OK, Velouria. I'm going to give you, and everyone else reading this, a quick "just out of the box" look at Miss Mercian II.
I didn't fully assemble it because I am going to change a few things. I plan to keep most of the components because they're all good, if not at the same level as the ones on my other Mercians.
The cranks, hubs and brakes are from Shimano's Deore DX line. When it was introduced in 1987, it was one step below Deore XT, making it Shimano's second-best mountain bike set. (I hate using the word "gruppo.") When the Deore XTR came out in 1991, it moved the DX to third in Shimano's mountain bike line. Then Shimano introduced the Deore LX line in 1994. It was priced somewhat lower than the DX but incorporated some of the more desirable features of the XT and XTR lines. Some time after introducing LX, Shimano discontinued DX.
So, I've gotten a first-rate frame with second- to- third-tier (but still perfectly good) components. That will work fine for me if I'm going to commute on this bike. I'll just ride the components until they wear out.
The head-to-downtube lug on this bike has a noticeably longer point and larger cutout window than the same lug on my other Mercians. There's nothing wrong with this; it's just a different kind of look. I think the lug on this bike works well with the color and the fact that the "top tube" is two parallel tubes.
Finding this bike was utterly serendipitous. I was looking for something else on eBay and, for fun, I decided to type "Mercian" in the search box. Mercians don't show up often on eBay and, when they do, they tend to command good prices. What made this bike even more of a find is that it's a mixte--only a small percentage of Mercian's productions is this model--and it was in a large size. And, if Mercian didn't offer the finish that's on my other bikes (Number 57, a.k.a. "flip-flop" purple to green) or lilac, I would have chosen "British racing green," which is the color of this bike.
I didn't assemble it completely because of the changes I plan to make. As an example, I didn't bother to put on the front fender, which was removed for shipping. Instead, I'm going to strip the Velo Orange "Zeppelin" fenders off Marianela. (The ones that came with the bike are plastic. I think they were painted, because the black seems to be coming off in spots on the side you see when the fender is installed. The underside is gray.) And, as I mentioned in a previous post, I'm taking Marianela's saddle for this bike.
Poor Marianela! I'm so mean, stripping her that way! You'd think I was a guy or something. ;=)
At least the handlebars, brake levers and chainring I'm putting on this bike are new.
Don't worry. No bikes are being harmed in this process.
This photo comes from Cycling Art Blog, which I discovered when looking for news about the Tour de France.
As far as most French fans are concerned, the next-best thing to a Frenchman winning the Tour (which hasn't happened since Bernard Hinault took his fifth and final Tour victory in 1985) is a French rider winning on Bastille Day.
That didn't happen today. Samuel Sanchez of Spain won this day's stage, which included a steep climb to the Luz-Ardiden ski station in the Pyrenees. However, a French cyclist, Thomas Voeckler, kept the yellow jersey, which is worn by the race leader. As he's not known as a climber, almost nobody expected him to do that. Even he didn't even expect to finish the day in first place overall.
I didn't ride up Luz-Ardiden. However, I did ride up Tourmalet and Aubisque, both of which have been part of the Tour's legend. Having done those, among other Pyreneean climbs, as well as a number of Alpine climbs in France, Switzerland and Italy, I think each mountain range is difficult in its own way.
The Alps are higher; I pedalled up several mountains that were over 2000 meters high. The sheer lack of oxygen at the highest levels makes those climbs difficult even for well-conditioned cyclists; dehydration is also a hazard.
One can encounter those same conditions in the Pyrenees. However, even though they aren't as high as the Alps, some of the climbs are every bit as challenging because, I think, they're even steeper than some of the Alpine climbs. One reason for that is that the roads in the Alps are more modern: Because the Alps are smack in the middle of Europe, they are more heavily traveled than the Pyrenees. That is probably the reason why there, one finds more modern roads, which tend to have climbs that are more gradual and evenly graded, even if they longer, than the older roads of the Pyrenees.
Some Tour riders concur with my observations. See that: The great minds think alike! ;-) And we all love the grand tradition of a ride on Bastille Day.
Miss Mercian II arrived today. I haven't had a chance to unpack her, as I've just gotten home from work. And I'm not about to start assembling a bike while I'm in the skirt and blouse I'm wearing!
But, as you can imagine, I'm looking forward to it. I opened the flap of the box and pulled away enough of the bubble wrap to see how elegant the frame is with its dark green paint and gold pinstriping and lettering. I really think the brown grips, leather saddle and mudflap will complement it nicely.
Poor Marianela is giving up those parts. Is a lady who sacrifices for another lady even more noble than the man who does the same?
What kind of a rhetorical question did I just ask? Hey, this is a bike blog! I never promised not to be self-indulgent.
The amazing thing is that Pete just dispatched the bike yesterday--in England. In Suffolk, as a matter of fact. Things take longer to get from Suffolk County, Long Island to my place than it took for the bike to come to me. There is an ocean between me and Pete; there is only Nassau County between the New York City borough of Queens, where I live, and Suffolk County. Then again, a plane or ship making the trip from Albion to America is less likely to get stuck in traffic than a truck on the Long Island Expressway (a.k.a. The World's Longest Parking Lot).
In our exchanges of e-mails, Pete told me about the Diss Cycling Club, which is based in his area. Its president owns the local shop, which has the earliest recorded Mercian sale. In the shop, he also has a photo of himself sharing the podium with Beryl Burton, whom I mentioned in a previous post.
I intend to read more about the club, and about British cycling clubs generally, as they seem to have an interesting history and culture.
And now I'm up to my fourth Mercian. That, in itself, is going to be interesting when I write my post(s) about all the bicycles I have owned--or all the ones I can remember, anyway!
