š±š±š± I must outfit Charlie at once! Forthwith! Posthaste!
Sent from my iPhone ļ»æFor Leah, with her aurora borealis themed paint scheme. https://dismountbikeshop.com/collections/luminary-collection
This is one of my lbs, where I bought my Salsa Fargo. Great shop and people.
On Sunday, February 8, 2026 at 1:38:50āÆPM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:
I feel like weāre all early adopters and the rest of the world will catch on soon. Just like Platys. Charlie SO FUN. Sent from my iPhone ļ»æ
Hi all, thought I'd share another new Charlie. This is my 57, which arrived last month and I've been thoroughly enjoying on the damp streets of North Seattle. This is a Rivendell build, the Albatross package, with tires swapped for the excellent Continental Grand Prix Urban 35s. (The Contact Urban 42s it arrived with felt great, but also like a bit more tire than I needed.)
This is my first Rivendell and first swept-back bar experience, and it's taken some experimentation to find a comfortable setup. I'm still adjusting (note the painter's tape where twine should be, while I get clear on stem length), but it's very close. For me, the bike really started to feel good when I tried the stem down low. This allowed me to get some weight forward, and made a huge difference in terms of feeling connected to the front end of the bike.
I've seen people ask if the Charlie feels fast. I'd call it swift. It carries moment beautifully, glides on the road, and steers so well that you want to ride it fast. It's terrific.
<IMG_9552.jpeg> Congrats on the new bike, Jim. It looks great and encourages me as I'm getting practically the same bike this week in a dark gold 61cm frame with most of the same components as yours. There's no snow here in Austin, but when it's in the 20's, the streets are pretty empty as we're unaccustomed to these temps!
Enjoy your new CG and hope you can get out and ride it soon.
Hi friends - today was NBD! I was finally able to go get Charlie and bring him home. Not sure if Mack's Bike & Goods is on this group, but they're one of the very limited Rivendell dealers out there, and they're amazing. Big ups to the crew there, especially Zack who guided this whole transaction.
Build list:
53cm CHG frame. Nitto Albatross handlebars Nitto Tallux stem Oury grips Promax XL-92 brake levers Microshift 9 speed thumbie shifters (in friction mode!) Tektro R559 long reach calipers Nitto S65 seat post Brooks B17 saddle Microsoft stubby 'skeleton key' front derailer. Soma/New Albion 42/26 double crankset MKS Lambda pedals Shimano Altus rear detailer Mavic A319 Wheelset Soma Shikoro 38mm tires
I've only got few rides around the LBS neighborhood in, since it's cold and snowy, but hoping to get it out tomorrow on something longer. The build itself is great and I've loved the position and comfort of riding it; so much different than your typical drop bars. Can't wait to ride more! ![IMG_0584.jpeg]() Re: Jay Adams
Thanks, Jay and sounds like we're almost in the exact same boat! Your summary of having both the Clem and CG matches my situation as well, being that I ride mostly pavement. Nice to have comfortable options.
- Bill
On Sat, Jan 24, 2026 at 11:36āÆAM 'Jay Adams' via RBW Owners Bunch < [email protected]> wrote: Regarding Bill Shaw's question, my experience is somewhat similar. I purchased a Clem complete last spring after test riding one at Rivendell's shop. After not riding a bike much for years, partly due to the hilly terrain of San Francisco, I became intrigued by Rivendell after reading a story in The New Yorker magazine. My test ride on the Clem was wonderful - the bike felt like butter. So comfortable, especially compared to the 1980s mountain bikes in our garage. So I bought a Clem, mostly because it was the cheapest model. I needed to find out how sustainable this new bicycle interest would be.
Riding the Clem around the city and on the local bicycle trails has been a revelatory experience. But since I'm nearly always on paved surfaces, the Charlie Gallop seemed like an interesting bike to try. I test rode one at Rivendell prior to the pre-sale order date. Again, I fell in love with the riding experience of the Gallop. Will was kind enough to sell me the shop demo bike since I really liked the way it was set up with the Wavie bars.
Now that I have two Rivendells, I ride the Gallop most of the time. But it's still nice to have the Clem, because it's fitted with a basket. I use the Clem for grocery store runs and other errands. And my wife uses it when we go together on bike ride.
I highly recommend the Charlie Gallop, and feel that it would be a perfect complement to a Platypus.
Jay
On Saturday, January 24, 2026 at 8:44:40āÆAM UTC-8 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:
Jim: All of it.
š¤£
Ok, in all honesty the periwinkle is superfluous. I could get along without it but I donāt want to.
Raspberry: camping. Can be used for shopping. Is still my club rider when Charlie is in the shop.
Purple: Itās a 50cm; the others are 55s. The 50 offers a shorter wheelbase so itās easier to shove in my Telluride or to take on Amtrak or a bus rack, if I ever did that in a city Iām visiting. Itās got the fattest tires -48s- so that is what Iāve taken on the dirt road rides Iāve done in Michigan, and Iāve done several now, and just signed up for another one last week. Iāve been really glad for those tires!
Periwinkle: Iāll let people ride that here if they come to my house without a bike. Can also be used for shopping.
I highly recommend a pair of Platys! But youāll all be waiting awhile because Riv wonāt have any until August of ā26. L ļ»æWhat does one do with multiple platypuses?
On Friday, January 23, 2026 at 5:25:55āÆPM UTC-6 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:
Well, Bill, I have 3 Platys and one Gallop and I NEED all of them. Charlie feels easier and faster but the Platys arenāt slow. I have them for different purposes. The Platys are my favorite because I love the low tubes and they are just very comfortable. Charlie isnāt UNcomfortable; but he just is really a road bike. I love him.
ļ»æ
Perfect timing on this thread as I was also having thoughts of getting a Gallop for myself w/out a test ride and sight unseen. After alot of research, I did a "leap of faith" this past October and purchased a 60cm Platypus and it ended up exceeding my expectations as far as comfort and enjoyment are concerned. My greedy nature now has me eying a Gallop in hopes of having two amazingly comfortable and enjoyable bikes in my garage. I was hoping to get anyone's thoughts or input on whether or not having a Platy and Gallop would be more or less having the same bike and if getting a Gallop would be a redundant purchase. Appreciate any feedback if available.
Thanks, Bill in Austin I bought without riding first. But, I did ride a Homer, Sam and Cheviot ahead of time thanks to some local owners. This gave me a good point of reference for overall feel and I knew how I wanted the bike setup. What did it for me was calling in and chatting with Will. Had all my questions answered and got the info I needed. Would recommend.
Already thinking about n+1. Whenever that happens I'm planning on visiting HQ.
-Stephen in Dallas
On Tuesday, January 20, 2026 at 7:25:17āÆAM UTC-6 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:
It was the first thing everyone told me when I moved here and said I was joining the bike club. One of the survivors is in my womenās group. Sent from my iPhone ļ»æWhile most of your cycling experience among these SW Michigan people has been great and friendly, please don't forget about the very tragic event that occurred ten years ago on one of those very K-zoo roads which you ride where 5 cyclists were run over and killed by some drugged-up redneck in a pickup truck up driver. He's in prison for life now, but that does not mean that there aren't more of the same out there. You can't be too careful out there.
On Monday, January 19, 2026 at 7:37:06āÆPM UTC-6 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:
Mine was a total lapse in judgment. Impulse buy of the highest order. I never test rode it and barely knew what a Charlie looked like; I just read the copy and felt like it had been written for ME. I had been mulling over getting a road bike and the day of the pre-sale the idea hit me like lightning and I did it. Reckless.
But, now Iām in love with Charlie and nothing can come between us. Not even my husband, who hates Charlie and calls him āChuckā because he is jealous of the wild times weāve been having together.
I hope you are getting one of these, Jim, because you wonāt be disappointed, and itās a bike that is actually in stock at Riv. Let us know if you adopt one. L ļ»æ
Hi all - apologies for resurrecting this thread, but wanted to know if most of you CHG owners ended up buying the bike sight unseen w/o a test ride? Was it a leap of blind faith? On Wednesday, November 5, 2025 at 4:14:41āÆAM UTC-6 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:
Chester, Yes, a camera would be nice. The Varia had some version of that for $400 but there was a bunch of drawbacks I briefly read about so didnāt purchase. One of the gals in my club said her friend has VR glasses or whatever they are called these days and she would turn her head to look at the license plate and command the glasses to take a photo. Worked brilliantly!
Drivers seem to have less patience this time of year. We are only riding in daylight hours now, of which there are not many. And snow is in the forecast this weekend. Sigh. ļ»æ
On Thursday, October 9, 2025 at 4:37:18āÆAM UTC-7 Ryan Fleming wrote:
Yikes Leah! What's up with these guys?!...yes I've had similar things happen to me...too bad you didn't get his license plate and report the son of a bitch. If that Varia helps to keep you and your riding buddies safe, it's a good investment...a camera app would be nice :)
Ryan: not sure if you're bringing up having a camera in addition to, or in, a Varia, the Varia RCT715 model has radar, light, and camera integrated in it. 1080p/30fps.
And earlier this year, Garmin released the Garmin Varia Vue, which is a front headlight with integrated camera that can do up to 4K/30fps.
Both units can be controlled from a compatible Garmin Edge computer, as well as mobile app.
Cycliq has been doing camera/light combos for a while, but their rear-facing unit doesn't have radar like the Garmin Varia. And the front light is not as bright as the Garmin Varia Vue.
Chester SF Bay Area
On Thursday, October 9, 2025 at 6:01:52āÆAM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:
Oh gosh, I hope you find a way to love those bars, Jay because upright bars have been so good to me. I always see my friends lifting hands off drop bars and shaking the numbness out of them. My bars cost me in headwinds, but otherwise I find myself unlimited by them.
The Varia. Let me tell you a story. Weāll depart from the Charlie content for a moment.
I was at the MNR (Monday Night Ride) one fine September night. The participation has dropped way off now that weāre losing the light. That left only Linda and me in our group. We had only gotten to the stop sign out of the park and a woman in a minivan was screaming at us. We were confused - had we done something? Was she really screaming at us? I watched her through her rear window (she had passed us and we were now stopped at the stop sign behind her) and she definitely was directing it at us.
We rode on, got honked at. Rode another mile, got honked at again. I turned to Linda and said, āGeez, whatās with the aggression tonight?ā Usually the Michiganders are the nicest people.
But soon after, we had our first vehicle pass us closely. Itās a rare but terrifying tactic drivers use to make you feel like they might hit you as they pass by. And shortly after, a 2nd vehicle pulled the same stunt. We were only the two of us. We are far right in our lane and easy to pass. We are obeying the law.
But the grand finale came on a quiet, 2-lane, paved, rural road. I heard the threat before I saw it. An aggressive-sounding engine belonging to the biggest black pickup with hugest mirrors turned onto our road. It revved its engine. āLinda, I have a bad feeling about this guy,ā I said. āIām going to single up.ā There is no one on that road but us. We are single file. We are on the shoulder of the road. We are not impeding this driver in any way. He can easily pass us because weāve left him room and there are no other vehicles around.
He guns it. Rushes up in the passing lane, cuts in in front of us and absolutely coal rolls us. Thick, black smoke. What a big, tough guy, harassing two women on bicycles who had done him no wrong. I was shook. Not once did we yell, gesture or retaliate against anyone. Since our manners mattered not, we cut our ride short and went back to the park. It just felt like a bad night to be out after 22 miles with that many encounters. I wrote on the club social media about it. Asked if anyone else had aggression and one group had. A small tan pickup had cut in front of them, came to a complete stop and they only barely managed to avoid a collision by hitting their brakes. That guy got reported to the police.
The next morning at work I was recounting the tale to an anesthesiologist who also rides, and he said one of the CRNAs had just told him the same - heād been harassed last night, too. That doc said, āDo you have a Varia?ā I said no, I have a Garmin but no radar, and he said, āLeah, you really should get one. It is the best thing Iāve ever bought for my bike.ā And then he pulled it up online and showed it to me. āI really think you need this,ā he said. I was skeptical. That day my bike shop sent their e-newsletter and guess what was on sale? I rode my Platypus to the shop the next day and got a Varia for $50 off.
So now Charlie is sporting a radar/tail light and I really like it so far. Did you know you can let your friends hook up to it, too? So now some of the other girls who donāt have them have connected to Charlieās Varia and we are all better off for it. ļ»æYou're great with the flowery language, Leah!
The Varia is the single best accessory I ever bought for cycling. I ride on the road a lot, and I'm so relaxed having this companion behind me, letting me know with an audio and visual cue that a car is coming, I stick out my hand to wave, easing over to my right without slowing down or looking behind me. Close to half of the drivers wave, most getting way over to the left.
Charlie looks to be a great bike, if you like swept bars. I have them on another bike and I'm still trying to figure them out (6 months later). I think there is a huge potential for more road bikes with good tire clearance, tall head tubes, and short top tubes to allow for drop bars. My Roadini is my baby, but there is potential there for more!
On Wednesday, October 8, 2025 at 5:42:59āÆPM UTC-4 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:
Aw, thanks, friends. I have had a ball on these bikes and I wish everyone else got to experience the same. And lots of other RivSisters will echo what I wrote. And itās not hard to romanticize about bikes. The flowery language comes easy!
I have little bits of conversion I didnāt mean to make. I got dyno swearing that Iād never be a slave to charging my lights. But now I have a Garmin and a Varia that get charged anyway, because suddenly, I canāt live without either of those. So Charlie is looking a little odd, running around here with his Garmin up front and his Varia on his rear.
But heās still pure Rivendell. Leah ļ»æLeah, you should really be getting paid by Riv. No post on this forum has ever made me want a bicycle more than you're description of Charlie here!
On Tuesday, October 7, 2025 at 8:52:16āÆPM UTC-4 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:
Well theyāre all missing out, Piaw! Charlie and I are in LOVE. Weāve been running off together allll summer and we have thousands of miles together now. Charlie is What Women Want. Long wheelbasesā¦we are into them. Pullback bars? Say less; weāre sold. Oh, the racers in the group say Charlie isnāt a Real Road Bike? Hold my earrings.
I came home tonight from yet another club ride and my husband met me at the door. We did the schtick where he pretends to be suspicious of me and Charlieās activities and confess Charlie and I were out in the night together again but it didnāt mean anything.
Charlie is a looker and a scoundrel. And those racers donāt know any of this joy.
I think it's a very cool frame (your build is AMAZING) but definitely a niche within the Riv niche. The road bike world is still quite conservative and getting them to accept pullback bars to match the long toptube is never going to be an easy sell. The dropped toptube is also a quirk some will balk at.
It's certainly true that the Charlie Gallop isn't a conventional road bike. To be honest, though, there are plenty of reasons non racers won't pick the Charlie Gallop as well. For instance, the ultra long chainstays mean that the Charlie Gallop would be difficult to fit into a bike box to get onto a plane to do a bike tour far from home. (That's also what turned me off the Homer as well) That long wheelbase also can make it hard to fit into trains or vans or cars. (I've done it with a tandem which is even longer, but let's just say that I've had evil stares from fellow passengers, and obviously some bus drivers are more helpful than others)
The pullback bars also are much much wider than narrow drop bars. So for instance, while I can easily fit 2-3 drop bar bikes into the back of a Honda Odyssey with the rear seats down), my wife's Cheviot would take up so much room that I'd have to move it onto the roof rack instead even when I'm planning to only move 2 bikes. In fact, a pull back bar at a crowded school bike rack would necessitate that you'd park the bike backwards with the rear wheel first, and in many cases a standard cable lock would have a hard time reaching the rack in those situations, and don't even start talking about a U-lock!
Don't get me wrong, I like my Roadini (my wife shot this video on Saturday's ride: https://youtu.be/6hBpmSL6lRc?si=v7gIUKY-4WelAjk3), but the additional weight is definitely felt when I lift it, and even with its relatively short chainstays (still 2cm longer than my touring bike!), I find that when I have to stand up and sprint it just doesn't accelerate the way more touring bike does.
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