Categories: The Bikes

A New Decade

A new decade is here. Not the one that started Jan 1st, but the one marked by my new bike. By habit, this bike will occupy the #1 spot for 10 years, give or take, until another bike happens. That’s the way of bikes– the best ones simply happen. I don’t go shopping, or even buying. I just suddenly have a new bike. (Except that they’re always used.) It’s a strange approach, given the length of the commitment, but it’s been working so far.

In the ’90s, bike #1 was a Cannondale CAD 3 (with Suntour 7 spd). In the ’00s, bike #1 was a Cannondale R3000 (with DuraAce 9 spd). Now, I am a proud member of the modern age in my Felt F1 (with DuraAce 10 spd). The acquisition of the Felt had no premeditation, no research, no method. I was not actively looking for a new bike. (One is, of course, always passively looking for another bike.) The Cannondales were each from [different] cousins of Will Frischkorn, and both came from conversations that started, “Hey I might be able to get you a bike”.

This one has a story too. This bike comes from Danny Pate, formerly of Team Garmin, more recently of HTC, and next season of Team Sky. Frank found it, via Pate’s twitter feed, and sent me the link along with some taunt about carbon. It was late on a Wednesday night, I was full of scotch, and my lovely wife was out of town…so I joined twitter and posted a reply. I talked to Pate on the phone that weekend, sent him a check, and ba-da-bing: bike arrives the following Thursday (complete, sans wheels, as agreed). He even included a matching team kit, still in the wrapper– a gentleman and a scholar, Mr Pate.

Frank lent me some spare wheels, and I’m off to the future. The hills on our regular training lap are still higher at the top than at the bottom, but that’s about the only thing that is the same. This bike is fast.

Now I just need to “happen” some wheels for permanent use. And a flat stem, of course.

jim

Jim rides a bike a lot and hates people.

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View Comments

frank says:

Oct 10 2011 at 2:32 pm

I've got major bone for those carbone Rotundos you've got on there, Sonny Jim. I also love the classic weave on the carbon of the frame. Class stuff. Just wait until you get some decent wheels on there.
DeltaMngo says:

Oct 10 2011 at 2:47 pm

@frank

@Chris

@Marko

How cool he sent you matching kit, first class.

IS there a dispensation to Rule #17 if the team kit has come directly from a team member

Similarly, the question has arisen as to what to do with the name badge. The Pate badge is pretty damn cool, but seems exactly the same amount of wrong to ride with. Jimmy it thinking up some creative solutions.

Seems like fate that the bike came with a non-standard Thomson seatpin.

Nice ride! I wish I knew some pro riders.
Add another sticker that says "This came from..."
Joshua says:

Oct 10 2011 at 3:10 pm

Jim, I hate you, and I hate your new bike. I hate that your bike is fast and may even make you look fast, and that it is smooth and may make even the Tonka brand toy jackhammers that are your little legs look smooth in your pedal stroke. I especially hate that I didn't find out about your new bike until 3 days after you received it, from your wife, in a story she was telling to somebody else. Dude, I thought we were family.
Erik says:

Oct 10 2011 at 4:06 pm

Again, beautiful bike. I think that the previously ridden faster buy is the way to go. Coincidentally, I came upon used (not by anything even resembling a pro) Felt today. We'll see if I can get the purchase past my wonderful wife.
michael says:

Oct 10 2011 at 5:27 pm

Just put an accent on the Pate to say PatÃ©.
harminator says:

Oct 10 2011 at 6:02 pm

Or you could add an apostrophe NT - as in PATE'NT. See what I did there?

I have just bought a LOOK 585 and I can attest that the longest wait in the the world is the time between handing over your credit card details and taking posession of the goodies...
Mikael Liddy says:

Oct 10 2011 at 7:11 pm

@Joshua

Jim, I hate you, and I hate your new bike. I hate that your bike is fast and may even make you look fast, and that it is smooth and may make even the Tonka brand toy jackhammers that are your little legs look smooth in your pedal stroke.

I'll second this notion, although with a little less vehemence purely for the fact that I've never met you so it could be considered harsh.

That being said I'm extremely jealous of the methods employed to gain ownership of this steed, must work on my connections in the LBS scene here as many of the wrenches end up getting attached to the smaller teams at the TDU each year...goodies may abound!
Kiwicyclist says:

Oct 10 2011 at 7:18 pm

The acquisition of the Felt had no premeditation, no research, no method. I was not actively looking for a new bike

Lovely piece of philosophy for life in general right there.

I met my wife applying a similar principle.
frank says:

Oct 10 2011 at 8:02 pm

@michael

Just put an accent on the Pate to say PatÃ©.

A+1
frank says:

Oct 10 2011 at 8:03 pm

@harminator

Or you could add an apostrophe NT - as in PATE'NT. See what I did there?
I have just bought a LOOK 585 and I can attest that the longest wait in the the world is the time between handing over your credit card details and taking posession of the goodies...

It's like adult Christmas. In every way.