My Bikes

I love bikes

I stare at bikes – online – in stores – on the street – and in my living room. I sit and day dream about my bikes, thinking of where I’ve been on them and what it was like, how they’re decked out now and how they’ll look once I’ve added “such and such” to them. When I look at my bikes I see what I want to see in them, where I want to go on them, what I hope to achieve with them. I see a bit of my future and a little hope for something worth attaining. Bikes make me smile.
I’ve got three bikes

1990 Trek 520 [my Xtracycle]

I’ve owned this bike for close to 20 years and it has seen and done it all. It is currently my Xtracycle. In 2007 I picked up another tour bike and converted this bike into my cargo bike.
Below is the set up.

• 1990 Trek 520 [Trek's touring bike]
• 700c Xtracycle FreeRadical
• Shimano Deore V-brakes
• Tektro Road V-brake levers [curved and comfy handle, great for the Moustache bar]
  
• Nitto Moustache bar
• Cork Handlebar tape [tan with Bullseye amber shellac]
• Hemp Twine [wherever I felt like putting it, so OCD]
• Old Shimano Deore DX Triple Cranks and Derailleurs [drive train]
• Shimano Bar-End Shifters [don't leave home without'm]
• Grip King pedals [the most comfy/stable pedal I've pushed]
• Brooks Saddle
• Bontrager Hardcase tires [BUT I want Pasela TOUR GUARDS]
• Velo-Orange 45mm smooth fenders
• Velo-Orange Retro WB Cage [mounted on handle bar for coffee]
• VO Handlebar to Water Bottle Cage Mount
• Low Down Type 1 Light Mount
• Blaze™ one-watt LED Headlight
• SuperFlash tail light
• Nitto M12 Front Rack
• Wicker Bike Basket

198? Ross Signiture 290s

I pulled this bike from a dumpster and gave it a good cleaning. It has become my fun bike, run around bike, club rider.
Things I did to the Ross:

• rebuilt the hubs
• rebuilt the bottom bracket
• replaced the cables
• replaced the chain
• trued the wheels
• replaced the tires
• replaced the seat post and saddle
• replaced the handle bar tape

So the list of parts that cost me something for the bike:

• cables
• chain
• tires
• seat post and saddle
• handlebar tape

I am now starting to change out more of the bits on this bike. So far I’ve added:

• Bar end shifters
• Campagnolo Centaur Brakes
• Nitto Grand Raundoneur handlebar
• Nitto stem

I’m wanting to replace the drive train and wheels as well – so much for keeping the bike the way I found it…

2006 Trek 520 [Loaded Touring Bike]

I wanted a Rivendell – I wanted an LTH – I wanted the perfect loaded touring bike. The Rivendell was deliciously out of my budget. The Long Haul Trucker was an unknown to me. The idea of buying a frame and building it up however the heck I wanted was scary-appealing to me. [but I feared I didn't know enough at the time not to make costly mistakes: Ha Ha! read-on] the idea of letting someone else choose the components for me made my conspiracy-theory-heart freeze. [Not a control freak - I swear it]

It was 2007 at the time and the Trek 520 was jet black that year, but the 2006 model was an outdoorsy-campy kind of green. My 20 year old Trek 520 had served me well, but I was under the impression I needed a larger frame. I think differently now.

Anywho… after much web searching I found last years model on sale – just one State over. I’m basically a classic bike kinda gal, and had never had a threadless headset before. Frankly I didn’t like it. I was adding too many parts to get the handle bars level with the saddle. [really *&.!@^ thanks Trek! - way to design a touring bike] So I had the fork threaded to fit a lovely Nitto stem. I used a Chris King headset •cha-ching•. I swapped the saddle and handle bars as well as the tires, back cassette, and lower chain rings.

I bought the bike at $800 so I guess I’m near retail with the changes I made… and besides being a little disgusted with myself for buying a “complete” bike and then changing most things, I’m happy.

This bike really has a sweet spot around 19 – 21 mph on the flats, and believe it or not I kinda forget how heavy it is even climbing. I love the ride loaded as well. I carry my loads down low and the bike is super stable, I’m in my happy place. One big decider for me was 700c wheels. All my bikes have’m and I have an irrational fear of 26er’s. The Trek was still sporting 700c even on the smaller frames and I like the way they ride. I fear the loss of what the heck ever with any other size wheel. Maybe it’s just the feel, maybe it’s more.