This weekend, I was fortunate enough to be able to re-read the Bicycling magazine issue from July of 1982 ( at least the cover article). I used to swoon over the gorgeous prose relating to the bikes of my prime. In 1981 and 82 I remember the poetic appreciation of the frame detailing and artistic embellishments that were common among all the superbikes of that time. The Bicycling writers were all lug heads then, and knew that what they were looking at was art, simply great art. The labors of the men that built those bikes were not lost on those that wrote about them. Every pantograph and cable routing was considered for it's beauty as well as its functionality. It seems that the 80's were the swan song of the bikes that were worth loving, and the people who could find an arena in which to proclaim their love.
In that issue of July 1982 (Japan vs. Italy), the author concludes by saying that these $1,500 super bikes were all fine statements, but that the author could favorably compare his $400 bike to them in terms of function. The ride or handling might be only a small shade less, but the real difference would come down to beauty according to both the writer and Gary Fisher. That kind of honesty could never be expressed in today's Bicycling mag. One reason would be that $3,000 bikes are just as hideous as $1,000 bikes nowadays. The other reason would be that the editorial staff must be prohibited from stating that a racer could win with Tiagra. The message is that only Dura Ace or Ultegra will carry you over the finish line for a win. This obvious bull****, is believed by most all of the racers I speak to. The brainwashing that Rodale press is prone to has succeeded, and all the pod people are out among the racing public. In the absence of any real bicycle beauty, the only value that remains is imagined speed. Rodale press (Road-dull) has become a business whore, selling the first amendment wholesale to welded well-to-do manufacturers.
I feel sorry for those of us on the list who must continue to sell Cadd 4 as if it is the product of an enlightened factory. The only saving grace is that a bicycle, any bicycle, is just as good a thing that anyone can posses (lugged or coke canned).
Your opinionated lad in Surfside Florida, Garth Libre