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I used to ride only track bikes. I live in Brooklyn & it only made sense. I just recently switched to a touring bicycle. I got tired of the track bikes limitations. Sick of having a wet stripe up my back and sopping wet shoes when it rained all because the bike had no eyelets. Anyway, I saved my pennies for what seemed like 6 years and invested in the cheapest Rivendell I could afford. I bought it in bits and pieces: cranks from ebay, bottom bracket from local shop, seat from wallbike.com, and mostly everything else in stages from Rivendell. Needless to say, its the best bike I've ever had and it can really take a beating.

It has sustained one accident with a cargo van and held it's shape. The wheels were made by Rich of Hands on Wheels and there's little you can do to tweak them out of either. Solid as a rock!

Specs:
-Bleroit 61cm (wish they made them bigger)
-Single sprung B.17 -Nitto Tecnomic Stem (12cm)
-650B wheelset by Hands on Wheels
-11- 32 SRAM Cassette
-Shimano Deore rear derailer -
cheap $25 Shimano SORA front derailer
-Double 175mm Shimano 105 Octalink Crankset (53-39) Octalink sucks. stick with square tapered. (long cranks help me keep my seat lower, now my handlebars are higher and the stem isn't way up)
-Lizard skin velcro wrap to keep the chain from chipping the paint.
-MKS Touring pedals
-Nitto Crystal Fellow seatpost
-Silver bar end shifters
-Dia Comp Model 750 center pull brakes
-Dia Comp "Gray Matter" pads (these things bleed like hell in the rain - just no keeping the tires clean - i gave up long ago)
-SRAM mousetrap rack - $14 (small weight capacity, but it holds small things quickly and efficiently)
-Home made rubber Mudflaps. I went to Canal Foam and Rubber in Manhattan and bought a 12"x12" thick black rubber matt, cut two Gilles Berthoud shaped flaps for $5, drilled a couple holes and attached with zip ties.)
-SKS Fenders (for $37 bucks a pair you can't go wrong with these)

Many thanks and safe riding!

Todd

todddaddario@rcn.com