Last week, Facebook offered me an interesting group named “Vintage Carbon Nonsense and Marketplace”. It is an interesting group, dedicated to the ’80s and ’90s carbon bikes.
Carbon-fiber frames have a longer history than most people think. According to Wikipedia, the American bike producer Kestrel produced the world’s very first all-carbon bicycle frame in 1986. But before then, there were hybrid designs, like carbon fiber tubes bonded to titanium or aluminum lugs.
In recent years, fat tire bikes are getting quite popular. Before 2006, They were made only by custom frame-builders who liked to pedal in the snow (or sand, like beaches). Then, in 2006, a Minnesota-based bike manufacturer, Surly Bikes, mass-produced the first notable bike in the “fat” genre with its Pugsley frame. They still build a lot of fat-tire bicycle models.
I bought a Cannondale CAAD10 (2015) the last April, and it was equipped with Schwalbe Lugano 700x25c clincher road tires. After a few months on their pair, I decided to write a review.
First of all, they are cheap training tires. It is the entry-level road tire of the German tire manufacturer.
In September 2013, UCI Road World Championships have been held in Florence (Firenze), Tuscany, Italy. Chesini wanted to celebrate this event with a limited bike series: Chesini Florentia MMXIII (MMXIII equals 2013 in Roman numerals). The artisanship of Chesini and the creativity of SAK_ART DESIGN, a known brand in industrial and lifestyle design, have come together and with a common passion created these unique bicycles. You can read the whole story in the article titled Sak_art design.
I bought a pair of Bontrager R2 clincher folding road tires, and I rode over 560 km with them in 8 days. Here is a quick review.
First, some specifications:
Colnago C35 equipped with Campagnolo Super Record gold: it is not only an artwork, but it is also a milestone in the history of cycling technology. It was produced in 1989, as a commemorative model created in celebration of Colnago’s 35th anniversary. Developed from the work with Ferrari Engineering, it was one of the first frames to be manufactured using a carbon fiber composite and was equipped out with a gold-plated Campagnolo Super Record groupset.
I’ve inspired by GCN’s video titled “Top 10 iconic road bikes in racing history” while writing this post. I made some changes, excluded some of Daniel Lloyd’s choices, and extended the list by including a few bikes. Here are the top 12 iconic bikes in cycling history (IMHO, of course).
In the late 1980s, an American team has started to shine in the European cycling scene: the 7-Eleven Cycling Team.
The 7-Eleven team founded by Jim Ochowicz, a former U.S. Olympic cyclist, in 1981. A few high-profile cyclists including Ron Kiefel, Sean Yates (former directeur sportif of Team Sky), Andrew Hampsten (1988 Giro d’Italia winner, also King of the Mountains, with the 7-Eleven team), Davis Phinney (father of BMC Racing Team rider Taylor Phinney) rode for the American team. The team lasted 16 years (from 1990 to 1996 under the sponsorship of Motorola).
The advertisement of Greg LeMond’s 1989 Tour de France winner Bottecchia (in Italian). A beautiful and extraordinary bike. LeMond was racing for the AD Renting-W-Cup-Bottecchia team.
During the 1980s and at the beginning of the ’90s, the size of the front wheels of the time-trial bikes was 650c, unlike today’s bicycles.
Sak_art is a motorcycle & industrial design company founded in 2010 based near Pisa, Tuscany, Italy. They design motorcycles, helmets, and bicycles. Sak_art design wants to create synergies with the greatest frame builders, Each fine frame becomes their unique painting work that displaying their aesthetic creativity and passion that have roots in the beauty & culture of their land, Tuscany, Italy.