"You are only approached by other "Connoisseurs", steel bike/Rivendell owners." - Very true.
I agree with what's been said. Most people will think its an old bike. I seldom get comments on my Rivs. Which usually makes me happy. I'd rather ride than explain why friction shifting is fun to some crabon-rider. This happened to me yesterday - nothing but questions for about 4 miles. He started with "you look like you rode out of an old photograph." That being said, it *is* fun doing group rides with like-minded riders! Its more like driving a Volvo 240 than a Porche. Rivendells blend into to the "old steel bike" background -- and only real fans or people who "get it" will share a good conversation. Like any bike - lock it up smart. The more bags or cherished things on a bike, the less likely I am to leave it locked up out of sight. These bikes are meant to ride and be ridden, not to be holed up like Gollum's "prescious." Especially a Sam. Ride it and don't worry. Esteban San Diego, Calif. On Jan 14, 3:11 pm, Rene Sterental <orthie...@gmail.com> wrote: > Mick, > > My own experience has been that most people think you are riding an old > vintage bicycle. You are only approached by other "Connoisseurs", steel > bike/Rivendell owners. The subdued color of the Hillborne makes it even less > conspicuous in my opinion. > > Now, when I commute on my Bombadil with its double top tube, I do get some > glances reflecting they are thinking I'm riding a weird crazy contraption... > :-D > > In fact, yesterday on my ride home from work (12.5 miles), I saw another > rider on what I identified as a steel bike (twilight kind of dark, stopped > at a red light) just because I saw the hanging shifter cables from the > bar-end shifters. As I squinted to read the down tube decal, I realized I > was looking at an Atlantis. The bike couldn't have looked any more low key > and I could only realize what it was because I knew what an Altantis is. I > made a comment "Nice Rivendell!" and the guy turned to check out my bike and > asked confused what was I riding. I explained it was a Rivendell Bombadil > and all he could respond was something about the double top tubes. He had no > idea what a Bombadil was. > > I don't think you have to worry a lot in general, and I think you're going > to love it so much you won't regret it. For me, as I've been riding more and > more my new Rivendell bikes, my dressing has changed accordingly. No > clipless pedals and regular shoes (Merrell) also tells general riders you > are not up to par, I've gotten comments from co-workers as soon as they also > realize I'm riding platform pedals. The wool stuff and non-commercial > cycling apparel also help give you that low key look. > > I'm now using the wool gloves Rivendell sells instead of my Sugoi hard core > cycling gloves, and they also scream "non-hard-core-cyclist" to those being > influenced by the marketing hype (as I was until late last year). > > Don't worry, ín my experience it's certainly nothing like driving a Porsche > (which I've never done). In fact, I used to get a lot more of that showing > off feeling when I rode my all-carbon Specialized Roubaix SL2... which I'm > now selling. > > I could post some comments I've gotten from friends who've seen my Flickr > pages, but I don't want Jim to expell me for posting bad language here... > :-D I then have to start the lengthy process of educating them, and it's not > always worth it. The worse blind man is the one who refuses to see... > (transltated from Spanish so bear with me!) > > René > > On Thu, Jan 14, 2010 at 1:29 PM, Mick <makoep...@mac.com> wrote: > > I'm very interested in buying a Sam Hillborne. I think it's a > > fantastically constructed bike and aesthetically a work of art. I like > > the idea of having a quality piece of machinery, that fits well, and > > that could ridden for many years to come. While I can afford to drop > > $2,000 (or so) on a bike, I've never owned one that costly before. I > > was wondering if this owner's group could let me know if they've ever > > felt uncomfortable riding an "expensive" bike or one as beautiful as > > the Sam Hillborne. Is it the same as sporting around in a Porsche or > > let's say a vintage Alfa Romeo? (I'm not sure I could ever do either > > of these things). > > > Generally speaking I like to keep a low profile. I was wondering if > > that will be possible riding a Sam Hillborne. Do those riding > > Rivendell's get approached often by people looking to appreciate their > > bike? And is this a positive experience? Do you ever feel self- > > conscious about riding such a flash bike? > > > What about locking the bike and leaving it? Do you feel comfortable > > doing so? Or is it so obviously expensive and sought after that you > > wouldn't think of leaving it out of eye sight? > > > Thanks for providing any insight you may have. I'd hate to buy a bike > > that I loved, but didn't feel comfortable being seen in public with. > > I'm hoping that you Rivendell riders might be able to put my mind to > > rest. > > > -- > > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bu...@googlegroups.com. > > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > > rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com<rbw-owners-bunch%2Bunsubscrib > > e...@googlegroups.com> > > . > > For more options, visit this group at > >http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
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