Bikes I Like: Here Comes NAHBS

Lynskey Titanium CX Disc poses in Taiwan

The design of the bicycle has remained pretty much set for over 100 years as basically two triangles, two wheels, a crank and chain drive, a seat and handlebars. Regardless, one of the highlights of the cycling calendar year is the North American Handmade Bicycle Show (NAHBS). This year NAHBS will be held between Feb. 25-27 in Austin Texas.

Although these handmade bicycles are often not the big names in the pro ranks, they remain a major force in technological innovation, material selection, and artistic expression focused around the love for the simple concept of the bicycle.

Many of the bikes that make it to the showroom floor at NAHBS are examples of experimental and functional art, while others can be purchased and pedaled to the starting line of any race. Master builders like Richard Sachs, Zanconato, Sacha White at Vanilla and the folks at Seven Cycles among other makers, have their creations regularly pushed to the limits at both the amateur and professional level of racing.

A few of these masterpieces make it to Taiwan, but not many.

In thinking about the upcoming NAHBS, I thought I would list just a few of the bikes that make me look twice in admiration.

Waterford from the Schwinn boys.

Van Dessel Got Something Right with the colors and a name like Gin And Trombones

The Soma Smootie is cheap and classy

The De Rosa Primato is a Classic of Classics

Felt put the right colors together to say "speed" in every possible way.

Strong knows how to build 'em

Eddy Merckx Team SC is a rare gem of alloy goodness

If you want custom Japanese steel... look no further than Kavalinka. You'll have to visit in person to be sized and measured by the master builder himself.

The Look 585 lugged carbon frame is one of the most balanced bikes... ever!

Although Cervelo is not uncommon, the oversized logos say it all.

A Molteni Orange Merckx is a thing of beauty

The De Rosa Neo Primato is one of my first loves.

Crumpton custom CF is unmatched. The question becomes if you want to risk riding it.

Cinelli came out with the XCR stainless steel frame. Different.

Black Sheep challenges design

Celeste is such a gorgeous color. It always turns my head.

Colnago is the King of Classy

Speedvagen is innovative, progressive and steel.

Independent Fabrications makes them smooth.

I admire Craig Calfee for his innovation in materials as well as his craft with CF.

The old Lemond Poprad Disc... we hardly knew 'ye!

Gios has changed a bit as of late, but that blue is shocking every time.

Seven Axiom SL is a race machine that should be in a museum... an art museum. Actually, it has been displayed as functional art.

Pegoretti Lugs

In the more conservative frame building shops of Italy, Dario Pegoretti challenges aesthetic tastes with his avante garde style.

Moots Titanium is exquisitely finished. Fast, light and smooth.

The Salsa Pistola is an essay in balance.

Richard Sachs is an expert builder and an obvious perfectionist

Kish Titanium is beautiful and shows how great painted titanium can be.

More Waterford Love

Zank is a modern master. His CX bikes are legendary and his road bikes are droolworthy.

A Glorious Day on Highway 21

Descending the Taichung 93 (I am the dot on the left). Picture Courtesy of Michael Turton

With all the mandatory New Year running around over, Saturday made the perfect day to get out on the bike and enjoy life. For me this is becoming something of a rehab assignment as I try to build my legs and my body back up after several weeks of down time and minimal training.

Nothing makes me feel more alive than climbing and descending through the foothills of Taiwan's central mountain range.

I met with Michael Turton and a very talented athlete from the UK, Simon McKenna. Simon is a solid rider with climbing chops and a lot of fun to ride with. He made for great company on this trip.

Fun

After some debate over which route to take, we decided on the Highway 21, over the mountain to Guoxing and back. This is a route that seems to roll so many feelings into one ride-- elation, amazement, awe, joy, giddiness, determination, freedom... and even a little fear.

It is never the type of fear I experience when a dog bursts out of the bushes to take a bite out of my thigh, but rather a life confirming fear in my own ability to handle the situation at hand. Will I take this corner too fast? Will that car sweep into my lane as I hit the corner? Will I apply a fraction too much pressure on my brakes? Will I get greedy with the speed and take a little too much? Will my leg cramp up before I get over this peak? Will I have the energy I need to feel ok to the end?

Michael Negotiates Traffic

The route seems like it was designed directly from the imagination of a regular cyclist.

We started with a climb out of the Taichung basin up the Taichung #129 to Hsin She. The climb is one of Taichung's classic weekend climbs with several switchbacks and panoramic views. This was my first time climbing it in standard 39-24 or 25 tooth gearing. I have also been riding at a more aggressive angle, so I can feel the muscles in my legs working in different places. I made the climb in good time to my relief.

The weather soon made its intentions apparent and we all had to strip off our layers of warmth and apply sunscreen. It was such a relief to be warm again. I left my windbreaker on for protection against the sun.

After our adjustments for the weather we were soon zipping down the Taichung 93, a smooth and drunkenly curving road that descends out to the Highway 21.

Simon Looks Out At Dongshi

The greatest thing about approaching the Highway 21 from the Hsin She side is that it is deceivingly easy. The roads are wide and the grade is relatively shallow for such a climb. The road evens out for a while in a series of cuts and corners above the river valley below before a crucial corner where the final push to the top begins.

Simon Poses Over Hoping Township

The final push to the summit follows a road that shimmies and curves up a 7 or 8 percent grade that is as smooth as glass and peaks at a small cafe. There is a urinal at the top too (although as a male and a cyclist... everything is a urinal). We stopped for a while to hydrate and take in the views.

Cruising Past Ascending Cycling Club

Finally it was time for the descent. With a climb as easy as the western route, a payoff like this should be illegal. The long descent down the mountain is a series of high speed corners and switchbacks that more resembles a downhill ski course rather than a road. With a tighter bike and lower center of gravity I was more able to bite into every arc and use the inertia to sling myself around every bend. Whenever the road let up, I was out of the saddle to pump up the speed for the next corner.

Simon (bottom left) Makes His Descent

I stopped to watch Simon make his descent and was it was just as thrilling to watch as he took each contour at speed. I was reminded of going out to the water park and watching kids go down the Big Dipper. Whoosh!

Rolling Out

Like the end of any roller coaster ride, we began easing into a straight-away in the village of Guoxing where we stopped for lunch and an awkward free English lesson or two for the benefit of some over eager parents and their embarrassingly mortified children.

Tunneling Out Of Puli

The thrill ride was over as we casually rolled along the Nantou #133 to the Highway 14. The Highway 14 was thick with hundreds of bored families trying to force love back in their relationships by taking a car trip to tourist spots where the children can read comic books or bury their noses in a PSP. The Highway 14 is a necessary evil to return to Taichung and actually made the idea of another climb over the 136 more entertaining by the minute.

Rolling Along

We stuck it out on the Highway 14 until the rural alternate route, which appears to be a politician's gift to the little communities that were left behind by the Highway 14.

99 peaks

The alternate route follows narrow farm roads through the rice fields past several depressed villages that would probably never see a tourist if the alternate had not been designated through their town. It is not a direct or even a well marked road, but it is not part of the Highway 14, which is a bonus.

Michael Makes Hay For Home

We finally turned onto the Highway 3 back to Taichung and fought our way through the madness of Wufeng on the weekend.

This is one of my favorite routes and I plan to use it as my test route when my new bike arrives. It offers a variety of disciplines for any cyclist to test a bike or a body against and moreover... it is a hell of a lot of fun.

Michael and Simon Enter Wufeng (at their own risk)

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Congratulations to Jack Bobridge! 4.10.534

Jack Bobridge breaks Boardman's 4000m record that has stood for 15 years.

Lunar New Links!

The Taiwan Tourism Bureau is offering vouchers and other perks for holders of North American passports. U.S. and Canadian passport holders are eligible to receive $100 in travel vouchers and perks that include:

Special discounts and free offers include free companion bus fare on one of four popular sightseeing tours, free airport pick-up and drop-off, free bicycle rentals, authentic local specialty pineapple cake and tea gift sets, and relaxing foot massage.

That is right... free bike rentals and a foot massage. Details here!

Taiwan Bike Links:

• Taiwan Cycle is coming March 16-19. Who will win the Design Competition?
• Nathan spends his Lunar New Year biking Hualien. I would love to be out there.
• Cycling Satin Cesena examines the old beaters and utility bikes that are used and abused around Taiwan.
• Team Neko has a full New Year schedule planned.
• Seeing as most of you will be engaging in the Taiwanese New Year tradition of watching television with family... keep your eyes peeled for Rocky Huang of T-Mosiac. he is starring in another commercial.

Around The Horn:

• The Flaming Scotsman? Graeme Obree, the cycling legend who famously broke world records with a homemade bicycle made of washing machine parts, has finally come out as gay. I hope this will bring him some peace. After two failed suicide attempts this should make his struggles less complicated and I hope he finds a world of support. The only problem with being gay... is having to live in a world filled with so many sad, bigoted and hateful people. Go Graeme!
• Emma Pooley wants you to look at women... on television. Women cycling is poised to take off and Pooley contends the market is ripe for broadcasters to give women some exposure.
• Pedal Powered Porsche. WOW!
• Vos beats Compton in Women's cyclocross World Championship. Stybar gets another championship before joining Quickstep on the road. He may end up looking like a young Roger De Vlaeminck, who made his name on the cyclocross circuit before challenging Eddy Merckx in the classics.
• Huffington Post on Fighting Bicycle Backlash.

Pinglin Road (坪林路): First Ride Report Of Lunar New Year

With the Lunar New Year vacation upon us and no bicycle, things were looking bleak for any vacation riding. I have been sitting around for a few weeks getting soft. I had become so weak I was entirely unable to prevent one chocolate after another from jumping into my mouth.

I really needed to ride and I finally was able to make that happen.

Kinesis Bike

Rocky Huang fron T-Mosaic bikes took pity on me and was kind enough to loan me his custom aluminum Kinesis bike, which is some kind of triathlon trainer. It helps that Rocky and I are pretty similar in size, so we really didn't need to adjust anything.

The bike is a compact little ride wet up with a mix of Campagnolo Centaur and Record 10spd. Oh my! I secretly think this was a sales ploy to convince me to buy a Campy gruppo in the future. The shifting is so crisp and sure... I love it.

Orchards of Zhuolan

It was another cold morning, so I bundled up in my cold weather gear and ventured out into the chill. Luckily I was only cold for a few minutes until my legs could wake up.

My down time had taken its toll on my legs... a sensation compounded by the standard 53/39 tooth chainrings as opposed to my compact set-up.

I met up with Michael Turton with the simple plan to ride to points North.

Cold Day For Fishing

We took it easy for the first part of the morning with breakfast and coffee... before stopping in Zhuolan for another coffee.

It was at this second coffee stop a plan actually materialized (and I just love it when a plan comes together).

Michael Works With New Camera

We decided to take Pinglin Rd. a.k.a. Miaoli 55. I had never taken this road all the way through and neither had Michael, so we leapt at the chance to try something new. I just hoped I wouldn't beat myself up over a bunch of steep hills with unconditioned legs and a maximum 26-tooth rear cog.

Stream Of Thought?

The road took up into the foothills behind Zhuolan where the fruit orchards fall down onto more orchards. The entire landscape is dotted with fruit trees, which, I am sure, is absolutely stunning in the sunshine. Unfortunately, we were stuck with the grey palette of a mid-winter's day.

Private Eyes Are Watching You!

Just up the road there is a river valley with a popular waterfall down below. We decided to skip the sight seeing and continued out climbing.

Green Valley

Posing

Farming Village

The road was a series of dips and rises in the landscape, but there were plenty of occasions to buy water if we wished, so this would make a great ride come summer.

Lunch?

There were also plenty of people out busily tending their gardens and preparing their orchards for the next crop.

Michael Makes His Ascent

A few of the hills were pretty steep, but we could always see the tops, which is great for the morale in the midst of a climb.

No Hunting Praying Mantis

We finally reached the highest point and found we had several options for an exit to Zhuolan. We decided to drop out of the hills into Nanhu, near Dahu Township. Unfortunately, the high speeds and low temperatures robbed us of a few great photos that will have to wait until next time.

Hanging At The Reservoir

After a lunch break in Nanhu we headed home back up the Highway 3. With a tailwind and a day to get used to the new bike, I found I was making good time up over the rollers back to Zhuolan.

The Construction Industrial State Is Alive And Well

We passed the dam and rolled on home. I am sure I will be feeling it tomorrow, but for now it was just great to get back on the bike. It was also great to be out riding with Michael again after his return from Sabah, Borneo.

Just a really nice day for a ride.

Dam!

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Ch-Ch-Ch Changes: Planning For A New Bike

On top is my old bike's geometry...

And here is a draft of the bike I have in the works. I was looking for something that might be suitable for long distance and climbing... but with vigor and some race personality.

ST ctr-ctr: 485mm

TT: 531mm

HT Angle: 72.5 Degrees

ST Angle: 74.0 Degrees

BB Drop: 69mm

CS Length: 410mm

HT Length: 134mm

SO: 776mm

Front Center: 57.0

Fork Rake: 45mm

This is very close to what I was imagining. The only surprises are in the longer chain stays and the bar height. Something to consider.

Anyone want to weigh in on the matter?