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You know how your photo apps do that creepy thing where they put together little themed albums for you?
Sure you do.
Well, pretty much all of my themed photo albums feature bicycles, because I’m a huge dork who constantly takes pictures of them. (Certain bike websites loftily refer to this as “documenting.”) Worse, I get all emotional when look at these albums, even though they feature inanimate objects and are created using artificial intelligence. For example, I just opened a popular photo app and it took me on a little tour through this day in history.
“Four Years Ago“
“Five Years Ago“
“Three Years Ago“
Such documenting! So many memories! And all bicycles with which I have since parted ways. In particular I formed a strong attachment to the RockCombo, which was a very fun and versatile bike:
However, as the owner of multiple Rivendae, I ultimately decided pass it along, though I feel good about having done so because it’s with Luca of Jersey Cycles now and he’s realized its potential in a way I never could have:
[Photo stolen from here.]
And the Engin…oh, the Engin. To date that remains the only custom bicycle I’ve ever owned that was fabricated especially for me. Well, that’s not entirely true, I guess technically the Ritte Rust Bucket was also made for me:
[The Ritte Rust Bucket, when it was new and not yet rusty.]
But the Engin was really made for me–like, I went down to Philly and consulted with Drew and everything. My blog had become popular and I had a book deal, and the Engin was sort of a gift to myself, like when a rookie athlete signs his first contract, or like that scene in “The Jerk” when he gets his first Opti-Grab royalty and comes home in a Trans-Am with a nude oil painting in the back:
Oddly that scene is nowhere to be found in GIF form (though maybe not so odd given how dated my pop culture references are), but basically that was me coming home from Philly.
Anyway, I wanted the Singlespeed Mountain Bike Of My Dreams, and I got it; moreover, I found it no less dreamy as the years went on, even though everything about mountain bikes changed completely in the ensuing years to the point that the Singlespeed Mountain Bike Of My Dreams would now be considered a gravel bike. (Sorry, broccoli bike.) In fact, if I were building the Singlespeed Mountain Bike Of My Dreams Today it would be exactly the same., current trends be darned.
Well, not exactly the same, because in retrospect it’s kind of silly to get a custom bicycle and have it painted black:
And yet, a year or two ago I ultimately relinquished the Engin after coming to terms with the fact that an aging dork I can no longer afford the extra time it takes to twiddle-twaddle a tiny offroad gear to and from the trails. So it too went in the Great Culling of 2023, which turned out to be for naught, since I think I may have more bicycles now than I did after going through all the trouble of paring down:
As for the American M-16, I realize I haven’t said anything about that, but honestly there’s not much to say about it besides that it was a really cool bike, and I sometimes daydream about re-acquiring it from Classic Cycle (it’s for sale) and giving it the Jersey Cycles treatment.
Fortunately, I’m only nostalgic until I start riding one of my current bikes and forget all about them again:
Speaking of plump-ish tires, I happened upon this:
Of course they are 100% correct that wider tires are better:
For the last few years, tire width, air pressure, and how that air is held inside our tires have been at the center of some of the hottest bike-tech discussions among road cyclists. This is for good reason—these factors all directly contribute to speed, comfort, and control while riding. And unlike other sometimes hot-button technologies—such as frame material, electronic shifting, or aerodynamics—riders can easily sample different tires or air pressures without much mechanical knowledge or a big financial investment in new gear.
But being correct doesn’t make something right. Yes, there are virtually no downsides to more tire volume. Smoother ride, more traction, greater versatility, fewer calories, higher interest yield, better blood flow, a more lush and beautiful front lawn… Certainly all but the most ornery and contrarian cyclists would advise someone looking for a new bicycle to opt for tires wider than 25mm–even me!
And yet the headline still makes me angry. Why is everything in cycling absolute? 25mm tires are OVER. 26-inch wheels are OVER. Rim brakes are OVER. Sure, we know this stuff served you well for decades and decades, we know we told you all to buy it, we know plenty of you are still using it and enjoying it just as much as you did when it was new, but now it’s OVER. Oh, by the way, here’s a review of the new Kona Snoozefest gravel bike. We like it okay, and it’s just like every other goddamn gravel bike, but our crew of weenies still think you should keep shopping because it doesn’t have clearance for 3,000mm tires and that’s really where gravel is headed. Until it isn’t. At which point we’ll tell you that your new gravel bike actually has too much clearance somehow and we’re going back to narrower tires now.
So yes, fatter tires and more clearance–these things are good! The Roadini is a dreamboat. And some people will never enjoy riding 25mm tires inflated to 90+ Freedom Pounds Per Liberty Inch™, nor is there any reason for them to try to adapt themselves to such a setup if they don’t. But some of us liked them then, and we like them now, and consarn it we’re going to continue to like them. To this day I have never gotten back on a road bike with 25mm tires and thought to myself, “Ow, this hurts!,” or “Boy, this sucks!,” or, “Yikes, I should turn back around and switch bikes.” If anything I think to myself, “WHEEEEE!!!!” and feel like I’m going a million miles an hour. Yes, I realize that’s mostly an illusion, and yes, when I get back on a bike with fatter tires will admit I do feel like I’m taking a bath in Calgon:
But saying 25mm tires are over and you shouldn’t ride them is over is like saying cigars are over, or that you shouldn’t drink scotch. They may not be good for you, but a certain type of person is always going to want them anyway. And while that person may be kind of a douchebag, that doesn’t mean they should be denied their vices.
There was never a moment I didn’t enjoy this bike, even though it cleared 25s with about the width of a cold cut slice to spare:
Then again that’s yet another bike I don’t have anymore, so make of that what you will.
