[CR]egoboo (was: sssspeedster's Masi; what to put on a Masi, etc.)

(Example: Events:Cirque du Cyclisme:2004)

Date: Mon, 12 Dec 2005 18:38:13 -0500 (EST)
From: <chasds@mindspring.com>
To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
Subject: [CR]egoboo (was: sssspeedster's Masi; what to put on a Masi, etc.)

I wrote, in part:

"......The point though, is that the pantographed stem/stamped-bar combo is super-cool, and far more interesting to see than the usual Cinelli bars-and-stem. For those of us who get pleasure from that particular coolness-factor, the Cinelli stuff is boring; the 3ttt stuff is interesting......".

another Charles (Nighbor, to be exact) then wrote, in part:

I disagree with that partial quote. As an artist and Architect I find most bicycle components that are pantographed ugly and super cool. I am of the School of thought that less is more. Looking a non pantographed Cinelli stem I find the very clean lines marred and ugly when intruded on with pantographing. Then to add color further adds to the undesirability of it from a, "less is more view point".

********

This is simply two opinions, neither necessarily more valid than the other, or, rather, both are equally valid, if you like (the trump-card of "as an artist and architect" notwithstanding...), falling under the heading of "whatever floats your boat."

Some people like Velazquez. Some people like Rothko. Some people like Bauhaus. Some people like Victorian. Who's to say who's "right?" Although, oddly, for someone who likes panto'd stuff, I'd go for for Bauhaus and Rothko, myself.

If I remember Dave Patrick's original post correctly, the implication was that somehow fragile minds on our list might be irredeemably ruined by the notion that there was only "one, true" part for any purpose on a Carlsbad Masi. If I have misinterpreted the post, my apologies. That's what I came away with.

Last I checked, no-one has been e-mailing me or Bob Hovey to ask if they could put a Cinelli stem and bars on their Masi. In particular, one seems to care what I think about it, which is about what I'd expect.

Leaving the realm of opinion, and entering the realm of observable fact, I can say that totally original Masis (including the Masi-stamped bars, and the panto'd bits) that show up to the various vintage rides I've been on, get far more oogling and comment than Masis that have been restored, or Masis that have the more conventional parts on them.

If egoboo matters--and to whom does it not?--totally original Masis with panto'd bits (as from the factory), provide the most egoboo.

If egoboo is unimportant, here's another observable fact. Totally original Masis reliably fetch the highest prices on ebay. If they have rare panto'd factory bits, they generally fetch even more (that damned panto'd chainring goes for a fortune all by itself). Such bikes become a benchmark for evaluating other Masis that are not as pristine, or as original.

All else is mere opinion. Like the ones in this post, worth exactly what you paid for them.

Finally, I'll admit that if someone showed up on a ride with a Masi Special (Simpson rode the older Special-style frame, did he not?) restored to look like a Peugeot, with all french stuff on it (like Simpson's bike--did his "Peumasi" have french parts? I forget now), it'd probably provide a LOT of egoboo. Such a thing plays with history, and that's nearly always entertaining.

Charles "you'll have to pry my almost-totally-original Molteni-orange Colnago Pantografata out of my cold, dead hands." Andrews SoCal

(In the course of all this, I was informed by a correspondent that "many" on the list feel that I think I'm always right. I was genuinely sorry to hear that. I'm not right or wrong. Just opinionated. Like a couple others around here.. <g> )