guineas (1 guinea =₤1-1s) that Richard Oddy paid for the then-new Campagnolo Record sidepulls in the same year.


Image above from Classic Rendezvous

Frenzy of bike acquisitions continues unabated...

except that this time it is Donna's turn.
This Bob Jackson touring frame is brand new. Imported by Sheppards in the mid-80s, it languished in a Christchurch bikeshop until it appeared on Trademe a couple of weeks ago.
Everything that I needed to build it into a civilised road fixie, except cables and bar tape, was lying about in the shed.

This is very much a work in progress.
The Superbe Pro seatpost may yet be swapped for a Campag 2-bolt post to get a little more seat setback, the rims don't match, and the mudguards are clapped out from my previous misuse.

Mo'fotos

Spec:
Gearing________________42 x 17
Bottom bracket__________Campagnolo AC-H
Crankset_______________SR Royal track 165mm
Brakes_________________MAFAC Racer
Brake levers____________Dia-Compe AGC251 Compact
Saddle_________________Brooks Swallow, by Tony Colegrave
Seatpost_______________Suntour Superbe Pro
Stem__________________TTT 9cm
Handlebars_____________TTT Competizione
Pedals_________________Campagnolo Superleggera

Okoroire Mid-Winter Fun Ride, July 29

The Okoroire Winter Fun Ride is on July 29th.
Details and a downloadable entry form are at http://www.tokoroalions.com/FunRide.htm
Usually there is a small but congenial Retro Grupetto. A report on last year's ride here.
If you are planning to join us this year, email me so that we can arrange to rendezvous before the start.

Retroride NZ discussion group

I have set up a Yahoo group called RetrorideNZ, with the intention of creating a New Zealand-wide online community of vintage lightweight bicycle enthusiasts.
If you would like to join, login at http://au.groups.yahoo.com/group/RetrorideNZ/ or if this does not work, email me and I'll send you an invitation.

Wild Bill Hurlow rides again

Saturday was devoted to final parts acquisition and assembly of my W.B.Hurlow.

Tony Mahon very kindly gave me a Zeus Criterium derailler & shiftlevers and a pair of Zeus track pedals; and to complete the gear train a Zeus front derailler arrived in Saturday's mail.
Most of the other parts came from my collection of junque- T.A. Cyclotouriste cranks, Mafac Racer brakeset, aluminium railed Ideale model 90 saddle, Fiamme stem and 44cm Ambrosio handlebars.

By bedtime, all I needed was to attach a bottle cage, and strap on a spare tubular.

I haven't achieved my goal of no-Campagnolo- my trusty pair of Campag Record-hubbed tubulars were pressed into service until I get time to build some Mavic MA2s onto a pair of Zeus Gigante hubs.

MORE PHOTOS at the Wool Jersey Gallery

Spec:
Headset________________Tange
Bottom bracket__________T.A
Crankset_______________T.A. Cyclotouriste 175mm, 38/47
Brakes_________________MAFAC Racer
Brake levers____________MAFAC Course 218 ?
Shift levers_____________Zeus Criterium
Front derailler___________Zeus
Rear derailler___________Zeus Criterium
Hubs__________________
Rims__________________
Freewheel______________Suntour Winner Ultra 6
Saddle_________________Ideale Mod.90, light alloy frame
Seatpost_______________
Stem__________________Fiamme 12cm
Handlebars_____________Ambrosio 13 Volte Campione del Mondo
Pedals_________________Zeus Pista, Christophe clips, ALE straps

Thanks to Robert S Broderick and Brad Stockwell for posting the Zeus, Ideale, T.A. and other catalogs that I have linked to.

60cm Rory O'Brien frame seeks new home

The arrival of the Hurlow means that something has to go, and the Rory O'Brien frame drew the short straw.
It's on on Trademe until next Tuesday at 4:25pm. Reserve is $50.
From the TradeMe auction:

"A frame with some interesting features- fastback seatstays with an unusual seat collar, Campagnolo vertical rear dropouts and round track fork blades.
Requires long reach (47-57mm) brakes.
Brazed-on top tube cable guides, bidon bosses, downtube lever bosses, seatstay cable stop and cable guides under bottom bracket.
Sold to me as a Rory OBrien, but I have no evidence to support or disprove this.

Seat tube: 60cm centre-top
Top tube: 57cm top tube
Wheelbase 100cm
Ritchey Logic headset fitted"

According to CR-list contributor Mick Butler, Rory O'Brien was a 'famous East London cycle shop owner ' who had frames built by Ephgrave. I would guess that this was built by someone else, well after Les Ephgraves' death in 1969.

PHOTOS on WoolJersey.

More Hurlows- updated

In the absence of my Hurlow frame, apparently scheduled to arrive early July, I googled up a couple of others:

This super-spanky 1969 Hurlow is featured at the V-CC New England Section blog.

Over at Fixed Gear Gallery, the lugwork on Adam Schwarcz' Stan Miles track bike is unmistakeably by Hurlow.

Some more Hurlow factoids and a couple more examples of his work at Hetchins.org.

Over at Bike Works NYC's bikecult site, a Hurlow-built 1962 Condor Italia, and a 1968 Condor with Hurlow's Superbe lugs.

Gaz' Bike

This is Gaz' road bike, newly fitted with Gran Bois Cypres 700 x 30 tyres to enhance it's already-sumptuous comfort.

It used to be blue, until a few scratches convinced Gaz that it needed to return for a second helping of Walter Thorburn magic.

According to Gaz:
"It is the best bike I have ever had, and the one I would take to a desert island as long as there were at least smooth paths."

Some wanteds

So that I can build the Hurlow Campagnolo-free:

Zeus straight lever rear skewer, pref for 6-7 speed

Zeus front hub, large flange, 36h

and/or

Zeus rear hub, large flange, 40h

Call me on 021 294 288, or EMAIL.

1948 Paris-Brest-Paris video

From the days when the 1200km Paris-Brest-Paris was still a race for professionals.

Now with extra Gillott!

Not that I need another bike, even a Gillott, but I have just added this lugless model to the stable.
The photos are straight from the TradeMe auction.
The frame is 57.5cm x 59cm, with Agrati dropouts.

Holdsworth Italia

Tom Bricklebank gave me this frame in 2004, and being too small for me, after a couple of months it found its way into Rick Woodward's garage.
With Rick's imminent emigration to the South Island, it is now in the possession of Chris Tennent-Brown.

I sent some photos to Holdsworth expert Norman Kilgariff, whose Holdsworth website is an invaluable resource. Norman identified the frame as a 'special', built by Reg Collard.

More photos of the frame at Wool Jersey.

Norman's letter is reproduced in edited form below:

Holdsworth Italia 28259

I believe this is a mid-late 1963, possibly early 1964 Italia, built by the great Reg Collard in the shop at 132 Lower Richmond Road, Putney, London.

Background:

Holdsworth, strictly the Holdsworthy Co Ltd (factory and wholesale side) brought out the first Italia in 1955. This short-lived model was fillet brazed and took over from the La Quelda.

Early in 1957, with the Suez crisis, petrol rationing etc under way there was a bust up at the factory and various folk left, including their “Special Builds” man Reg Collard.
Roy Thame said that Holdsworthy had progressed to a stage where they had a fixed range of frames and were no longer prepared to build to special requirements.
The W.F Holdsworth shops were still being asked for Specials, so Roy Thame approached Reg Collard in 1958, to set up a custom build facility at 132 Lower Richmond Rd .

------------------- Quote from Reg Collard Nov 2002 -----------------------------

1957: I joined Jensen Cycles Croydon immediately after leaving Holdsworthy. They were owned by Stan Etherington and John ?? Can’t remember his name. Stan had been a good track rider of the Herne Hill school. Hence we mainly built track frames plus a few road bikes as at this time the Crystal Palace circuit races were held weekly.

John had previously worked in the aircraft industry and had learned a technique of low temperature brazing using boracic acid powder and low temperature brass. Excessive heat could weaken frames, in addition using borax meant frames did not require sandblasting before filing.

1958 I joined Roy Thame at W.F.Holdsworth to build custom frames at 132 Lower Richmond Rd.
When Roy Thame approached me to set up a custom build workshop at 132, I jumped at the opportunity. We had to get all the jigs etc. built by a local toolmaker. Together with these and oxyacetylene and oxygen cylinders we were in business. We already had a long list of orders.

Soon after the first frame was completed we had a visit from Sandy and Mrs Holdsworth. Great excitement! Orders came flooding and very soon there was around three months waiting list for a new frame.

I was building mainly road frames plus track frames, which doubled up as time trial bikes, most people raced T.Ts. on fixed wheel until the mid sixties. In addition we produced a limited number of touring frames with brazed on fittings for custom-built carriers and various other accessories.

Frame Design. When I first started building most frames had angles of 71 or 72 degrees 73 was thought to be steep, fork rakes was around an inch and three quarters, with long rear seat stays. In conjunction with the Hemel Hempstead Cycling Club and one or two top time trialists we started to experiment with road designs that were more like track frames.

We ended up with 74/73 for T.Ts. and 73 parallel for road. Usually square design i.e. seat and top tube were the same length. Forks were around an inch and a quarter, seat stays in proportion.

Lugs and Forks We modified Cinelli fork crowns and Prugnat lugs by adding reinforcements approx. two inches long; this also stiffened the frame particularly at the bottom bracket.

Seat Cluster: The wrap over seat stays were not solid, I devised a way of cutting the stays to the correct angle on a specially made jig and then brazing on plate before filing to finish ready to fit to the frame. These were then bent under heat over the seat lug and filed to look like a solid fitting. This saved around twelve ounces. It was not long before others were copying this. The allen key seat bolt came at the same time.

Brazed On Bits: I designed various custom made brazed on fittings. The rear brake cable bridge in the photo is an example. Various fittings for pannier attachments were handmade to match the panniers. If we could not find a suitable fitting we simply designed and made one or more by hand.

Some Key Frames in Design Evolution

A lot of work was completed in conjunction with the Hemel Hempstead Cycle Club and Warwick Dalton who rode both the Tour de France and The Worlds pursuit championship, in which if I remember correctly he was a medallist.
Warwick, Mike Shea, and Bob Addy were all over six feet tall in contrast Mick Brown and Alan Perkins were around five seven. The lug extensions were as a result of the need to stiffen up the big frames as the steeper angles exerted greater pressure at key points. The smaller frames had 75-degree seat angles to give the shorter riders a more efficient position.

My own frame built around 1961 is numbered 28034 if this helps give a fix on dates

1964 I joined Television Audience Measurement. I continued to work part time on specials until 1966/7.
*************************** End Quote ****************************************

Holdsworths are essentially numbered in sequence....
When Reg started doing the specials in 1958 the Factory issued the shop with a batch of frame numbers to use. How many were in each batch, how many batches were issued etc is not yet known, but at mid 1958 Holdsworthy would be at about #24000. So up until the shop started its own numbering system in 1965, we get shop builds with factory numbers, but these numbers will drift out of synch with the ones being applied by the factory (as much higher production levels)

One special build, said to be a copy of Anquetils (1959? from memory) TdF bike has surfaced, serial given is 25775 but first 2 digits are uncertain (damn), the owner says this was made late 1959 or early 1960. Memory drifts terribly, so we have to treat this data with caution.

Holdsworth Monsoon (factory) #26019 was bought 23 Dec 1959 (have copy of invoice) but we do not know how long it lay in stock. We expect c1500 Holdsworths per year, Freddie Grubbs* were numbered on a different system, Claud Butlers* are yet unclear 1959-64. Monsoon 26768 is said to have been bought late 1959, and was definitely used on a tour in summer 1960. I suspect it was bought early 1960. If Holdworths were at c26400 on 1 Jan 1960 we expect c 27,900 on 1 Jan 1961 so the 28,000’s should appear in 1961.

27988 Monsoon bought Spring? 1961
Reg Collard built his own frame around 1961 is numbered 28034. So this is a shop issued batch (of numbers).
Your own Italia is 28259 looks like it may be from the same batch
28425 Monsoon est 1960-61 by Hilary Stone (Cycling Plus 1995)

You see, we have 2 certain shop models sandwiched by 2 certain factory jobs (assuming Hilary ID’d the Monsoon right, trivial). It looks possible that the factory batch here is 28000 to 28300 But Reg was only producing c 2-3/wk, say 125 PA, so that’s about 2 years worth.

Around 1962 or 63 the factory restarted their serials. Indeed the highest number that I have gathered in the first system is the above Monsoon 28425. A 3 digit job 604 has surfaced, owner est c1963. It all gets a bit complex, but 1688 is a shop issue Italia, probably 1964.

Your Italia has Prugnat Type I lugs, fully sloping Prugnat crown.

We know Reg built it (not Tommy Quick [TCQ] or Charlie Roberts who probably started 1964 and did stock Italias) because of the big BB lug extensions, it is like a Reg trade mark. The big thick hollow seatstay wrapovers, Reg mentions above, have not started even in early 1965, so nor the allen key seatbolt. So this is a rare Italia, because it was made by Reg, it is a special build, later Italias were made for stock and so would not be made by Reg. TCQ, CR or Alec Bird would do them and maybe elsewhere. Stock serials have a K added at the end.

We know Holdsworthy went all Italian in 1963.
The Mistral appears with Prugnat I type lugs. The Grubb range goes all Italian too (see page on site). I know its complex, and this is just a small bit of it, but all taken together, its got to be a late 1963, possibly early 1964 shop Italia by Reg Collard. This will focus down in time, as more data surfaces.

The lovely wee WFH decal on the seatstay topeyes also has appeared on a Stock track frame.
Edward Albert 66118K (Shops own serial system, 66 start=1966, K= made for stock)

Norman Kilgariff (13/7/2004)

* Both the Freddy Grubb and Claud Butler brands were owned by Holdsworth at this time. DB

The Frejus is gone...

and as I write, Mark Battley is explaining to his wife how their lives will be enriched by the greasy 50-year old bicycle he has brought home.

FOR SALE 1956 Frejus Tour De France $240

An ill-advised Trademe purchase from earlier in the year, which I would like to quit for what it owes me.
This bike could be made into a clean, useable thing with a couple of days work, or restored to original condition.

As is typical with older Italian bikes, the paint is in good nick for it's age, but the chrome is peeling everywhere. If you want to retain the original finish you can keep the rust at bay with occasional applications of WD40 or similar.
The Dunlop Special Lightweight rims are also rusty, but I think they would look 100% better with a wire brushing.

More photos HERE. Double click on the image for full size.

Spec
Seat tube_____55cm centre to top
Top tube_____55cm
Headset______Frejus
Stem________GB Reynolds 531 10cm
Cranks_______Duprat with Magistroni chainrings
Brakes_______Mafac Dural Forge
Rear Derailler__Campagnolo Gran Sport (pre-1961)
Hubs
Rims________Dunlop Special Lightweight 27 x 1-1/4

EMAIL for more information, or call me on 021 2942888

Ebay relapse

Today I planned to buy a Ron Cooper frame on ebay from a guy in Texas, but ended up buying a W.B Hurlow from English collector Hilary Stone.

The Ron Cooper would have been a nice match for my Gillott, but I fumbled my last-second bid.
The Hurlow looks very similar to my 1963 Condor Italia, but with the advantage that it is my size. I maintained my bidding resolve by surfing through photos of Kevin Krugers similar '72 Hurlow on Wool Jersey.

Hilary's auction spiel:
'Offered for sale is a very original 24in ctt W B Hurlow frame from 1969. Top tube length is 22in and rear dropout width is 124mm. This beautifully built frame was built with Prugnat lugs. Bill Hurlow was one of the very top framebuilders in the UK during the 1950s to 1970s period. There are some other lovely touches - the curved chainstay bridge and reinforced seatstay bridge for example. The frame is in very sound condition though the finish has detoriated somewhat.

Bill Hurlow links:

• Vintage Lightweights UK
• Classic Rendezvous
• Kevin Kruger's '72 Hurlow Bike, with photos from Hurlow's workshop
• Kevin Kruger's Hurlow-built Condor track bike
• Bob Freitas' orange & yellow Hurlow
• John Pergolizzi's fancy lugged Hurlow
• Pergolizzi's Hurlow-built Condor, which has some interesting features.
• Pergo's S.W.Cotten is said to have been built by Hurlow too.

Some retrobike metabloggage

Over at Phil Varner's blog, scans of Cycling Weekly's reportage of the 1967 Track World Champs at Amsterdam.

Ron Baensch, disqualified at these champs for doping, was a consistent medallist in the sprints during the early sixties, and was to go onto greater notoriety for punching a commisaire at the 1970 World Champs at Leicester , England.

The report on Sercu's victory in the Pro sprint suggests that ₤250 was the going rate to buy a World Championships.

From Youtube, a couple of English film clips from the fifties, showing a CTC outing by train.

.

and a short vid of Fausto Coppi winning the Alpe d'Huez stage of the 1952 Tour de France

Toei Demontable

Not unlike my Breakaway, but in a more retro idiom: Mr Kojima's stunning Toei Demontable.
To complement the flawless Toei workmanship, the bike is subtly tricked out with such exotica as custom-made chainrings, titanium-railed Ideale Mod.90 saddle and a Campagnolo aluminium freewheel.
The rubber strap on the chainstay (left) is to protect the paint from chainslap.

For a largely meaningless but entertaining translation, cut & paste the URL into Babelfish.

The Toei is based on the French Rene Herse demountable design, shown here on Jan Heine's Vintage Bicycle Press website.
Herse Demontables featured shiftlevers on the seattube, so that only the back brake cable must to be disconnected for disassembly.
Mr Kojima's bike has conventional downtube shiftlevers, so presumably the derailler cables must also be disconnected before the bike can be disassembled.

San Francisco

On the way home from Italy, I stopped for two days in San Francisco.

SF has a diverse, vibrant bike culture that makes it a great town for bikeshop crawling.
My flight got in at midday, allowing time for raid via Bay Area Rapid Transit on Jitensha Studio in Berkeley, where I bought a couple of tee shirts to avert a laundry crisis, and a handful of Honjo mudguard fittings for a carbon-fibre fender project.
The Berkeley BART station has a Bike Station providing secure bike parking and bike repairs for commuters.

Last Friday of the month is Critical Mass night, which I remembered too late to join in, but the Mass went past my hotel, noisy, good natured, and taking several minutes to go by.

Saturday morning saw me back on BART, heading for Walnut Creek and the World Headquarters of Rivendell Bicycle Works. I took the Breakaway, planning to go for a ride up Mount Diablo or perhaps head for Sausalito in the PM, but ended up taking one of Rivendell's Rambouillet demo bikes a short way up Diablo instead.
Its a dangerous place to take your credit card, and so I departed with a couple of wool jerseys, a a pair of Nitto Noodle Bars for the Ritchey, and a few other essential widgets.

Sunday morning I caught the MUNI bus up Haight St, which was still in Kris Kristofferson mode, headed for the bike shops on Stanyan St.
There seem to be few less shops there than when I first visited in 1990. It was always a cheap thrill to venture into Velo-City to get your fair share of abuse from owner Holland Jones, who once lambasted me for my 'colonial' accent.

Fortunately, American Cyclery is still there, with its mix of old, and new-but-interesting.

Once I had exhausted the delights of Stanyan St, I hopped back on the MUNI bus for a few blocks, then embarked on a death march along Steiner St in search of City Cycle, who cater to the Very Big Wanker demographic. Despite being in loose control of two still-functional credit cards I managed to walk away without a new Serotta or seven.

Volterra - Massa Marittima - Milan

The 65kms along route No.439 from Volterra to Massa Marittima caught me by surprise. I did not give much consideration to the map, and found myself grovelling. Not that I wasn't expecting some climbing- the first 8kms descended back to Saline de Volterra, and everywhere is uphill from there.

The scenery is somewhat unusual- miles of shiny silverpiping snakes through the hills, and sometimes across the roads, feeding steam to the geothermal power station at Larderello.
The chimneys appear to vent steam from pools of hot water at their base.

25th of April is a public holiday in Italy, in commemoration of Italy's liberation from Fascism in WW2. I was expecting some extra traffic on the roads, but the Italian motoring public seemed to have stayed at home, except for groups of motorcyclists who all thought they were Valentino Rossi, or given their age, perhaps Giacomo Agostini.

I got to Massa Marittima in time for lunch in the town square, before finding my hotel and packing my bike.


The next day the people from the hotel dropped me at the bus stop to begin my return to Milan. After the bus trip to Follonica, I caught the train via Genova to Milan , thence to Saronno via the local Ferrovie Nord service.

RIGI Sighting

While I was finding my way out of Siena this morning I spotted this RIGI leant outside a hairdressing salon.
The owner came out to talk to me, but the usual communication problems applied. I think he was telling me that this bike is unique. It is certainly unusual insofar as the frame appears to be fillet brazed, while most RIGI frames are lugged.

More photos here on the Wool Jersey Gallery.

Siena to Volterra

Last year I rode in the opposite direction from Volterra to Siena, so I made an effort today to find another route.
I wasn't entirely successful, missing a planned turn early on, but I found an alternative a few kms later that took me away from my previously beaten path.

It is unseasonably hot here, and I was happy to find an osteria in San Dalmazia just when I was starting to wilt. A plate of ravioli, some salad and a beer saw me right.

Last year I arrived in Volterra a total wreck, unprepared for the 450m climb to the town. I was better prepared this time, with plenty of water for rehydration and cooling.

Tomorrow I'm heading back to Massa Marittima, hopefuly to be reunited with my bike case and other possessions, before catching the train back to Milan on Thursday.

Siena, again

This morning I was still munted from yesterday's exertions, so I decided on an easy day.

Radda to Siena is only 28kms, too easy, so I took a detour via the part of the percorso Eroica, starting with the downhill strada bianca through Vertine which is the last section of the 200km ride.

After stopping for coffee in the square at Gaiole, I followed the Eroica signage through three or four stretches of strada biancha before I missed a sign and found myself in sight of Siena's towers. I followed a couple of backroads in the hope of finding lunch at a rustic osteria, but they were dead-ends.

Finally, I got lunch, and Big Boy of Birra Moretti in a restaurant decorated with photos of il Palio, the annual horse race held in the main square of Siena.

Back in Italy

Actually, I've been back here for a week, but Italy's quaint laws about public internet access make internet cafes few and far between.

This afternoon I'm in Radda in Chianti, where I stayed last year for Eroica.
This morning I started in San Gimignano, riding my Ritchey Breakaway to Greve in Chianti for lunch, thence to Radda by the scenic route. I should have had dessert in Greve too, as my bowl of traditional Tuscan bean soup was well & truly burned up on the 8km climb from Dudda through Torsoli.

Yesterday I rode to San Gimigano from Massa Marittima, where I had spent three days at the Continental International Marketing meeting. Click here for a map.

Tomorrow's itinerary is somewhat vague.
If I'm feeling sharp in the morning, I'll head for a new location, if not I'll try to get a second night at the pricey Hotel Radda and do a short loop around Chianti country.

Real Mail

I'm pleased to say that I have got my ebay addiction under control, but regardless, the letterbox continues to bring happiness.
In the last week, two issues of Bicycle Quarterly, the latest Rapha catalog, and Rivendell Reader #39 have kept me happily distracted and, hopefully, better informed.

BQ & RR are keepers, to be stored in the front room and pored over for years to come, but the Rapha catalog is a more ephemeral thrill. Once I get past the visual hooks, their stuff is just too nice to treat as mere cycling kit.
I could go for a pair of their Grand Tour mitts though, if only because the accompanying photo evokes the famous image of the young Louison Bobet in the broom wagon of the 1949 Tour de France.

70s Cecil Walker on ebay

This bike is three years older than my Cecil Walker, and in much better condition, with it's paint and stickers intact.
My, presumably 1981, bike has an investment cast sloping fork crown, and brazed on toptube cable guides but otherwise the two frames could be identical.
While my Cecil Walker showed signs of a hard life before it came to me, this one is a bonafide late 70's time capsule.

Listed on ebay as :
Cecil Walker Professional Road Bike 1978
Item number:130095234055
Campagnolo, Reynolds 531, Haden Lugs,

Cecil Walker Professional Road Racing Bike 1978. Equiped with the highest quality parts available at the time. Frame Number 78046.
Frame size, seat tube 60cms ctc. top tube 57cms ctc.
This bike is in fine original condition having all the hallmarks of quality. Frame colour is metallic Red and is in excellent condition, having only a few minor marks.
Cecil Walker bikes have been built from the 1930's. I think they are still in production. Cecil Walker was a Champion Australian Cyclist who had international success in the 1920's.
Here are the specs.
Reynolds 531 Double Butted Tubing, Haden Lugset..... has the original Haden transfer.
Campagnolo Fork Ends.
Cinelli Alloy Road Bars with old logo, width 38cms ctc. Handlebar tape has been replaced, brake hoods are also a New Old Stock Era Correct Campagnolo Replacent, as the originals were perished. Cinelli Milano Alloy Stem 115mm ctc. long.
Seat Post Campagnolo 27.2mm original , some scratches, seat is a Cinelli Suede Original and has some wear.
Wheels are Mavic Alloy 36 Holes laced to Campagnolo High Flange Record Hubs, Spokes are Double Butted, all original to this bike. I have fitted a Pair Of New Old Stock D'alessandro era correct singles to these rims.
Original Campagnolo Chainset, 54/44 Rear is a 5 speed. Rear Derailleur Nuovo Record, front also an original to this bike. Original Campagnolo Friction Gear Levers and Cable Fasteners.
Pedals are Japanese, hard for me to say that, but there you have it,
Seat Binder Bolt is missing.
As you can see, this bike is in fabulous original condition, having been left in this state since new, only the tyres, hoods and bar tape have been replaced, the rest is original to the bike.
This bike would have been on a par with any other imported Colnago or such from the time and was quite a costly investment in it's day.
Your opportunity to add to your collection a high quality complete racing bike from the 70's.

Baggage & mudguards

For the last couple of weeks I've been riding the Breakaway to work, and as far on weekends as motivation will allow.

I've changed saddles a few times, finally stealing the Brooks Pro Titanium from the Cecil Walker, though I'll probably go back to the Brooks Swallow when I have some more time to break it in.
I experimented with a couple of modern saddles, but the lack of mounting loops for my new Carradice Camper Longflap saddlebag was the final clincher. I got a beautifully made Bagman quick release adapter with the Camper, but even half-loaded the Camper nearly drags on the tyre. Attached to the Brooks saddlebag loops, the Camper has a couple of inches clearance.

The recent filthy weather drove me to fit a set of Bluemels B35 mudguards.
Unlike their SKS Chromoplastic stablemates, the 35mm Bluemels guards have a round profile which not only looks better, but ought to be a better fit under dual-pivot brakes than the square-ish SKS.
I used a pair of Sheldon nuts to mount the mudguard brackets to the recessed brake bolts.

I would like these better if they had an external hex for spanner, like the nuts that come with the Berthoud carbon fenders, rather than the 6mm allen hex.

On the positive side, the front nut allows the mudguard to be raised to its maximum height by allowing the mudguard bracket to clear the bottom stack of the headset.
In the past I have removed the bracket entirely and ziptied the guard, in the effective but inelegant Grant Peterson style, to the brake centrebolt .



And finally, today I got to grips with that 12 second delay, self portrait feature on my camera. Here we are, atop Jones Rd, on the way to Hunua.

Movie Night

Since their inception last year, the SOLO Movie nights at the Westwinds Cinema in Avondale have been a not-to-be-missed part of the Auckland cycling social calendar.

This month's offering, 'The Eddy Merckx Story' could be more correctly titled 'The Story of Eddy Merckx in the Tour de France", as it gives only brief mention of his World Hour Record in 1972 and glosses over Merckx's other achievements such as his World Championships.
TV and newsreel racing footage is interspersed with subtitled reminiscences by Tour winners Lucien van Impe, Bernard Thevenet, Joop Zoetemelk & Merckx himself.

The next movie night will be on April 18.
Sign up to the Solo email list for an invite.

Possibly Akarana Cycling Club's finest hour...

Have a look at this video over at David Whittam's new blog.
Can anyone put a date to this, or name any of the participants?

Breakaway- ready to fly

Last week I took the Breakaway to Invercargill so I would have something to ride between sessions of the NZ Track Cycling Championships.

I took this photo to remind myself how the bike should look when packed in it's case, but astute readers will notice that the crucial seat & seatpost are absent.
Fortunately I found them again before we departed.

Needless to say, I didn't get much riding done- the weather was atrocious and the usual Track Nationals combination of malnutrition and lack of sleep kept me inside most afternoons.

More NAHBS

If you have already exhausted yesterdays cornucopia of NAHBS links, here are Dennis Stovers photos on the world famous Wool Jersey Gallery.

North American Handmade Bicycle Show

A few people of my acquaintance didn't get much work done today when they found the photos from last weekend's NAHBS posted on the internet.

www.cyclingnews.com has run three articles to date, featuring road bikes, track irons and utility and town bikes.

Over at CycloFiend there is a photo gallery, plus links to other NAHBS photo sites. Be prepared to waste a few hours.

There's not much to dislike, but this Vanilla, built for US collector Brett Horton, stands out for me as a near-perfect synthesis of classic aesthetics with modern technology.

The number of randonneur and porteur bikes is impressive, considering that neither style had any currency in the english-speaking cycling world until Jan Heine started writing about them in the Rivendell Reader in the late '90s, and then in his own Vintage Bicycle Quarterly (now Bicycle Quarterly).

Breakaway- complete, if not finished.

Last night I brought home a saddlebag full of stuff to build up the Breakaway, and today I knuckled down and built it up into a rideable device.
Though I could have built up a decent drivetrain out of shed junque, I went for 2007 Campagnolo Veloce 10 speed, with the new Ultra-Torque crankset.

This is meant to be a credit card tourer, so I went for a medium cage rear derailler so I can use a 13-29 cluster in future.
Instead of the standard Ergopower levers, I fitted Record bar-end shifters.
Brakes are Campagnolo Triomphe, which have better tyre & mudguard clearance than dual pivots, actuated by Campagnolo Cobalto brake levers.

The frame is built for a 1-1/8" headset, so I pressed in a set of Wheels Manufacturing headset adapters to suit the 1" fork and Ritchey WCS Logic headset. I am partial to cartridge bearing headsets on demountables because they are unlikely to spill ball bearings onto the ground while the bike is being assembled.

The bike is a long way from being finished- the wheels in the photo are old Campagnolo Electrons with Conti tubulars, and the rock-hard & slippery Benotto bar tape is coming off on Monday.
Crank Brothers Quattro pedals are not compatible with my MTB shoes, so will be replaced with Eggbeaters with the short Ti axles.



*Disclaimer- I am deeply implicated in the importation and distribution of Crank Brothers, Campagnolo, Ritchey and Continental in New Zealand.
Nothing that I write about them can necessarily be believed.

Questionable Retro fashion

Adam Lovell and me, modelling our Bicycle Fixation wool gabardine knickers atop One Tree Hill on the way back from the Go by Bike Day breakfast.

With time and mistreatment, my Woolistic jersey from Rivendell Bicycle Works will eventually match the Gillott.