Boonen's Bike

"Geraard Spergen" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

http://www.procycling.com/news.aspx?ID=2002
"Boonen will start Sunday’s Tour of Flanders with a bike that Time
director Alain Decroix estimates would cost about 20,000 euros to buy. "

OK, that's got to be some kind of a record.

And a rear wheel with 36 spokes. Lovely!

B. Lafferty said:

"Geraard Spergen" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

http://www.procycling.com/news.aspx?ID=2002
"Boonen will start Sunday's Tour of Flanders with a bike that Time
director Alain Decroix estimates would cost about 20,000 euros to buy. "

OK, that's got to be some kind of a record.

And a rear wheel with 36 spokes. Lovely!

Sounds like an intelligent plan to me. Especially when getting another
bike, or support may be difficult. You've got to be there in the end to
win. Not sure they need to spend 20,000Euros to get that though.
Bill C

"Geraard Spergen" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

http://www.procycling.com/news.aspx?ID=2002
"Boonen will start Sunday’s Tour of Flanders with a bike that Time
director Alain Decroix estimates would cost about 20,000 euros to buy. "

OK, that's got to be some kind of a record.

Only 20.000? Peanuts. In 2004 Armstrong tried a TT-bike which had costed $
250.000. He wasn't satisfied, so it was thrown on the scrapheap.

Benjo

On 3/31/06 4:35 PM, in article
[email hidden], "Bill C"

Quoted message said:

B. Lafferty said:

"Geraard Spergen" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

http://www.procycling.com/news.aspx?ID=2002
"Boonen will start Sunday's Tour of Flanders with a bike that Time
director Alain Decroix estimates would cost about 20,000 euros to buy. "

OK, that's got to be some kind of a record.

And a rear wheel with 36 spokes. Lovely!

Sounds like an intelligent plan to me. Especially when getting another
bike, or support may be difficult. You've got to be there in the end to
win. Not sure they need to spend 20,000Euros to get that though.
Bill C

It costs that much because it is a "one-off" machine I do see it mentioned
they actually made 3. If it was mass produced, like most other high end
bikes, it would probably be 7k

ST said:

On 3/31/06 4:35 PM, in article
[email hidden], "Bill C"

Quoted message said:

B. Lafferty said:

"Geraard Spergen" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...
> http://www.procycling.com/news.aspx?ID=2002
> "Boonen will start Sunday's Tour of Flanders with a bike that Time
> director Alain Decroix estimates would cost about 20,000 euros to buy. "
>
> OK, that's got to be some kind of a record.

And a rear wheel with 36 spokes. Lovely!

Sounds like an intelligent plan to me. Especially when getting another
bike, or support may be difficult. You've got to be there in the end to
win. Not sure they need to spend 20,000Euros to get that though.
Bill C

It costs that much because it is a "one-off" machine I do see it mentioned
they actually made 3. If it was mass produced, like most other high end
bikes, it would probably be 7k

I'm sure that Richie Sachs could give him very comparable ride,
reliability, and strength characteristics, at close to the same weight,
even though they say weight isn't a factor. I'm also pretty sure that
he'd be really happy to build 3 bikes at that price per. It's a stunt
to promote both Boonen's power and their skill, it's not about the
bike, it's about creating an image.
Bill C

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

"Boonen will start Sunday's Tour of Flanders with a bike that Time
director Alain Decroix estimates would cost about 20,000 euros to buy. "

OK, that's got to be some kind of a record.

Only 20.000? Peanuts. In 2004 Armstrong tried a TT-bike which had costed $
250.000. He wasn't satisfied, so it was thrown on the scrapheap.

Benjo

Lance scrapped a whole lot more than just that bike. Oh the stories...

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA
"benjo maso" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Geraard Spergen" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

http://www.procycling.com/news.aspx?ID=2002
"Boonen will start Sunday's Tour of Flanders with a bike that Time
director Alain Decroix estimates would cost about 20,000 euros to buy. "

OK, that's got to be some kind of a record.

Only 20.000? Peanuts. In 2004 Armstrong tried a TT-bike which had costed $
250.000. He wasn't satisfied, so it was thrown on the scrapheap.

Benjo

Mike Jacoubowsky said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

"Boonen will start Sunday's Tour of Flanders with a bike that Time
director Alain Decroix estimates would cost about 20,000 euros to buy. "

OK, that's got to be some kind of a record.

Only 20.000? Peanuts. In 2004 Armstrong tried a TT-bike which had costed $
250.000. He wasn't satisfied, so it was thrown on the scrapheap.

Benjo

Lance scrapped a whole lot more than just that bike. Oh the stories...

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA
"benjo maso" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Geraard Spergen" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

http://www.procycling.com/news.aspx?ID=2002
"Boonen will start Sunday's Tour of Flanders with a bike that Time
director Alain Decroix estimates would cost about 20,000 euros to buy. "

OK, that's got to be some kind of a record.

Only 20.000? Peanuts. In 2004 Armstrong tried a TT-bike which had costed $
250.000. He wasn't satisfied, so it was thrown on the scrapheap.

Benjo

Hey Mike
Thanks for the compliment in the other thread, and with Lance being
such a type A tech geek who was "The Boss" I can just imagine what he
put everyone through on that subject. Hopefully we get some of the
stories some day.
Bill

In article <[email hidden]>,

Bill C said:

I'm sure that Richie Sachs could give him very comparable ride...

Hey moron, he doesn't have a year to wait for an overrated pos...

In article <[email hidden]>,

Mike Jacoubowsky said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

"benjo maso" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...
"Boonen will start Sunday's Tour of Flanders with a bike that Time
director Alain Decroix estimates would cost about 20,000 euros to buy. "

OK, that's got to be some kind of a record.

Only 20.000? Peanuts. In 2004 Armstrong tried a TT-bike which had costed $
250.000. He wasn't satisfied, so it was thrown on the scrapheap.

Benjo

Lance scrapped a whole lot more than just that bike. Oh the stories...

If I've got the chronology right, is that the notorious "narrow bike"
chronicled in Coyle's "Lance Armstrong's War"?

That was one of the best cycling books I read last year, eclipsed only
by Krabbe's "The Rider"

Oh, and I haven't read "Sweat of the Gods" yet.

--
Ryan Cousineau [email hidden] http://www.wiredcola.com/
"I don't want kids who are thinking about going into mathematics
to think that they have to take drugs to succeed." -Paul Erdos

B. Lafferty said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

OK, that's got to be some kind of a record.

And a rear wheel with 36 spokes. Lovely!

Prolly all tied and soldered too like we used to do

--
Using Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/mail/

In article
<[email hidden]>,

Bill C said:

ST said:

On 3/31/06 4:35 PM, in article
[email hidden], "Bill C"

Quoted message said:

B. Lafferty wrote:
> "Geraard Spergen" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
> news:[email hidden]...
>> http://www.procycling.com/news.aspx?ID=2002
>> "Boonen will start Sunday's Tour of Flanders with a bike that Time
>> director Alain Decroix estimates would cost about 20,000 euros to buy. "
>>
>> OK, that's got to be some kind of a record.
>
> And a rear wheel with 36 spokes. Lovely!

Sounds like an intelligent plan to me. Especially when getting another
bike, or support may be difficult. You've got to be there in the end to
win. Not sure they need to spend 20,000Euros to get that though.
Bill C

It costs that much because it is a "one-off" machine I do see it mentioned
they actually made 3. If it was mass produced, like most other high end
bikes, it would probably be 7k

I'm sure that Richie Sachs could give him very comparable ride,
reliability, and strength characteristics, at close to the same weight,
even though they say weight isn't a factor. I'm also pretty sure that
he'd be really happy to build 3 bikes at that price per. It's a stunt
to promote both Boonen's power and their skill, it's not about the
bike, it's about creating an image.

The [censored].

and then

The [censored] that will kill them.

--
Michael Press

"Ryan Cousineau" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Mike Jacoubowsky said:

Quoted message said:

>"benjo maso" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
> news:[email hidden]...
> "Boonen will start Sunday's Tour of Flanders with a bike that Time
> director Alain Decroix estimates would cost about 20,000 euros to buy.
> "
>
> OK, that's got to be some kind of a record.

Only 20.000? Peanuts. In 2004 Armstrong tried a TT-bike which had
costed $
250.000. He wasn't satisfied, so it was thrown on the scrapheap.

Benjo

Lance scrapped a whole lot more than just that bike. Oh the stories...

If I've got the chronology right, is that the notorious "narrow bike"
chronicled in Coyle's "Lance Armstrong's War"?

Indeed!

Quoted message said:

That was one of the best cycling books I read last year, eclipsed only
by Krabbe's "The Rider"

IMO two of the best cycling books ever written.

Quoted message said:

Oh, and I haven't read "Sweat of the Gods" yet.

I forgive you!

Benjo

crit pro said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Bill C said:

I'm sure that Richie Sachs could give him very comparable ride...

Hey moron, he doesn't have a year to wait for an overrated pos...

Once again you display your complete ignorance, what a surprise. From
a practical, financial, and liability standpoint, almost anytime an
engineer, or company has to solve a problem quickly they are going to
go with something as close to off the shelf, proven, and reliable as
possible before going with a prototype solution that has had limited
testing as currently configured. Glaring product failure, think
Firestone here, injuries, lawsuits, performance bonds, etc... tend to
make engineers pretty conservative when they can't test the hell out of
something first. That said, like I pointed out earlier, this is about
testing a new product, highlighting their flexibility and technology,
creating hype, pumping up Boonen's image, not that he needs it, and
last of all taking a risk to possibly give him a tool that will leave
him less beat up and fatigued for the finish and that will be able to
work the way he likes.
In a risk averse world, which this is, if it was only about meeting
those design conditions, then there are simpler, more proven ways of
doing it, but those wouldn't be sexy.
You at least won a training crit yet this season?
Bill C

"Davey Crockett" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:op.s7bbws0bpk7k3t@darkstar...

Quoted message said:

B. Lafferty said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

OK, that's got to be some kind of a record.

And a rear wheel with 36 spokes. Lovely!

Prolly all tied and soldered too like we used to do

And what a pain in the [censored] that was to do.

Quoted message said:

Hey Mike
Thanks for the compliment in the other thread, and with Lance being
such a type A tech geek who was "The Boss" I can just imagine what he
put everyone through on that subject. Hopefully we get some of the
stories some day.
Bill

Bill: The "narrow" bike was one thing, but beyond that, there was so much
work done in wind tunnels to make Lance more aerodynamic.. hours and hours
at great expense, examining air flows and such... and they did in fact come
up with a number of ways that Lance could be more aerodynamic. But aside
from the new fabric used in his apparel, he tossed just about everything
else aside. The primary beneficiary became Ekimov, who had no issue making
use of various Lance cast-offs, from what I hear.

It could be absolutely prove, beyond a doubt, that a given position on the
bike, a different way of carrying the radio, would gain "x" seconds in a
time trial. But if Lance decided there was something about it he didn't
like, all that work was tossed. But in the end, you couldn't argue with
success. Perhaps Lance needed to have those alternatives pointed out, so
that he had a mental target of what he had to do, and then go out and do it
his own way. To the extent that such endeavors are won & lost in the mind,
that may be quite relevant.

It's also possible that all the effort, all the time & money spent, was a
signal to other teams, other riders, that THIS is what you're up against.
It's not just Lance, but an army of people behind him, doing everything
possible to make sure he wins.

As for that compliment, don't worry, I won't let it happen again! No, just
kidding, it's nice to hear from people who know there's a life outside the
big city. I spent quite a bit of time on my grandparent's farm growing up,
and my grandfather's work ethic always impressed me, and some of it even
rubbed off. I learned about how work and pickup trucks and calloused hands
and the idea that hard physical work wasn't a bad thing. Of course, he could
never figure out how I became a long-haired "hippie" bike geek in the
early-70s! But I'll bet the first ideas I had of "no pain, no gain" probably
came from him. It had an effect on my work (I was never without a job, from
age 12 on) and cycling. But one thing I never was, and never will be... a
"morning" person. Never understood the idea that watching the sun come up
could be a good thing.

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA

"Bill C" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Mike Jacoubowsky said:

Quoted message said:

> "Boonen will start Sunday's Tour of Flanders with a bike that Time
> director Alain Decroix estimates would cost about 20,000 euros to buy.
> "
>
> OK, that's got to be some kind of a record.

Only 20.000? Peanuts. In 2004 Armstrong tried a TT-bike which had
costed $
250.000. He wasn't satisfied, so it was thrown on the scrapheap.

Benjo

Lance scrapped a whole lot more than just that bike. Oh the stories...

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA
"benjo maso" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Geraard Spergen" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...
> http://www.procycling.com/news.aspx?ID=2002
> "Boonen will start Sunday's Tour of Flanders with a bike that Time
> director Alain Decroix estimates would cost about 20,000 euros to buy.
> "
>
> OK, that's got to be some kind of a record.

Only 20.000? Peanuts. In 2004 Armstrong tried a TT-bike which had
costed $
250.000. He wasn't satisfied, so it was thrown on the scrapheap.

Benjo

Hey Mike
Thanks for the compliment in the other thread, and with Lance being
such a type A tech geek who was "The Boss" I can just imagine what he
put everyone through on that subject. Hopefully we get some of the
stories some day.
Bill

Mike Jacoubowsky said:

Bill: The "narrow" bike was one thing, but beyond that, there was so much
work done in wind tunnels to make Lance more aerodynamic.. hours and hours
at great expense, examining air flows and such... and they did in fact come
up with a number of ways that Lance could be more aerodynamic.

Like removal of another testicle perhaps.

Mike Jacoubowsky said:

Quoted message said:

Hey Mike
Thanks for the compliment in the other thread, and with Lance being
such a type A tech geek who was "The Boss" I can just imagine what he
put everyone through on that subject. Hopefully we get some of the
stories some day.
Bill

Bill: The "narrow" bike was one thing, but beyond that, there was so much
work done in wind tunnels to make Lance more aerodynamic.. hours and hours
at great expense, examining air flows and such... and they did in fact come
up with a number of ways that Lance could be more aerodynamic. But aside
from the new fabric used in his apparel, he tossed just about everything
else aside. The primary beneficiary became Ekimov, who had no issue making
use of various Lance cast-offs, from what I hear.

It could be absolutely prove, beyond a doubt, that a given position on the
bike, a different way of carrying the radio, would gain "x" seconds in a
time trial. But if Lance decided there was something about it he didn't
like, all that work was tossed. But in the end, you couldn't argue with
success. Perhaps Lance needed to have those alternatives pointed out, so
that he had a mental target of what he had to do, and then go out and do it
his own way. To the extent that such endeavors are won & lost in the mind,
that may be quite relevant.

It's also possible that all the effort, all the time & money spent, was a
signal to other teams, other riders, that THIS is what you're up against.
It's not just Lance, but an army of people behind him, doing everything
possible to make sure he wins.

As for that compliment, don't worry, I won't let it happen again! No, just
kidding, it's nice to hear from people who know there's a life outside the
big city. I spent quite a bit of time on my grandparent's farm growing up,
and my grandfather's work ethic always impressed me, and some of it even
rubbed off. I learned about how work and pickup trucks and calloused hands
and the idea that hard physical work wasn't a bad thing. Of course, he could
never figure out how I became a long-haired "hippie" bike geek in the
early-70s! But I'll bet the first ideas I had of "no pain, no gain" probably
came from him. It had an effect on my work (I was never without a job, from
age 12 on) and cycling. But one thing I never was, and never will be... a
"morning" person. Never understood the idea that watching the sun come up
could be a good thing.

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA

"Bill C" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Mike Jacoubowsky said:

>> "Boonen will start Sunday's Tour of Flanders with a bike that Time
>> director Alain Decroix estimates would cost about 20,000 euros to buy.
>> "
>>
>> OK, that's got to be some kind of a record.
>
> Only 20.000? Peanuts. In 2004 Armstrong tried a TT-bike which had
> costed $
> 250.000. He wasn't satisfied, so it was thrown on the scrapheap.
>
> Benjo

Lance scrapped a whole lot more than just that bike. Oh the stories...

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA
"benjo maso" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...
>
> "Geraard Spergen" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
> news:[email hidden]...
>> http://www.procycling.com/news.aspx?ID=2002
>> "Boonen will start Sunday's Tour of Flanders with a bike that Time
>> director Alain Decroix estimates would cost about 20,000 euros to buy.
>> "
>>
>> OK, that's got to be some kind of a record.
>
> Only 20.000? Peanuts. In 2004 Armstrong tried a TT-bike which had
> costed $
> 250.000. He wasn't satisfied, so it was thrown on the scrapheap.
>
> Benjo
>

Hey Mike
Thanks for the compliment in the other thread, and with Lance being
such a type A tech geek who was "The Boss" I can just imagine what he
put everyone through on that subject. Hopefully we get some of the
stories some day.
Bill

Cool Story. One of my favorite people on the planet was "Old John"
Kennedy. I have no idea how old he was when I was a teenager, I'd guess
70. His family may have met the Mayflower, and he was "the" yankee, but
he was also a trip. At that point he really wasn't farming anymore, was
still living in the big family colonial which hadn't been updated since
about 1920. He was once probably about 6'0" but age and hard work had
bent him. What he had done was come to peace with the planet. Picture
Jesus in overalls with a snow white beard and long hair. He was still
cruising the farms in the area at about 20 miles an hour in his pickup,
sipping from his hip flask all day long. Flirting with the women, who
loved him, and giving all the rest of us good natured [censored].
We took care of his jackass at our place after he really couldn't,
because he wanted something around more stubborn than him so he had a
goal to work towards. He taught me to handle, and care for, a team of
oxen. Could tell stories for months on end and was as cantankerous as
it gets.
His old place finally fell in a few years ago while the family was
fighting each other over it, and now the land is up for sale. I'd love
to be able to buy it, but it's as prime as you'd ever find here in New
England. It starts on a ridge top along the old stage road where the
house was, looks out all the way across the Connecticut river vally and
goes down the hill for about a mile to the mill river which forms it's
eastern boundary. I don't even have the heart to find out how much for
the 65 acres that they are currently selling.
I love the memories, but every time I get too carried away I remember
all the hours of back breaking work too.
Sounds like you and I turned out a lot alike in that I've never had
any trouble being employed, and have an incredibly wide skill set, but
can't claim to be a master of any of them. Working hard on the
furniture/cabinetmaking/finish carpentry, but we do a lot of different
stuff. Keeps like interesting.
The world, and kids, need a lot more colorful old men who can spin
good stories, and know where the bodies are buried, but they seem to be
a dying breed. That's why I really enjoy having Davey around here.
Someday I hope to get into the business myself.
Bill C

Bill C said:

Cool Story. One of my favorite people on the planet was "Old John"
Kennedy. I have no idea how old he was when I was a teenager, I'd guess
70. His family may have met the Mayflower, and he was "the" yankee, but
he was also a trip. At that point he really wasn't farming anymore, was
still living in the big family colonial which hadn't been updated since
about 1920. He was once probably about 6'0" but age and hard work had
bent him. What he had done was come to peace with the planet. Picture
Jesus in overalls with a snow white beard and long hair. He was still
cruising the farms in the area at about 20 miles an hour in his pickup,
sipping from his hip flask all day long. Flirting with the women, who
loved him, and giving all the rest of us good natured [censored].

dumbasses,

thanks for your applications, but maynard hershon is already the rick
reilly of cycling.

Quoted message said:

thanks for your applications, but maynard hershon is already the rick
reilly of cycling.

And Sundown Slim before him. You want colorful stories, find an old (as any
will be, since it stopped publishing almost 30 years ago) issue of
Competitive Cycling. Pretty sure Maynard had articles there too. Of course,
so did I, including a write-up of some young punk that I thought might go
places, some Greg something-or-other.

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Bill C said:

Cool Story. One of my favorite people on the planet was "Old John"
Kennedy. I have no idea how old he was when I was a teenager, I'd guess
70. His family may have met the Mayflower, and he was "the" yankee, but
he was also a trip. At that point he really wasn't farming anymore, was
still living in the big family colonial which hadn't been updated since
about 1920. He was once probably about 6'0" but age and hard work had
bent him. What he had done was come to peace with the planet. Picture
Jesus in overalls with a snow white beard and long hair. He was still
cruising the farms in the area at about 20 miles an hour in his pickup,
sipping from his hip flask all day long. Flirting with the women, who
loved him, and giving all the rest of us good natured [censored].

dumbasses,

thanks for your applications, but maynard hershon is already the rick
reilly of cycling.