I'm past the point of caring about being first - or even riding for time. I did all that, had medium success at a medium level, and look back on those days with good memories.
On the other side, I'm less interested than I was at 30 in falling off log bridges, going off jumps, and the adrenaline spike of realizing that if you slip on this one goat track, it's 1500' down a scree covered slope until you find something to hold onto.
I've also raced a couple of seasons of cyclocross, which was a delicious agony. I found I enjoyed training for CX, and practicing the skills required to ride a cross bike a lot more fun than actually racing. 45 minutes of riding at redline and coming in dead last just slams your ego into the mud.
Which brings me to gravel. Thanks to my MTB and CX riding, I found that I really enjoy riding on gravel and dirt roads, jeep tracks and the like. On our weekly road rides, I look forward to the occasional 'connecting road' that is marginal pavement, gravel, or [too rarely] brick. Bring it on.
So last year, I set a goal to do a couple of gravel races, just using my SSCX beast, and see how I liked it. I did. I'm still not sure I'm interested in the Dirty Kanza or Trans Iowa - or any other event that requires more than about 8 hours to complete, but I'll make a handful of events this year, and enjoy riding the loose stuff when I can.
Anyway, this page will be a collection of thoughts about the process I went through for selecting and acquiring the bike I'm building up right now. A couple of notes, disclaimers and such:
| What happens when you buy parts off ebay |
- I strongly support working through your friendly local bike shop, and encourage most everyone to do so. That said, I confess that a lot of this bike is built from the internet, typically by using either 'good used' or 'NOS' parts sniped at the last second on ebay. Yeah, I should eat my own dogfood, but I had a very specific shopping list, and many of the items aren't available at your LBS. If they have to special order a part for me, I don't feel nearly as obligated to buy from someone who is doing the same thing I would - especially if I don't expect support from them if something goes wrong.
- Building bikes from 'kit form' is not for everyone. It takes an inordinate amount of time, tools and a bit of experience. If you aren't comfortable changing a chain or disassembling a bottom bracket, please spend your hard earned bucks with a local shop and their excellent mechanics. And PLEASE - don't take that new derailleur you got off ebay to your LBS and ask them to install it for free.
18 Feb 2014 Most of the parts are either in house or on order. The biggest task now is to build my wheels and start assembly. We've still got 2+ ft of white fluffy on the ground, but I'm ready to start work on more fun things and put the skis away!
1 March 2014 Parts still on order: HED Belgium + rims, TRP HY/RD brakes, Salsa Cowbell 2 bars. Still need to get cables. Everything else is in the pile!
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OK, about the build. I'm starting out with a Foundry Auger frame with a Whiskey 9 fork (instead of the 7).
I looked at several different frames, and considered having Peacock Groove do a custom. I liked the way the stock Auger rode, and when a deal came that I couldn't pass up, I took it.
One of the choices I made in selecting parts for this build was to go with a wide ratio rear cluster. As a roadie, I'm much more accustomed to something like an 11-23 or 11-26, which provides very crisp shifts, but requires lots of 2-3 gear shifts when speeds change rapidly. The other problem to overcome was that Ultegra and DA derailleurs really only accommodate an 11-32 (and a stretch at that). I wanted a 36 rear. A couple of the events I want to do are in the mountains of North Carolina. A 36x32 just isn't quite low enough. So lots of research later, I learned that the older XT 9 speed is compatible with my preferred 10 speed brifters. Not the newer Shadow stuff, but the older XT 9. Picky, picky.
Brifters. Well, if you are building a Shimano drivetrain, Ultegra is a nice way to go. I'm using Shimano 6700 brifters. One of those things that 'just work'. I would love to have done Di2, but I can do the entire drivetrain for less than the cost of the derailleurs!
Another choice was on cranks. I would have preferred carbon SL/K or similar, but for 1/4 the cost, I will use the same tried and true FSA Gossamer 46/36 setup that's done quite well for me on several builds. It's a 100 or so grams heavier, but they are bulletproof reliable.
Bars, stem, seatpost. One thing you won't find on any of my builds (except a TT bike) is a carbon bar. I've seen too many fracture from a simple crash. I'll stay with aluminum, thank you very much. Carbon stems are more OK, but I've had such good luck with Ritchey WCS that it's my preference. Same with the seatpost. Ritchey WCS. I'm going with Salsa Cowbell 2 bars on this build. I had Bell Lap bars on my cross bikes, and liked them just fine. But they seem to have superseded by the Cowbell, so that'll be my choice.
Saddle. I've never, ever understood the love affair some riders have with their Brooks saddles. If you like them, you don't have to defend your love. I'm fine with it. It's just not for me. I generally ride the old style Selle Italia Flite. For this build, I've gone a little softer, and am using a Selle Italia SLR Flow, which is very similar to the 91 Flite, but has a cutout and a little more cushioning. Still very light.
Cables. I still haven't decided. I'm sold on Gore Ride-on cables, but they are no longer being made. I may source those off the net, or go with Yokozuna. Silky shifts and compressionless brake modulation are the goal.
Tape. I am very partial to Fizik Microtex tape, applied over a layer of Cinelli Cork. A little extra damping without being squishy.
Which leaves us with wheels and brakes.
Not much agony was poured into the wheels decision. I did my research, compared price, performance, weight, looks, and decided on Hope Pro Evo 2 hubs. These are not the lightest, but they are absolutely bulletproof, and look ready for business.
Rims and spokes were pretty easy. The only real consideration was how many holes. I decided to go 32 spokes front an rear. The extra weight of 8 spokes was more than offset by the peace of mind. Rims? There was only one in consideration - HED Belgium Plus Disk Clincher. Wide, idiot proof strong, and built for this type of riding. Same with spokes. Sapim CX Ray. I didn't even consider anything else. They are darned expensive, but they are a joy to work with, and strong. Combining the HED Belgium+ rims and CX Ray spokes are a wheelbuilder's dream combo - strong, simple to true, and equal tension at near zero runout. These will be built up for tubes at the present - which means until I have a second set that can be dialed specifically for tubeless.
Speaking of tires, I will be running a mix of Challenge products - Paris Roubaix for the road, Almanzos and hopefully the new "Gravel Grinder 38" for the off pavement stuff. I rode the Almanzos on HED Belgiums at the Mammoth and Filthy 50 last year and loved them.
Brakes. The major agony item. Avid BB7 is the 'no brainer' choice, but I really want hydraulic. After looking at Hope's V-twin, TRP Parabox, and TRP Hy/Rd, I settled on the Hy/RD. Now if only they'll come off backorder! If they are still unavailable when I get to the assembly point, I'll opt instead for the Spyres and maybe a substitute at a later time.
That's the bulk of the build. Once I get back from spring break, I'll start the build (complete with pictures).
More to come. Comments welcome!
1 March 2014 Parts still on order: HED Belgium + rims, TRP HY/RD brakes, Salsa Cowbell 2 bars. Still need to get cables. Everything else is in the pile!
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
OK, about the build. I'm starting out with a Foundry Auger frame with a Whiskey 9 fork (instead of the 7).
I looked at several different frames, and considered having Peacock Groove do a custom. I liked the way the stock Auger rode, and when a deal came that I couldn't pass up, I took it.
One of the choices I made in selecting parts for this build was to go with a wide ratio rear cluster. As a roadie, I'm much more accustomed to something like an 11-23 or 11-26, which provides very crisp shifts, but requires lots of 2-3 gear shifts when speeds change rapidly. The other problem to overcome was that Ultegra and DA derailleurs really only accommodate an 11-32 (and a stretch at that). I wanted a 36 rear. A couple of the events I want to do are in the mountains of North Carolina. A 36x32 just isn't quite low enough. So lots of research later, I learned that the older XT 9 speed is compatible with my preferred 10 speed brifters. Not the newer Shadow stuff, but the older XT 9. Picky, picky.
Brifters. Well, if you are building a Shimano drivetrain, Ultegra is a nice way to go. I'm using Shimano 6700 brifters. One of those things that 'just work'. I would love to have done Di2, but I can do the entire drivetrain for less than the cost of the derailleurs!
Bars, stem, seatpost. One thing you won't find on any of my builds (except a TT bike) is a carbon bar. I've seen too many fracture from a simple crash. I'll stay with aluminum, thank you very much. Carbon stems are more OK, but I've had such good luck with Ritchey WCS that it's my preference. Same with the seatpost. Ritchey WCS. I'm going with Salsa Cowbell 2 bars on this build. I had Bell Lap bars on my cross bikes, and liked them just fine. But they seem to have superseded by the Cowbell, so that'll be my choice.
Saddle. I've never, ever understood the love affair some riders have with their Brooks saddles. If you like them, you don't have to defend your love. I'm fine with it. It's just not for me. I generally ride the old style Selle Italia Flite. For this build, I've gone a little softer, and am using a Selle Italia SLR Flow, which is very similar to the 91 Flite, but has a cutout and a little more cushioning. Still very light.
Cables. I still haven't decided. I'm sold on Gore Ride-on cables, but they are no longer being made. I may source those off the net, or go with Yokozuna. Silky shifts and compressionless brake modulation are the goal.
Tape. I am very partial to Fizik Microtex tape, applied over a layer of Cinelli Cork. A little extra damping without being squishy.
Which leaves us with wheels and brakes.
Not much agony was poured into the wheels decision. I did my research, compared price, performance, weight, looks, and decided on Hope Pro Evo 2 hubs. These are not the lightest, but they are absolutely bulletproof, and look ready for business.
Rims and spokes were pretty easy. The only real consideration was how many holes. I decided to go 32 spokes front an rear. The extra weight of 8 spokes was more than offset by the peace of mind. Rims? There was only one in consideration - HED Belgium Plus Disk Clincher. Wide, idiot proof strong, and built for this type of riding. Same with spokes. Sapim CX Ray. I didn't even consider anything else. They are darned expensive, but they are a joy to work with, and strong. Combining the HED Belgium+ rims and CX Ray spokes are a wheelbuilder's dream combo - strong, simple to true, and equal tension at near zero runout. These will be built up for tubes at the present - which means until I have a second set that can be dialed specifically for tubeless.
Speaking of tires, I will be running a mix of Challenge products - Paris Roubaix for the road, Almanzos and hopefully the new "Gravel Grinder 38" for the off pavement stuff. I rode the Almanzos on HED Belgiums at the Mammoth and Filthy 50 last year and loved them.
Brakes. The major agony item. Avid BB7 is the 'no brainer' choice, but I really want hydraulic. After looking at Hope's V-twin, TRP Parabox, and TRP Hy/Rd, I settled on the Hy/RD. Now if only they'll come off backorder! If they are still unavailable when I get to the assembly point, I'll opt instead for the Spyres and maybe a substitute at a later time.
That's the bulk of the build. Once I get back from spring break, I'll start the build (complete with pictures).
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