After 16 years, thousands of miles on the road, and thousands of feet in elevation, I have bid a good friend a fond farewell. I have replaced my stalwart Bianchi with a new steed.
I still remember the warm spring day at U of I in 1991 when a guy on my floor let me take a spin around the block on his Fuji racing bike. I just had the old Raleigh Capri 10 speed at the time. The Fuji was so light, smooth, and fast I was hooked. I had to get a bike like that.
That summer I took my detasseling money and went on a bike hunt. I don't remember going anywhere else except where I had purchased my Raleigh several years earlier. It was a small shop, at the time, in Washington, IL called Russell's Cycle World. I talked to a sales person about how I ride, what I currently ride, its limitations, and my ambitions for future riding. He then lead me up to the second floor room where the road bikes were.
These were still the days when steel ruled the racks. Aluminum was still pretty new and a company called Kestrel was producing these futuristic monocoque frames out of this magical new material called carbon fiber. The high end bikes had the new STI integrated shifters and brake levers, but that was out of my price range. Steel was in my price range, it was proven technology, and a comfortable ride. The funny thing is I don't remember test riding anything that day. All I remember is standing with that Bianchi Forza with the bright morning sun warming that upstairs showroom.
It was a thing of beauty. It was a two-tone bike: the Bianchi signature celeste green on the fork, top, and seat tubes; pearl white on the down tube and rear triangle. The handlebar tape was also pearl white. Since the bike was steel, all the tubes were thin with understated weld points. The key for me were the shifters on the downtube. I was constantly hitting my knees on the Raleigh's neck mounted shifters on climbs which shifted to a harder gear and killed my momentum. Finally it had the Shimano Biopace chainrings which were ovalized chainrings. (apparently these were only around for a couple years. They were supposed to even out power delivery through the full pedal revolution. Many people complained of knee problems, but I never noticed anything until I started switch back and forth between a circular ring and that one. Interestingly enough, this ovalized chain ring has started re-appearing in the pro tour over the last few years. Bobby Julich used it to win bronze in Athens.) I was sold. The guys in the shop got me set up and sized up. We found some water bottle cages that matched the color of my new bike (1 white and 1 celeste). They showed me how to use the index shifting and quick release wheels. Finally, they gave me a water bottle, I paid my $600 (I think. I may still have the receipt somewhere), and I was off on a brand new adventure that would take me farther than I ever imagined.
Over the past 16 years I've put at least 12000 - 16000 miles (assuming ~800 miles a year which I have done for the last few years just commuting) on the bike. I've only recently started keeping track, but realizing how young I was when I got it and how much more frequently I was able to ride, that estimate should be pretty accurate. I often get sentimental about our time together as I reminisce about our adventures.
We started out that summer doing shorter rides around Pekin,IL hitting all of the hardest hills and burning up a nice little circuit from my house out through Sunset Hills and back with a sprint through Mineral Srings Park. I continued to explore the surrounding farm lands making longer routes towards Morton, Tremont, and my first 50 miler to Washington and back.
I had to leave the Bianchi home when I went back to school in the fall since I didn't have anywhere to park it in my dorm room, and I sure wasn't going to leave it outside. I got out on it whenever I went home for a weekend though. Between sophomore and junior year, I opted for summer school to get in some of my CS courses as well as pick up some work hours at CCSO. I stayed at my friend Greg's apt. so I was able to bring my bike with and keep it in my room. I spent the time when not in class or computer lab exploring the flat Champaign-Urbana country side. I found a great loop south of town and a good hole-in-the-wall bike shop just around the corner from the apartment that specialized in Bianchi. They liked to experiment a little with solutions to my problems. For example, I had trouble with my brakes rubbing my rims so they put springs between the 2 moving levers around the cable to force the caliper open again after breaking. I still have this on the bike today.
I happily rode along at my pace mostly along my established routes with some longer jaunts on the weekend. I enjoyed my sprints through the empty streets of the U of I. After graduation in 1994, I stayed on at the University of Illinois for work, and I joined the Prairie City Cycling Club in Champaign. I met some new people and learned some new routes. I also learned the fun of riding pace lines with a big group and sprinting for road signs. It was during one of these rides that I had a run-in with a dog that gave me a better appreciation of leash laws. We were 11 miles out west of Champaign in the middle of farm land on the Thursday night A-B ride. There was no traffic, so we were riding in a double pace line at around 20 mph. I was on the inside when we heard barking and saw a large black dog run out from behind a hedge to our right. The group scattered, but I was trapped with no where to go. I had only managed to grab my brakes when I hit the dog broadside at 20mph. My bike and I flipped over the dog. I landed on my back and slid on the chip seal with the bike on top of me. The dog got up and walked away. The Bianchi wasn't so lucky. The front wheel was taco'd (which is just like it sounds) and my rear wheel was out of true quite a bit. My favorite Bianchi MG-GB team jersey got ripped,. but other than bruises and scrapes I was fine. Someone went to confront the dog's owner, but they said it wasn't their problem. While we tried to figure out what to do next, a neighbor of the people with the dog came driving up with a pick up truck and offered a ride back to town. I filed a police report, and an officer came by to inspect the damage. The outcome came down to with a lack of leash laws in the country and no proof of the dog's intent to cause harm (I know. That's what I said too!) In the end, the dog continued to run free, and I had to buy a new front wheel out of my own pocket.
Later that summer, my best friend, Caryn, talked me into joining her at the Trek 100 in Wisconsin for our first 100 mile ride. She was living in Michigan working for Ford at the time so we only got to train together once. It didn't matter too much. We both trained hard, and we finished in ~6:30 under 100 degree heat and 100% humidity. It was also my first exposure to the world of organized rides.
In 1995, I switched from my Adidas mid-tops to Shimano shoes made for cycling. They had stiff souls and were ready for cleats even though I still only only had toe straps. I also rode 2 centuries. I did the PCC's spring century and the Trek 100 again by myself this time. I made a trip with my bikes to visit Caryn in Atlanta, Georgia as well as some other college and HS friends in Macon, GA and Nashvillle, TN. For my big vacation I took a 2 week trip to Colorado with both my newer mountain bike and the Bianchi. I hit several of the Jefferson County Open Space parks to do mnt biking around Denver, but the big achievement was tackling the Rocky Mountain National Park. I got an early start and drove from my hotel in Denver to a parking area just inside the park gates. Armed with my park map, a rain coat, a camera, some food, and a can-do attitude, I set off aiming for the top. It took 4 hours to reach the top (including time for pictures and food). I don't recall the elevation gain any more. I pulled into the visitor center just as it started to rain followed by hail. The rangers let me pull my bike inside to wait out the storm. The storm only lasted about 30 minutes. As soon as it was over, I headed back down. It only took half an hour to get back down to the car just beating another rain shower.
While still in Colorado, I drove out west to Grand Junction. I was mostly out there to mountain bike on Kokopeli's Trail, but Colorado's National Monument called when I saw it. This was one of the stages of the Red Zinger and Coors Classics back in the '70s and '80s. I got directions from the hotel's front desk and rode the 10 miles to the gate. As with most national parks, you don't have to pay if you ride in, but I did stop to pick up a map. It was a fun ride up and over and down the other side back around to Grand Junction.
The final stop on my CO adventure was Colorado Springs. I was disappointed that they don't allow bikes up the road to Pike's Peak, but after driving up to the top on dirt roads above the tree line I can see why. I did get to ride up Cheyenne Mountain road and back through Garden of the Gods. It was a terrific ride up, but the descent on the curvy Cheyenne Mnt. road was like flying through a canyon. The sun was setting over the kissing camels as I finished up through Garden of the Gods. It was a pretty fantastic day on a bike.
It was only a month after that we moved to Oregon. I finally invested in clipless pedals and ditched the toe straps. After executing the traditional fall over while still clipped in at a stop light, I got used to it pretty quickly. In fact, I have clipless on all my bikes now. Its a fun time riding in a place like Oregon with all the terrain options. It took me over a month t.o establish some regular routes. I had moved out at the end of August, and I heard about this thing called Cycle Oregon in September. I decided that I would ride that next year. My best friend Caryn was killed by a drunk driver on September 13, 1995. I thought a lot about her that year while riding around in the valley. The Bianchi helped me through that rough time.
The next year I started training for my first CO. I attended the kick-off party to find out the route would include climbing around Crater Lake. To prepare that year I made a couple rides up Mt. Hood to Timberline Lodge and I made a ride out highway 26 to Seaside over the Pacific Coast Range. I also spent a lot of time on Skyline road across the top of the West Hills. In April, I was sent to Folsom, CA for work for 3 months. After a month of flying down Sunday and back on Saturday each week, I decided to drive down and live in a hotel so I could bring my bikes with me. I was able to ride all over Folsom and even into Sacramento on the American River Trail which wasn't too far from my hotel. I also got to ride in the Sierra-Nevada range around Lake Tahoe, though I only rode about 1/3rd way around the lake itself.
I was ready when CO came. What a beautiful state I now lived in. We tackled quiet forest roads, 2 consecutive 100 mile days in the Cascades including a ride around Crater Lake's Rim drive, 1 century day across a valley floor, a 20 person pace line led by a tandem near Fort Rock state park, high-fived grade school kids at 20mph., watched sun rises over my handle bars and sunsets from my tent, and met people from all over.
The next year I spent 3 months in Ireland for work sans bike, but I did rent one while I was there. When I got back I decide it was time for a new recreational bike with a little more performance so I bought a Specialized Allez. I couldn't part with it yet so outfitted it with fenders, tire liners, a rack, and panniers and made it my commuter. It has served with distinction over my 21 mile round trip commute through warm dry summers, rain, sleet, and snowy conditions. I used it to haul my daughters in their trailer when they were smaller, and we have even taken a bike maintenance class together.
An interesting thing I found in my travels with the the Forza is that you have instant credibility in the pack riding a Bianchi. The name is Italian royalty. Especially in these days of large composite material tubes, a classic steel frame with thin tubes and down tube shifters, it stood out in a crowd. The other thing I've noticed is that I have only seen 1 other like it in my travels.
However, over the last few years I have noticed a subtle shift in performance and a few too many trips to the mechanic. I have said over the last few years if I could get a deal on a new cyclocross bike, I'd get one. Well that scenario presented itself in March when I was able to use my REI dividend plus their 20% discount to buy a Novara Element 'cross bike which will become my commuter, and I'll finally have a 'cross bike to race in the winter.
And so I have been trying to decide what I should do with my trusty Bianchi. It is not a simple choice. Part of me wants to clean it up and hang it in a place of honor. Part of me wants to keep it around until the girls are older in case one of them is tall enough to ride it. Part of me also wants to donate it to the Community Cycling Center so that it can live a new life with someone new. After a week of mulling it over, I believe I will donate.
On April 22, 2007, I donated it to the Community Cycling Center - Earth Day. I felt pretty good about recycling it, but at the same time I wanted to talk about it a bit. A eulogy, if you will. Hence this little tome. It has been such a big part of my life that I needed to re-live those moments. As I drove away from the drop-off, they were already putting it up in the work stand to clean it up and make it ready for a new life.