My New Italian Beauty
 

My second ever road bike. Sweet! :) The lousy cameraphone doesn't do it justice!

http://www.usfamily.net/web/kuanheidi/bianchi.JPG

Love it when I see another road biker!

I see they still have retained the Celeste green! I started my road biking back in 1971 with an Italian frame, it was a "Fiorelli" I worked in Bicycle shop, my first job, I'm 50 now, and have followed bikes ever since.

Today, I ride a Canondale, an earlier design, 1995, frame with 2nd to best shimano components.

I also own a 1977 Raleigh PROFESSIONAL, which is furnished with all the best CAMPI stuff.

The big difference with my old Fiorelli is not having to fix flats, such as was with the best tires of that time which were what was known as "SEW-UPs"

Nice! :cool:

Beauty!! Nice to see you also chose the traditional Bianchi color!

I had the opportunity to buy a nice Bianchi about eight years ago at a yard sale. All Columbus SL tubing and Campagnolo Super-Record Gruppo. The guy wanted $75, but I wasn't making much money those days and couldn't justify the purchase since I already have a nice italian road-racing bike. If it were today, I'd buy it in a heartbeat!

BusyBenz: I used to have a Raleigh Grand Sports when I was a teenager. That's the bike I road which made me fall in love with the sport. Also road it on two tours: one from New York City up the coast to Provinctowne RI, then from Hartford CT to Montreal the next year (though my friend's dad ended the trip early....) I was 17 and 18 and could ride over 100 miles a day and not blink and I. Oh to be that young again..... :)

Damn, if I could only get my digital pics onto the computer I could show you guys my italian beauty too.

Schweet bike. Is that Ultegra on it? Can't tell on the phone-photo.

Tubulars, now that's dating yourself. I was a hold out, rode sew-ups until about 1995. Wife used to laugh at me patching flats in front of the TV, with my needle and thread. Finally got tired of glueing tires onto rims. Maybe I sniffed too much glue.

I bought one of the first titanium bikes in town, in the spring of 1989. A Spectrum Ti, full Campy Chorus. Had it built up with feathery light Mavic GL330 rims, and rode Vittoria Corsa Cx/Cg tire combo. That was a spectacular ride - incredibly smooth and comfortable, climbed well, and yet it was great for out of the saddle sprints. Stil have it - albeit shod with clinchers - but it's not my primary road bike anymore.

- JimY

looks great! I'm currently thinking of returning to road biking after some fun in the woods in the past several years. The move to cape cod should help move this along too.
make sure to spend lots of time getting the fit right. new or not, it can still sink your ship in a hurry if your'e riding out of whack...
hmm, might have to dig out my old campagnolo bike hat in your honor...

k

Thanks guys. Yep it's all Ultegra but it's actually an older model Bianchi Alloro and I got an awesome $800 discount on it. I couldn't resist, Italian machines are just drop dead beautiful. I really fell in love with this frame when I saw it. It's old Ultegra so only 9 speeds but hey, it's not a break the bank $4,000 bike and despite my saying it's my second bike, it's really my first good road bike. I used to have a Raleigh Technium with Suntour with Avenir softside panniers for commuting to and from school so that gives you an idea of what an upgrade this is. Now if only my Crank Brothers Quattro pedals will get here with my Sette Carbon shoes! ;)

Stefano, why can't you get your pics on the computer? You can buy a multicard reader at CompUSA or something, shouldn't cost much. Now you've got me wanting to see!

It's been like that since I upgraded from ME to XP. I tried to download an upgrade from their site with no luck. Still figuring it out 'cause I'm a computer idiot! I'll get it eventually.

Now I really feel dated. Still using sew-ups on my bike. But I'm afraid to go screeming down a hill and around a curvve right now unless I get them re-glued. Imagine them peeling off at high speed? :eek:

I'll be making the switch back to clinchers just to ease the anxiety!

Clinchers have gotten so much better in the last 10 years, there just isn't any point in riding tubulars now.

I've done tours in the mountains where I had to reglue the tubulars at the end of every days ride. The rims would heat up from braking on the fast downhills, the glue gets soft, and then the tire would rotate on the rim the next climb. Never had a flat, but the valve stem would always be cocked sideways at the end of the day. Got rid of 'em after that trip.

- JimY

The last bike I bought was back in 1998, was my first mountian bike but have ended up riding on the road and to the beach, etc. I haven't ridden my road bikes in over 5 years!

I'll try to post pictures too but will have to try and reduce the 122KB to 65KB

That is a gorgeous frame, I've always loved good italian bikes. But jeeze why Shimano? Should have gone Campagnolo :P Sorry, just a knee-jerk purist. :D

I know, that's what it came with. Maybe that's why it was $800 off! ;)