43bikes

King Arthur: I am your king.
Woman: Well I didn’t vote for you.
King Arthur: You don’t vote for kings.
Woman: Well how’d you become king then?
[Angelic music plays… ]
King Arthur: The Lady of the Lake, her arm clad in the purest shimmering samite held aloft Excalibur from the bosom of the water, signifying by divine providence that I, Arthur, was to carry Excalibur. THAT is why I am your king.
Dennis: [interrupting] Listen, strange women lyin’ in ponds distributin’ swords is no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony.
You can’t expect to wield supreme executive power just because some watery tart threw a sword at you.

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I made a gallery for the new De Rosa King 3. Check it out.

43 pictures in there = 43,000 words I don’t have to write here. Works for me.

And another new gallery, this one for animals riding bikes.

So let’s keep that photos-to-bullshit ratio up, and close with these:

“I tried to sell my Ti road bike, but it’s like you can’t even give one away now. They’re about as desirable as 8 tracks or Hammer pants.” –me, to Fairwheel Brian

“Actually, I don’t think so. Hammer pants are pretty cool.” -Brian

—-

Here on this website, today is like the real New Year’s: the 43rd day of the year. (Also Charles Darwin and Abraham Lincoln’s birthdays, born in 1809.)

So maybe now’s the time for the ‘State of the 43bikes Report’. I hope you can stay awake, it’ll be quick.

Some highlights first. Like that day that I was searching “43 forty-three” on Google, and the first image to come up was my man Charles D, sitting on a Japanese ‘43′ mile marker:

Hell yeah! So that contribution was a big triumph for this humble crackhead website. Another was in the movie ‘Klunkers’ about early mtn biking. When they’re talking about Tom Ritchey and his early bikes, the narrator says his bikes were “beautiful”, and right then a photo of my bike appears.

You call it copyright infringement or whatever — I call it a feather in my cap.

Otherwise, I’m happy to say all the ball-bearing jackasses of the Mookenheim Collection are doing really well. You know how it is.. I can’t stay mad at them..

I try to keep them just a quick fluff away from roadworthy, and in the past year I’ve ridden the Bowden Spacelander, 1985 Stumpjumper, 1997 Merlin XLM, 1973 Colnago Super, 1980 Raleigh TI-Team 753, 1997 Look KG196, 1998 Brian Baylis, 1999 Ti Cycles Hyak, and the 2000 Pegoretti.

And then my everyday bike has been this Rossin:

People sometimes ask “do you still have your XYZ bike?” — which makes me wonder if they know something I don’t (should I run home and check?) But not that much ever changes. What the bikes do is a lot of staying put, and the idea is that they aren’t supposed to be swapped for a bit of filthy lucre, nor sent off to the glue factory.

With some exceptions.. there actually was one that went adieu recently: my Look TT bike. It’s in Canada now and I hope it gets ridden again, after sitting on a hook way too much here with me.

What replaced it? I’ll get there in a second.

Now, for closest thing to high drama among all these horsies, there was a really good one that was stolen, the ‘72 Masi. Gone daddy gone, as in ciao baby, arrividecci.

Losing a bike like that was quite a lesson in sucky, but it was a while ago, back in 2005. It was boxed up and sitting in a garage in Tucson, about to get stored somewhere more secure. I really doubt that the ‘methamatician’ ever got her built back up — it had no tires and you’d need a 7mm allen for the stem bolt. Probably traded that bike in for a ‘big hit’.

More about this POS site. Still haven’t gotten rich off it ;^) . And yes, it always stays the same and is pretty badly neglected. But with some exceptions — the photo galleries get updated regularly (at least by my standards), especially the stems, funny bikes, and vintage weight weenie parts.

And then one thing that’s a wonderful feeling: taking something down off the ‘wanted page‘. After years of looking I found the Mavic “Au Couer de Velo” book, some obscure bits to get my Raleigh dieted down to 16.5lbs, and some of those wacky Nitto ADB-X bars for the Araya.

So where are we? Oh yeah.. 41 bikes.

A couple holes to fill. Both are recent additions, one is a bike I really wanted to have alongside my early cruisers/ MTBs — a 1978 Mert Lawwill Pro-Cruiser.

It’s way cool to fill that late 70s gap some more, from clunker to cruiser to mtn bike. I got a nice repainted one with geniune decals, and all the key bits like the stem and drum brakes. That one will be getting a page.. when? you know like mañana..

And the other new arrival dates back to a bike crush I picked up pretty bad at the 2007 Interbike I attended. It was on my 35th birthday and seemed like the only thing standing between me and true happiness — the De Rosa King 3:

That was their show bike — looking exactly the right size for me, and so hot with that slammed 130 stem. The 4 spoke wheels qualify as nutty, so during the rest of the show I was looking around thinking “ah yea, I be lovin those Boras on the new whip, or maybe some of those tight muthafucken Hyperon rims right thurr.”

It was actually 15 months later that I got my new frame, after the new Super Record 11sp came out and my velo-crush wasn’t going away.

And there could be much said of this the story– sourcing new and used parts, all my drawn-out fundraising efforts, selling the Look and all parts off my ti bike, and then finding out noone wants that frame even for cheap (so it’s staying with me). But you know what? It kind of makes me nauseous, even when it’s myself — hearing Sumgai expound on all the decisions that went into his sporting goods.

Wanna hear all about my MLCCB (Mid-Life Crisis Carbon Bike)?

Anyway there’s more to come about the new ride — it turned out beautiful, and it goes really fast and makes me happy.

Thanks for reading!

“There are two kinds of people: Those who do the work and those who take the credit. Try to be in the first group because there is less competition there.”
-Indira Gandhi

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Rest in peace Ernest Csuka, who died on December 22, 2009 at 81 years old. (link)

For a eulogy, I don’t think I could do better than just pointing at this, and saying Mr. Csuka was the guy who brought things like this into the world:

I never met him, but have always been a huge fan of his. There are plenty of people whom I consider great framebuilders (in spite of them having 50 years’ less experience in many cases), but there are hardly any who can design and build a decent rack, or stem, much less a custom touring bike. Seriously. He stood alone; he knew more than entire continents about these things!

Some pics of him building my bike.

And finished:

An anecdote: when I sent my drawing for that bike, I was worried that I had drawn it as a sloping top tube. So I made a note that I was hoping it was made level. Ernest Csuka (CHEW-kah) said, yes he understood, and no he wouldn’t be building it with that ‘old-fashioned’ style. Meaning like a 1890s safety bike…

—

“It’s not good to make fun of how people talk.” -me, in a sanctimonious mood, to my coworkers in the shop

(in whiny childish voice) “It’s not good to make fun of how people talk..” -the reply from my coworker Calvin M

—————

Looks like the Powers That Be want me to disclose exactly what stuff I’m getting for free through this website. “The F.T.C. said that beginning on Dec. 1, bloggers who review products must disclose any connection with advertisers, including, in most cases, the receipt of free products and whether or not they were paid in any way by advertisers, as occurs frequently.”

So I can continue making my usual wild claims, like that Unicanitors aren’t really that bad, or that well-adjusted Rollercam brakes stop as well as any modern hydraulic disc brakes. Just as long as there’s full disclosure: I paid for all my old junk, or found it myself in the trash and it was fair game.

Hearing about all these bloggers who grovel and kowtow for boxes of free crap every day, I realize just how out of step I am with that mentality. If that were me it would be more like “HOW DID YOU ASSHOLES FIND ME?!” Or, why would *anyone* trust anything they read on the internet?

Perhaps with 43bikes, the concern is more that people could be getting horribly wrong ideas here, finding tacit endorsements within the vast catalog of dangerously bad ideas of the vintage drillium/weight weenie page. In fact it looks more likely that I’d be getting paid not to ride something — ‘oh god, please stop riding those.. we recalled those pedals in the 1970s.’

Anyway, as far as free schwag goes, there’s only been one thing that’s come my way because of this website: a recent book from Italy.

The author Giuseppe Nardini contacted me through the site, asking for my permission to use images of my bikes for a new book. I was honored — it’s a book tied to the Eroica race in Italy — and thanked him for reading the site, and asked pretty please if he could send me copy when it was published.

What I figured was that my photos are too low-res (and shitty) for print, and that his publisher would nix the idea. But then a book arrived, and within it many images that came out pretty decent of my Bianchi, Legnano, Cinelli, Colnago, and De Rosa.

Molto Grazie, Giuseppe!!

And oh yeah, another thing that was free was a weeklong hut-to-hut trip last summer, thanks to friend and his connection to a pro photographer (who was comped the trip in exchange for snapping pictures of it). But that opportunity wasn’t anything to do with this POS website, so noone has to doubt my motives are clear when I say: “the Durango to Moab hut-to-hut ride is highly recommended and absolutely kick-ass! Pay whatever they charge, and go shred it for credit!!”

More pics here.

Many thanks Rich and Mateo!

“Is ‘tired old cliché‘ one?” -Steven Wright

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The “Douche Swoosh”:

Brought to you by the Committee to Bring Back Neon Fade Jobs.

“Fanaticism consists in redoubling your effort when you have forgotten your aim.” — Santayana
_________

Here’s a confession, one that requires all my courage and strength to stand up and reveal to the world.

I recently took a step that all-too-many bike racers before me have taken, in spite of huge consequences, and considerable expense, not to mention the loss of self-respect.

I had resisted for years. I blithely judged others. Those practices were “cheating”, insane, dangerous.

Until now.

Call it the need to win at any cost, the drive to perform, a maniacal self-competitiveness that will never let up. But it’s done now. There really is no going back, once you start.. that much I’ve found to be true.

I just hope other cyclists make their own decisions when they face these ethical crossroads, as I share my own tale; a man and his decision laid bare for the world to see.

Yes, that’s right — I recently began to drill parts on my bike to save weight.

It started with the shell of my saddle. But after considerable efforts with the drill press and less than 5 grams of savings, I looked elsewhere. A worthy target appeared in the form of the chrome-plated brass cams in the brake quick-releases.

Many grams lay in waiting, and the deed would be entirely invisible.

Sweet success. So this is what it feels like. What can I drill next?

vintage weight weenie page

“What do you do?” -checkout clerk
“I’m an entomologist.” -my friend
“What’s that?“
“I study insects.“
“Oh yeah? My cousin slept with his sister.”
____________

The new guys, and gal, in the shop have asked, “What’s with all the inside jokes and references — where did they originate from?”

It seems like a lot are from various youtube classics. They’re from some strange places.. and it’s kinda hard to say why we think they’re funny. Anyway, here are the bicycle repairman’s top 10:

1. ‘indian thriller’

2. ‘karate tryouts’

3-shoes

4. ‘drinking out of cups’

5. ‘my new haircut’

6. ‘redneck suzuki jump’

7. G.I. Joe - ‘porkchop sandwiches’ (check out all of the GI JOE PSA’s)

8. ‘Fucking Lebowski’

9. ‘James Brown’

10. Miss Piggy - ‘Fuck the Pain Away’

“What should I do now?” -my co-worker Nickelbag, during a lull in the bike shop
“You should let the music take control, and let the rhythm move you.” -me
“But, I already did that.“

__________

A friend at work (NJ) has a bad habit of surfing eBay on the shop computer, and leaving himself logged in. The bad habit part is that he continued, even as we kept telling that something was sure to go wrong if his username and password were always on there.

And then it did. First those mysterious bids on the Huffy. Then discovering he won the auction for an Alf alarm clock. (Those can be had for cheap, luckily for him.) But then all the way from Holland, a winning bid on a new, unopened and factory sealed douche kit.

For everyone else at least, it was worth every Euro..

Here’s something I’ve waited a long long time to see in person, and finally one appeared in the shop. No kidding, there really was a saddle called the “Assmann”:

For those of you who never knew just how bad you needed one until now, the place to look is on obscure old Austrian bikes. This particular Assmann rolled up on a c. 1950s Steyr-made Schwinn.

And proof of the unpredictability of the job, even when it’s supposed to be a mundane bike build: opening the box and finding a Surly “Long Haul Fucker”.

Yes, really. We figure the doctoring of the ‘long haul trucker’ decal must have happened in Taiwan.. where else if the bike made no other no stops on the way?

… the work of a Surly worker indeed.

“If it has wheels or balls it’s going to be trouble.” -bumper sticker
__________

Alright, back in this chair again. After more than 1 year and a half away from this website and this blog, I just want to say that Elvis has NOT left the building.

Next up I’ve got a new page in the works for vintage weight weenie stuff, new as of today. Call it my ‘old year’s resolution’. Also (ahem) a new bike.. just having its maiden voyage this week. It’s part of my “upgrade road bikes every 10 years program” so I’ll be posting more on that one. It’s kinda sexy I think..

And what all’s new around here? Well, for one thing the bike shop got a squishy machine, and that’s pretty exciting. We have been enjoying 2 flavors: corn syrup red and corn syrup orange.
“thank you, please come again”.

And the bikes getting some chain stretch recently, 2 of my favorites: the pegoretti and the brian baylis.

They are such fine ponies, I’ve been loving every minute. Here are some pics:

yeah baby yeah!

Happy birthday Charles Darwin and Abraham Lincoln!

Let a man find himself, in distinction from others, on top of two wheels with a chain — at least in a poor country like Russia — and his vanity begins to swell out like his tires. In America it takes an automobile to produce this effect.
–Leon Trotsky
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A link for Erik, and one for Greg.

It looks like my newest job title is “purse technician”.

A woman came in the shop very proud of her thrift-shop score, the new purse which she insisted we all come and have a look at. Except.. shoot, the shoulder strap on it wasn’t connected to brass rings correctly.

“Sure I could try to fix that..”

And she walked back and stood right next to me me as I clamped it in the vise and grapped the channel locks. She kept a close eye as she told me about how it’s hard getting by on social security, and what’s this thing called?
“This? It’s called a vise.”

‘Oh I need to get one.. how much is one of those?’

“Ah Jeez, probably over a hundred bucks, unless you found a used one, and maybe it’d be about 50 or so.”

‘Well I think I’ll be buying myself a vise then.’

She badly wanted to know where she could go to get herself a vise and I gave he directions to Kent’s Tools. And she seemed really happy with how her purse turned out.

It’s all in a day’s work for.. purse repairman. And then more fun when the rep Brian brought in a demo bike — the Marin Quake XLT.

Somehow on the test ride, I ended up on a loading dock, but fortunately I found a way off it.

And then the cavalcade of randomness continued, when we got in a new MP3 player that’s in a seat bag made for bikes. After discovering the thing possessed quite a lot of bump, I cranked up ‘Angel of Death‘ by Slayer and headed out to 4th ave on an Electra Pajama Party.

It was so much fun I had to convince a couple others to go and take it out w/ the Slayer at full blast. PAJAMA PARTY OF DEATH!!!

“Seeing death as the end of life is like seeing the horizon as the end of the ocean”. –David Searls

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Rest in peace, Sheldon Brown 1944-2008.

When I heard the news yesterday I was at the shop, and I found out that each of my co-workers knew a lot about Sheldon — even knowing that he was having health problems — and apparently all of us have spent hours pouring over his webpages. One coworker said if it weren’t for Sheldon he probably wouldn’t have become a bike mechanic.

I wonder how bike geeks can ever replace him… you don’t get a guru like this too often. His site has over 1000 pages of detailed information, and the caliber of it all, brought forth with his intelligence and humor, seems untouchable.

I never met him, but I suppose we were under the same roof at Interbike recently. Once I ordered a pair of tires from him (Avocet clinchers for my Herse) and I got the impression of a very sweet and patient guy. I’m thinking maybe his mission was to serve others and spread bikes far and wide.

Thank you Sheldon!

“I relax by taking my bicycle apart and putting it back together again.”
– Michelle Pfeiffer
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Considering that I wasn’t having very much fun, I don’t know why I bothered writing this time capsule of the big crunch time last year. With the deadline looming a few days away here was ‘a day in the life of Mookie’:

I woke up in my freezing house and look out to find the clear blue sky I needed for taking my bike photos. Some coffee and I wait until the prime hour for photos — 11AM — and took a bunch of pics of my SC.

Waddle back on to my bike and back home to make another page.