A quick inventory

Someone asked me how many bikes I had the other day, and I had to pause a second.

When you don't remember how many bikes you have stuffed in your garage or rec room, it's time to take a quick inventory. My lovely wife says this means it's time to quit buying bikes.

NOOOOO!!!

Silly wife. So here goes the inventory:

Three Schwinns (lugged steel frame, lugged steel frame, and yes, lugged steel frame):

1 - 62 cm blue fixed gear, or the Quickie Blue Fixie. Late 70's frame, bullhorn bars, zip-tied clip on fenders, fake Pletscher rack, MKS touring pedals, German mirror, dirty, mud splattered beater. Just bought a bright new rechargeable light for commuting, and it's installed on this bike.

1-62 cm champagne colored (beige-ish) 1988 LeTour, which I call Pepe LeTour. 52-42 Biopace chainrings, wider range 6 speed cassette, downtube shifters, Suntour Blaze drivetrain components, Araya rims, Ruffy Tuffy 700x28 tires with barely enough clearance.

1 - 62 cm turquoise and white Tempo, late 80's or early 90's vintage, 52-42 Biopace chainrings, 7 speed 12 - 23 cassette, downtube shifters, Shimano 105 drivetrain components, mixed bag of hubs (Joytech in the front, not sure about the rear), different rims front and rear. 700 x 25 Conti Gatorskins for the tires, no room for fenders, a road bike fer sure.

Two Rivendells (all lugged steel, always will be):

1- 62 cm Rivendell Quickbeam, orange. Flip flip rear hub, currently set up for fixed gear. 40-32 Sugino double crank (yes, it could be considered a four-speed!), Nitto Noodle bars and stem, Brooks Honey Champion saddle, Nitto rear rack, fancy Soma taillight. Sugino hubs, Mavic Open Sport rims with 700 x 35 Panaracer Pasela Speedblend tires.

1-62 cm Rivendell Rambouillet, blue with white headtube. Bought the frame used and built this one up with Shimano Ultegra hubs, Sun CR18 36 spoke rims shorn with 700 x 28 Schwalbe Marathons. Sugino 50 x 39 crank, Shimano 12 - 27 rear cassette. Dura Ace front and rear derailers (Sheldon sp.) Silver downtube shifters, Shimano sidepull brakes. Nitto bars and stem, Ultegra headset. No fenders. No computer. No rack. Honey Champion Brooks saddle. Ugly blue bar tape which did not match the bike so I shellacked it amber, so now it's kind of a funky greenish-blue. Works for now.

Two Somas (both tigged steel)

1 - Soma Double Cross, 62 cm. Used to have a Giant OCR road bike, and had all the components stripped from it and installed on this frame. Went a bit wacky and had a Chris King headset and Phil Wood bottom bracket installed. All the road bike pieces, including STI shifters, bars, brakes, wheels, crank, cassette, etc were installed on this frame. Then I installed a Tubus Cargo Rack, Big Ass German-Made Taillight, and Soma fenders. It's kind of a bastard. I need to press it into multi-geared commuter service, once I get a battery mount for my new headlight.

1-Soma Juice MTB, 29'er. Built this bike from the frame up, and built the wheels from scratch. WTB LazerDisc rims, Shimano XT hubs, DT Swiss double-butted spokes (32 per). SRAM x7 drivetrain, trigger shifters. FSA Hollowtech crank. WTB seat, Easton seatpost and hi-rise Easton Monkey Bars. Two sets of tires...I started out with Panaracer All-Terrain MTB and recently switched to some nice smooth Schwalbe Big Apples for the pavement. Boing! Boing!

And One Bakfietsen... (not steel, aluminum)
Actually, this is my old Diamondback 26" wheeled mountain bike. I bought a Wald Wire basket for my wife's bike and she said it rattled too much, so I stuck it on this wretched, tortured piece. I use it for trips to the store for milk, eggs, and barley pops. I have beaten this thing to death.

That brings the total to eight, which doesn't include my lovely wife's Giant Hybrid. This bike is only ridden when the temps are between 75 - 80 degrees, no wind, flat short route. Maybe once or twice a year, usually on the Wabash, usually to the Mineola Steakhouse and back.

Don't forget a Giant OCR frame (also aluminum) hanging in the garage. I consider that maybe 1/2 bike, at most.

-Dwight