The Velominatus’ machine is their own manifestation of personal taste and demonstration of adherence to The Rules. We each, in our own way, meticulously maintain our bicycles and adorn them with the essential, yet minimal, accoutrement. Yes, we must Obey the Rules pertaining to bar tape, tyre selection, saddle choice, stem height, color matching and so on. But within those parameters there lies flexibility and choice.
Furthermore, this site is a refuge we turn to for brotherhood, community, and belonging. However, cyberspace is a vacuum in that we apply and practice our craft apart from one another, spread to all corners of the globe. With this in mind, I offer an experiment, Il Gruppo Progetto, inspired by Brett’s Il Progetto: Bosomworth. The intent, dare I say charge, of Il Gruppo Progetto, is for our community of Velominati to come together in designing my new build project, a Serotta Colorado AL.
I picked up the Serotta frame and fork recently to further my adherence, em, obsession over Rule #12. Although not a top shelf Serotta (think of it as Maker’s Mark as opposed to The Glenlivet), it is a platform worthy of respect, care, and craftsmanship. As fall arrived I found my foul weather steed in need of replacement and the Serotta was the perfect combination of material, style, and economics. My mind was flooded with ideas of how I might build her up. Then I thought of all of you, your experience, ideas, and of course, passion.
So as fellow Velominati, I humbly ask of your counsel for this build. The basic platform is as follows:
As you can see from the list above this worthy steed is in need of much more. Bars, stem, bar tape, saddle, seat post, possibly a fork, tires, chain, headset, and cables. Please keep in mind the following:
So there you have it. My proposition is for us to come together in a modicum of further connection than what cyberspace allows. My hope is that the finished build will be a tangible symbol of our collective wisdom and a reminder to me of what we, the Velominati represent, as I ride this bike.
Thanks in advance for playing.
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View Comments
Bontrager = Antichrist
@Cyclops
That may be my friend but they're what I've got laying around and must get used. And to play devil's advocate, those XXX lite wheels are seven years old, have thousands of miles on them and have never needed a thing. That said, I like them. So, explain to me your objection.
A beautiful frame for a rain bike. My vote is to keep the fork. I think the chrome will look best with the rest of the paint scheme.
Chain - SRAM with the Powerlink so it's easy to get off and clean.
Bartape - there must be some to match the frame colour.
Wheels - I have to agree with Cyclops. I'd be inclined to flog them and put the money towards some more acceptable wheels. Some second hand Mavics perhaps.
Pedals - good for crappy conditions, or at least the cleats are tough. You might need to get them polished to bare metal to match the chrome / cover scrapes?
Tyres - GP 4 season - 28s?
I'm struggling to think that the type of cable really matters. Evidently, I'll never make a good Velominatus
@Marko "No Bontrager wheelset is worth its weight in dogshit". (Quote: user review on Roadbikereview.com
URGENT DISCLAIMER: Before I get shredded by loyal Bontrager customers, I haven't tried them myself. They might be wonderful.
I didn't really like the look of them and I've instinctively avoided anything Pharmstrong might have used.
@George
Bontrager input heard. Like I said, I've got em and I'm gonna use them as I've been happy with them and am not gonna dump scrill into wheels right now. It is, after all, a rain bike. At some point I'll swap them out for something else but for now they stay.
I'm liking the chain suggestion. The pedals are brushed alu so that's not a factor as they'll match quite well (a solid pedal which I also dig)
The GP 4 season is gonna be hard to beat, we'll see if anyone else has an opinion. 28's seem burly enough but are they too burly?
I do have some Gore Ride-on cable housing that came with my Red gruppo for bike #1. I'm running Yokozuna on that but had to hygrate the cable inards for something else but I do have the housing. The Ride-on may be just the ticket for this build.
Thanks for the input, keep it coming
@Marko
Just personal prejudice based on nothing more than atoms colliding in my dolby. I am (typically) inconsistent in my biases but that's what makes me so cool. However, the flow chart of reason might look something like this:
Trek Bicycles tries to sue Winery named Trek - Trek Bicycles sucks
Lance Sucks - Lance rides a Trek - Trek Bicycles sucks
Kiyomi Waller (former Trek BMX AA Pro) stiffs me by not showing up to a race that I was promoting - Trek Bicycles sucks
Keith Bontrager thinks his shit don't stink
Bontrager sells out to Trek - (remember) Trek Bicycles sucks
Bontrager = Trek - Trek Bicycles sucks
Conclusion: While your wheels (sans Bontrager labeling) might be perfectly serviceable and even better than most - they suck*,**.
*Ben Serotta is too cool and old school to have one of his products tainted by installing corporate money fodder, juiceinator, China hoops on it.
**Please keep in mind that I think Cannondales suck too and yet I ride a Cannondale so you can pretty much ignore anything that I say.
@Cyclops
Could you elaborate on your disdain for Bontrager. I am not a Bontrager fanboy or even own a single Bontrager item, but would love to hear your reasoning. I also remember seeing a venomous post of yours regarding Pearl Izumi within the depths of this site, and am curious on your position there as well.
@Marko
KoolStop brake pads.
I'm starting mine with an old Raleigh steel frame (no fork) converted to single speed. It will be an extreme budget project. I might do some photos as I go.
@Cyclops
Fair enough. I will take your suggestion of removing the decals. Let's move on.