When The Bikes Come Out (Updated)

This past Sunday was pretty much an excuse to go out and bask in the glory of Dom's new bike. We still managed to do a fair bit of riding between glamour shots, but nothing epic. Dom has been suffering some of the same IT band problems I have been struggling with, and believe you me... the last thing a fella' with a new Seven needs is to be laid up nursing injuries.

Dom, Michael Turton and I decided to ease into the riding season with 100k of Baguashan.

Aside from Dom's rolling display of welded steel pornography, the ride was a pretty uneventful affair. What really stood out were the ordinary displays of cycling life in central Taiwan.

The weather was nice, so hundreds of riders were out as individuals or with clubs.

Few seemed to be racing to win.

The best part were the numbers of families out biking.

We took a few minuted to pick up some of the water they leave out for cyclists at the Fengshan Temple above Nantou.

We descended the 139 into Nantou City. It was my first time actually taking the 139 into Nantou as I prefer the screaming descent into Songboling.

The 139 is not a technical descent by any means and the potential to hit 70kph is always there... without the headwind. It has few turns, so it is not the most challenging ride, but it is not un-fun.

We stopped for some lunch and were joined by a large family that could think of nothing better to say after an awkward introduction and meal where the foreigners were suddenly the entertainment, other than to implore us to be sure to drink water.

The wanna-be military baddasses were out in costume... says the guy in tight pants and jersey. I just wonder how many of them had deferments when it came time for conscription.

These are just some of the typical sights on a lazy Sunday over Baguashan.

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Taiwan Links:

• An exciting race on Ta Ta Jia (The Back of Alishan). The Changhua-based Canadian national, Fraser Young, took top honors for CCN Cycling Team. It is good to see Fraser in good form after his brief retirement. RIDEA from southern Taiwan finished with four riders in the top 10. I am also happy to see Nantou's John Tonks and Taichung's own Inigo Gisbert just edged out by William Zhuang from Primavera. Racing season in Taiwan is underway.

• The Hualien-Taidong Cycling Series is open for entry. The Taidong Government wants you to come and ride.

• A Taiwanese couple on a sponsored trip around the world will be riding the USA. Since it is America, it gives them some sort of newsworthy validation that the rest of the trip failed to garner.

• Cycleture has an interesting photo-essay on his travels around Taiwan to check out the cycling industry and culture.

• Over Taiwan's highest pass... on a folding bike. Check out Small Wheel's story and photos.

• Taiwan's Hsiao Mei-yu is back to her winning ways in El Salvador.

• Cycling I.Q. takes a deeper look into Merida's quest for glory in Le Tour.

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Other Links:

Don't try this at home... Actually... don't try this EVER!

Brazing Hell: A look at the art of fillet brazing.

Seven Is More Than Just A Number: Seven Resolute SLX

About this time last year I made the bold, and somewhat unexpected purchase of a new Seven Axiom SL. As with I have experienced with a few fine products, the sticker shock wears off when the value is revealed.

The circuit between the rider and the bicycle, when properly achieved, is a balance that has the potential to produce an array of emotional power that can be nothing short of religious.

I learned that one way to find this balance was through a custom build. For me, Seven Cyclescould best provide what I was looking for and they delivered in spades. From the customizing sheet to the interview, the process pinpointed how I imagined my ride and Seven then used the quantifiable and qualifiable metrics I provided to fabricate a frame that would be the bees knees of bicycles.

Several weeks ago I received a message from Dom, one of my regular riding buddies. He had decided to go with Seven for his new bike.

Although Seven built its reputation in titanium, the company also has depth in custom steel and carbon fiber fabrication.

Dom has a soft spot in his heart for classic steel, and Seven offers the Resolute as their dedicated steel frame.

One of the real great things about Seven's process, is that they are not bound to any one set of tubing. Seven can use any type of steel from True Temper, Reynolds, Columbus or anything else, if it is the best match for the rider. They custom butt the tubing using an external butting technique to produce their Origin line of tube sets.

Dom went to New York to visit family, and after consulting with the Seven dealer from Bicycle Planet, he felt confident enough to fill in his Custom Fit Sheet with the numbers he wanted to help Seven sculpt a bike around Dom's own taste for steel, and for the type of riding Dom likes to do.

When I first saw Dom roll up on his new ride, the first thing that struck me were the seat stays... or rather the lack of seat stays.

Titanium has about twice the elasticity of steel, and therefore, titanium tubing must be thicker or have increased diameters to reach the same level of stiffness.

For Seven's Resolute, the spaghetti-thin S-bend stays are the pinnacle of frame craft. They are elegant, functional and downright gorgeous. The rear triangle achieves a mesmerizing sense of design that is a little more understated than my thicker titanium stays.

After looking the bike over for a few minutes... and after my sense of euphoria had abated somewhat... I was struck by the nearly invisible welds joining the tubing together.

My titanium Seven has some of the finest TIG welding I have ever seen on titanium. The welds are a source of pride as welds are the mark of quality on a titanium frame.

For the Resolute, there was almost no indication of welding what-so-ever. I have seen finely joined steel tubing before, but this looked painstakingly intricate.

With any steel frame, Seven includes a paint job in the purchase price. You can go with a custom paint option or choose from a catalogue of stock designs.

Dom went for a metallic black with white highlights.

It was an excellent choice. The metal flakes add depth to the black and the contrasting white really pops. It really has a classic look about it while showcasing Seven's philosophy on design.

For the group set, Dom decided to splurge a little bit for the Campagnolo Chorus 11spd group. Although Campy is known to be pricy, Chorus delivers the same function as its pricier stablemates, with just a minor weight penalty. This makes Chorus one of the best values on the market. It is both snappy and ergonomic. Campagnolo has the best hood shape by far among the big three (Shimano, SRAM and Campagnolo).

I happen to be a big fan of Campy's use of the thumb tab. I find it easier to shift gears from any part of the bars. I have shorter fingers, so it is great for reaching over, under or to just extend a pinky out to shift gears.

Dom ended up choosing the Compact crank (50/34) matched with a 12-27 tooth rear cassette to better tackle Taiwan's hilly terrain. There are days I wish I had done the same.

Seven prescribed a fork with 42mm of rake to provide a ride on just the agile side of neutral in combination with the 73 degree HTA. Most stock designs use a cheaper "one fork fits all" approach that can result in a bike that is either too twitchy or too sluggish for the rider. Stocking only one fork saves money, but it results in a bike with less than ideal handling.

For the rest of the build, Dom made the smart choice of putting his budget where it counts, and went with a selection of FSA seat post, bars and stem. The narrower bars should help Dom stay a little more aerodynamic and not act as a giant wind sock against those awful Taiwanese headwinds.

The wheels are Gipiemme Techno 1.55 wheels.

For tires Dom went with the Maxxis Detonators; an unfortunate name for supposedly bomb-proof wheels.

I took a few minutes to ride Dom's new Seven. Although it is too big for me, I could only describe it as a light, creamy icing. It seems to float without feeling squishy. Each pedal stroke, no matter how gentle, pushed the bike forward with little effort.

The tautness of steel was an ever-present sensation, very unlike titanium. It felt like a very refined version of the Speedone I tested. It had a lot more liveliness than I was expecting. It almost mandates smiles from the saddle.

Dom seemed bemused by the sensation of riding a new bike like this one. He looked perfectly at home on the bike as we ate the afternoon miles. We pushed out into another headwind, the soreness of the pocketbook and the eight weeks of waiting had completely blown away and the soreness in the legs had yet to appear.

That is the thing about a Seven. You can get off after a long ride feeling fresh in the right places.

I am happy for Dom in that he can now enjoy riding the bike he wants to ride. I am also happy to share the Seven experience with a friend.

Now, I just hope I can entice Dom to join me for a couple races this season.

If you are thinking about buying a new bike, I would encourage you to consider the longer term and keep Seven in mind. They give a whole new meaning to enjoying the ride.

Journalistic License?: CNN Ranks Sun Moon Lake Among Top 10 Cycle Routes

CNN-GO has just ranked Sun Moon Lake one of the world's top 10 cycle paths. With a liberal flourish of fantasy Taiwan's largest body of fresh water makes headlines for its cycling scenery and amenities.

According to CNN-GO:

Located in the heart of Taiwan, the Sun Moon Lake has long been charming curious foreigners and local visitors alike. Its calm, turquoise water has also inspired many ancient Chinese poets and painters.

The route around the largest lake in Taiwan is a three-hour ride, where visitors can enjoy lake scenery, experience Thao aboriginal culture and learn about the local ecology in the Nantou County.

If you arrive in early spring, you can even catch the cherry blossoms near this mirror-like lake.

One of my biggest peeves is when Taiwan is not written about for what it is, but rather for how the writer imagines it should be.

I occasionally ride Sun Moon Lake, but I find the traffic too thick, with too many lumbering tourist coaches, to actually make me want to do an entire loop.

I find I am either caught behind a slow moving caravan of gawking Chinese tourists who are clawing at the windows for a chance to get out and smoke, or I am forced onto the white line as these busses push me aside to make the next buffett. Since there is no discernible shoulder, there is no place for me to retreat. I was there yesterday and it was the same.

My favorite part is this blurb:

Its calm, turquoise water has also inspired many ancient Chinese poets and painters.

The history of Sun Moon Lake makes this fantasy a virtual impossibility left only to the Orientalist mind.

The Sun Moon Lake area had once been the home to groups of Thao speaking peoples, as well as some Bunun, Babuza, and Hoanya speakers. The area around Shuili was a major convergence zone for cultural trade.

Although the lake was greatly expanded under the Japanese colonial administration, records of the lake go back as far as Dutch colonial rule (1624-1662).

During the entire period of Cheng (1662-1683) and Qing (1683-1895) rule, the Sun Moon Lake area was considered to be in "savage territory" and "outside the realm". The area remained a center for tribal village life with occasional encroachment by the rough Han traders who dared venture across the "savage border" to cut timber or set up camphor mills. The area was used by the anti-Manchu rebel, Lin Shuang-wen, as a hideout following his rebellion in 1788.

To the West, the lake was known as Lake Candidius, after the Dutch missionary.

It was not until the Japanese colonial administration (1895-1945) that the lake and the surrounding areas were brought under outside governance. Still, even under Japanese rule, the lake was relatively remote.

I would welcome the author to please provide some "ancient Chinese" literature and/or artwork regarding the lake and its surrounding scenery. Qing literati were quite clear in casting the mountain areas as mysterious, savage, degraded places that were filled with evil, ugly, degraded people and things.

I would suggest the author leave poetics at the door and stick with the facts.