Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Johnny Alien]

When I used to run more than a 1X that was my favorite FD. For the Riv 
endorsed gear ranges there is none better IMO

On Sunday, March 16, 2025 at 11:11:50 AM UTC-4 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
wrote:

> Huh. I had no idea. It’s an IRD Sub-C . I had to look!
> Sent from my iPhone
>
> On Mar 16, 2025, at 10:55 AM, reynoldslugs  wrote:
>
> BTW Leah, what is that Front Derailleur?
>
>
> Apologies if that info is covered in the thread above, I didn’t see it.
>
> Thanks
>
> Max Beach
> Santa Rosa CA
>
> On Saturday, March 15, 2025 at 6:54:15 AM UTC-7 Dorothy C wrote:
>
>> That was going to be my first guess as to why the purple Platy is on the 
>> lower level - I have a 50cm Sergio green Platy from the 2023 run, set up 
>> with Schwalbe tires, the Nitto medium rear rack and a dyno Atlas wheelset, 
>> no front  rack, and it is one of my heaviest bikes, only matched by my 46cm 
>> dyno Appa with a Mark’s rack in front and a Nitto x Crust rear rack, they 
>> are both in the 35-36lb range
>>
>> On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 12:27:34 PM UTC-7 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Dorothy - do it! 
>>>
>>> Ryan - that little purple beast has front and rear racks and is heavier 
>>> than the red Platy. I know…I have tried to think of how to better arrange 
>>> but I think this is the only way I can go. I used to have the little RBW51 
>>> rack and then it was easier to lift that red bike. But since its retired 
>>> from racing, I’ve got the Nitto Big Back rack on there and when that 
>>> Saddlesack is on the bike it’s comical to watch me try and hoist it up 
>>> there. I’m not giving up. It will be good for me.
>>>
>>> On Mar 14, 2025, at 2:37 PM, Ryan  wrote:
>>>
>>> If the purple is somewhat lighter, being smaller, maybe you could swap 
>>> it with the raspberry, so the heavier run-aroud raspberry is on the bottom.
>>>
>>>
>>> Just sayin'.
>>>
>>>  That charlie in the sunlight is smashing!
>>>
>>> On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 12:54:56 PM UTC-5 Dorothy C wrote:
>>>
 So gorgeous Leah. You have me tempted to rebuild my (too small) 47cm 
 Roadini to a 53cm mermaid Charlie in the next run later this year. 
 Everything with the exception of the wheels/tires and downtube shifter 
 mounts would be an exactly compatible swap

 On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 6:58:16 AM UTC-7 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
 wrote:

> I agree, John! So satisfying. Also satisfying: the ease with which I 
> can hoist the Charlie overhead. The combination of the heavier, longer 
> Platypus with the uneven tubes to hook is stressful every dang time. And 
> I’m a weight lifter. 😒
>
> On Mar 14, 2025, at 5:18 AM, John Johnson  
> wrote:
>
> The 4 bikes neatly arranged on their racks in the garage is oddly 
> super satisfying.
>
>
> Bravo, the Charlie looks great!
>
> On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 2:28:00 AM UTC+1 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
> wrote:
>
>> [image: image0.jpeg][image: image1.jpeg][image: image2.jpeg][image: 
>> image3.jpeg]
>>
>> On Mar 13, 2025, at 9:26 PM, Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! <
>> jonasa...@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> Charlie is pretty dreamy. I really like how the bike is feeling and 
>> I’ve got everything coming to make him whole. It’s hard to know how you 
>> ought to set up a new bike, and I actually ended up with most of the 
>> same 
>> stuff on my bars again. My setup is sick, why ruin it. I tried living 
>> without a mirror and a phone mount but I can’t do it. That bike is like 
>> a 
>> sunbeam when it stands in sunshine. I love the paint. I love the NL 
>> accents. The anodizing is going to get nicked - while on the SUV’s bike 
>> rack some gravel must have spit at the rim and chipped off the ano. 
>> Still, 
>> I regret nothing.
>>
>>
>> With the inauguration of the ‘25 riding season, our club had its 
>> first Monday Night Ride, and Charlie and I went. He isn’t like anything 
>> else there, and we got some attention. People are used to my alternative 
>> bikes by now. It was, like it always is in the early season, a 
>> challenging 
>> first few miles. Then we hit our stride. I went home not sure if Charlie 
>> is 
>> any faster than a Platypus. Today I took out both bikes and compared. I 
>> lowered the stem because Jason and Kate told me I ought to try. The 
>> Charlie 
>> does feel more like a road bike and my Racing Platypus, which held the 
>> road 
>> bike title before, feels slower than I remember. Who knows if any of 
>> this 
>> is true. But the Charlie is compact, little, nimble and I do really like 
>> it. 
>>
>> I got grips from Deb @ Rivet from Philly Bike Expo, and a RivSister 
>> sent me that ti cage you recommended here. My Randi Jo bag is being 
>> made, 
>> so I have Baby Bear’s bag for now. I need a few more things and then I 
>> can 
>> b

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Leah Peterson]

Huh. I had no idea. It’s an IRD Sub-C . I had to look!Sent from my iPhoneOn Mar 16, 2025, at 10:55 AM, reynoldslugs  wrote:BTW Leah, what is that Front Derailleur?Apologies if that info is covered in the thread above, I didn’t see it.ThanksMax BeachSanta Rosa CAOn Saturday, March 15, 2025 at 6:54:15 AM UTC-7 Dorothy C wrote:That was going to be my first guess as to why the purple Platy is on the lower level - I have a 50cm Sergio green Platy from the 2023 run, set up with Schwalbe tires, the Nitto medium rear rack and a dyno Atlas wheelset, no front  rack, and it is one of my heaviest bikes, only matched by my 46cm dyno Appa with a Mark’s rack in front and a Nitto x Crust rear rack, they are both in the 35-36lb rangeOn Friday, March 14, 2025 at 12:27:34 PM UTC-7 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:Dorothy - do it! Ryan - that little purple beast has front and rear racks and is heavier than the red Platy. I know…I have tried to think of how to better arrange but I think this is the only way I can go. I used to have the little RBW51 rack and then it was easier to lift that red bike. But since its retired from racing, I’ve got the Nitto Big Back rack on there and when that Saddlesack is on the bike it’s comical to watch me try and hoist it up there. I’m not giving up. It will be good for me.On Mar 14, 2025, at 2:37 PM, Ryan  wrote:If the purple is somewhat lighter, being smaller, maybe you could swap it with the raspberry, so the heavier run-aroud raspberry is on the bottom.Just sayin'. That charlie in the sunlight is smashing!On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 12:54:56 PM UTC-5 Dorothy C wrote:So gorgeous Leah. You have me tempted to rebuild my (too small) 47cm Roadini to a 53cm mermaid Charlie in the next run later this year. Everything with the exception of the wheels/tires and downtube shifter mounts would be an exactly compatible swapOn Friday, March 14, 2025 at 6:58:16 AM UTC-7 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:I agree, John! So satisfying. Also satisfying: the ease with which I can hoist the Charlie overhead. The combination of the heavier, longer Platypus with the uneven tubes to hook is stressful every dang time. And I’m a weight lifter. 😒On Mar 14, 2025, at 5:18 AM, John Johnson  wrote:The 4 bikes neatly arranged on their racks in the garage is oddly super satisfying.Bravo, the Charlie looks great!On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 2:28:00 AM UTC+1 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:On Mar 13, 2025, at 9:26 PM, Bicycle Belle Ding Ding!  wrote:Charlie is pretty dreamy. I really like how the bike is feeling and I’ve got everything coming to make him whole. It’s hard to know how you ought to set up a new bike, and I actually ended up with most of the same stuff on my bars again. My setup is sick, why ruin it. I tried living without a mirror and a phone mount but I can’t do it. That bike is like a sunbeam when it stands in sunshine. I love the paint. I love the NL accents. The anodizing is going to get nicked - while on the SUV’s bike rack some gravel must have spit at the rim and chipped off the ano. Still, I regret nothing.With the inauguration of the ‘25 riding season, our club had its first Monday Night Ride, and Charlie and I went. He isn’t like anything else there, and we got some attention. People are used to my alternative bikes by now. It was, like it always is in the early season, a challenging first few miles. Then we hit our stride. I went home not sure if Charlie is any faster than a Platypus. Today I took out both bikes and compared. I lowered the stem because Jason and Kate told me I ought to try. The Charlie does feel more like a road bike and my Racing Platypus, which held the road bike title before, feels slower than I remember. Who knows if any of this is true. But the Charlie is compact, little, nimble and I do really like it. I got grips from Deb @ Rivet from Philly Bike Expo, and a RivSister sent me that ti cage you recommended here. My Randi Jo bag is being made, so I have Baby Bear’s bag for now. I need a few more things and then I can be done with this and just ride the bike.Tomorrow will be 70 and the women of my bike group are meeting for a ride. I’m really excited to try another road ride and get to know Charlie better. I feel kind of torn having 4 wonderful bikes because it’s hard not to ride the newest one the most. I love all four of them, even though I really only need 3. The mermaid Platy is redundant since the Racing Platypus got a sturdy rear rack and can take a load now. But aren’t they the most beautiful fleet your eyes have ever seen? Hearts were coming out of my eyes when I saw them in the garage today. Tomorrow should be a better feel for how Charlie and I do together. There will only be 4 or 5 of us, so we’ll take our pulls regularly and it will be more challenging than with the big group we had on Monday.That’s it for now!Leah



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Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[reynoldslugs]

BTW Leah, what is that Front Derailleur?

Apologies if that info is covered in the thread above, I didn’t see it.

Thanks

Max Beach
Santa Rosa CA

On Saturday, March 15, 2025 at 6:54:15 AM UTC-7 Dorothy C wrote:

> That was going to be my first guess as to why the purple Platy is on the 
> lower level - I have a 50cm Sergio green Platy from the 2023 run, set up 
> with Schwalbe tires, the Nitto medium rear rack and a dyno Atlas wheelset, 
> no front  rack, and it is one of my heaviest bikes, only matched by my 46cm 
> dyno Appa with a Mark’s rack in front and a Nitto x Crust rear rack, they 
> are both in the 35-36lb range
>
> On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 12:27:34 PM UTC-7 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
> wrote:
>
>> Dorothy - do it! 
>>
>> Ryan - that little purple beast has front and rear racks and is heavier 
>> than the red Platy. I know…I have tried to think of how to better arrange 
>> but I think this is the only way I can go. I used to have the little RBW51 
>> rack and then it was easier to lift that red bike. But since its retired 
>> from racing, I’ve got the Nitto Big Back rack on there and when that 
>> Saddlesack is on the bike it’s comical to watch me try and hoist it up 
>> there. I’m not giving up. It will be good for me.
>>
>> On Mar 14, 2025, at 2:37 PM, Ryan  wrote:
>>
>> If the purple is somewhat lighter, being smaller, maybe you could swap 
>> it with the raspberry, so the heavier run-aroud raspberry is on the bottom.
>>
>>
>> Just sayin'.
>>
>>  That charlie in the sunlight is smashing!
>>
>> On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 12:54:56 PM UTC-5 Dorothy C wrote:
>>
>>> So gorgeous Leah. You have me tempted to rebuild my (too small) 47cm 
>>> Roadini to a 53cm mermaid Charlie in the next run later this year. 
>>> Everything with the exception of the wheels/tires and downtube shifter 
>>> mounts would be an exactly compatible swap
>>>
>>> On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 6:58:16 AM UTC-7 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
>>> wrote:
>>>
 I agree, John! So satisfying. Also satisfying: the ease with which I 
 can hoist the Charlie overhead. The combination of the heavier, longer 
 Platypus with the uneven tubes to hook is stressful every dang time. And 
 I’m a weight lifter. 😒

 On Mar 14, 2025, at 5:18 AM, John Johnson  
 wrote:

 The 4 bikes neatly arranged on their racks in the garage is oddly 
 super satisfying.


 Bravo, the Charlie looks great!

 On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 2:28:00 AM UTC+1 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
 wrote:

> [image: image0.jpeg][image: image1.jpeg][image: image2.jpeg][image: 
> image3.jpeg]
>
> On Mar 13, 2025, at 9:26 PM, Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! <
> jonasa...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Charlie is pretty dreamy. I really like how the bike is feeling and 
> I’ve got everything coming to make him whole. It’s hard to know how you 
> ought to set up a new bike, and I actually ended up with most of the same 
> stuff on my bars again. My setup is sick, why ruin it. I tried living 
> without a mirror and a phone mount but I can’t do it. That bike is like a 
> sunbeam when it stands in sunshine. I love the paint. I love the NL 
> accents. The anodizing is going to get nicked - while on the SUV’s bike 
> rack some gravel must have spit at the rim and chipped off the ano. 
> Still, 
> I regret nothing.
>
>
> With the inauguration of the ‘25 riding season, our club had its first 
> Monday Night Ride, and Charlie and I went. He isn’t like anything else 
> there, and we got some attention. People are used to my alternative bikes 
> by now. It was, like it always is in the early season, a challenging 
> first 
> few miles. Then we hit our stride. I went home not sure if Charlie is any 
> faster than a Platypus. Today I took out both bikes and compared. I 
> lowered 
> the stem because Jason and Kate told me I ought to try. The Charlie does 
> feel more like a road bike and my Racing Platypus, which held the road 
> bike 
> title before, feels slower than I remember. Who knows if any of this is 
> true. But the Charlie is compact, little, nimble and I do really like it. 
>
> I got grips from Deb @ Rivet from Philly Bike Expo, and a RivSister 
> sent me that ti cage you recommended here. My Randi Jo bag is being made, 
> so I have Baby Bear’s bag for now. I need a few more things and then I 
> can 
> be done with this and just ride the bike.
>
> Tomorrow will be 70 and the women of my bike group are meeting for a 
> ride. I’m really excited to try another road ride and get to know Charlie 
> better. I feel kind of torn having 4 wonderful bikes because it’s hard 
> not 
> to ride the newest one the most. I love all four of them, even though I 
> really only need 3. The mermaid Platy is redundant since the Racing 
> Platypus got a sturdy rear rack and can take 

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Leah Peterson]

Dorothy - do it! Ryan - that little purple beast has front and rear racks and is heavier than the red Platy. I know…I have tried to think of how to better arrange but I think this is the only way I can go. I used to have the little RBW51 rack and then it was easier to lift that red bike. But since its retired from racing, I’ve got the Nitto Big Back rack on there and when that Saddlesack is on the bike it’s comical to watch me try and hoist it up there. I’m not giving up. It will be good for me.On Mar 14, 2025, at 2:37 PM, Ryan  wrote:If the purple is somewhat lighter, being smaller, maybe you could swap it with the raspberry, so the heavier run-aroud raspberry is on the bottom.Just sayin'. That charlie in the sunlight is smashing!On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 12:54:56 PM UTC-5 Dorothy C wrote:So gorgeous Leah. You have me tempted to rebuild my (too small) 47cm Roadini to a 53cm mermaid Charlie in the next run later this year. Everything with the exception of the wheels/tires and downtube shifter mounts would be an exactly compatible swapOn Friday, March 14, 2025 at 6:58:16 AM UTC-7 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:I agree, John! So satisfying. Also satisfying: the ease with which I can hoist the Charlie overhead. The combination of the heavier, longer Platypus with the uneven tubes to hook is stressful every dang time. And I’m a weight lifter. 😒On Mar 14, 2025, at 5:18 AM, John Johnson  wrote:The 4 bikes neatly arranged on their racks in the garage is oddly super satisfying.Bravo, the Charlie looks great!On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 2:28:00 AM UTC+1 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:On Mar 13, 2025, at 9:26 PM, Bicycle Belle Ding Ding!  wrote:Charlie is pretty dreamy. I really like how the bike is feeling and I’ve got everything coming to make him whole. It’s hard to know how you ought to set up a new bike, and I actually ended up with most of the same stuff on my bars again. My setup is sick, why ruin it. I tried living without a mirror and a phone mount but I can’t do it. That bike is like a sunbeam when it stands in sunshine. I love the paint. I love the NL accents. The anodizing is going to get nicked - while on the SUV’s bike rack some gravel must have spit at the rim and chipped off the ano. Still, I regret nothing.With the inauguration of the ‘25 riding season, our club had its first Monday Night Ride, and Charlie and I went. He isn’t like anything else there, and we got some attention. People are used to my alternative bikes by now. It was, like it always is in the early season, a challenging first few miles. Then we hit our stride. I went home not sure if Charlie is any faster than a Platypus. Today I took out both bikes and compared. I lowered the stem because Jason and Kate told me I ought to try. The Charlie does feel more like a road bike and my Racing Platypus, which held the road bike title before, feels slower than I remember. Who knows if any of this is true. But the Charlie is compact, little, nimble and I do really like it. I got grips from Deb @ Rivet from Philly Bike Expo, and a RivSister sent me that ti cage you recommended here. My Randi Jo bag is being made, so I have Baby Bear’s bag for now. I need a few more things and then I can be done with this and just ride the bike.Tomorrow will be 70 and the women of my bike group are meeting for a ride. I’m really excited to try another road ride and get to know Charlie better. I feel kind of torn having 4 wonderful bikes because it’s hard not to ride the newest one the most. I love all four of them, even though I really only need 3. The mermaid Platy is redundant since the Racing Platypus got a sturdy rear rack and can take a load now. But aren’t they the most beautiful fleet your eyes have ever seen? Hearts were coming out of my eyes when I saw them in the garage today. Tomorrow should be a better feel for how Charlie and I do together. There will only be 4 or 5 of us, so we’ll take our pulls regularly and it will be more challenging than with the big group we had on Monday.That’s it for now!Leah



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Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Dorothy C]

That was going to be my first guess as to why the purple Platy is on the 
lower level - I have a 50cm Sergio green Platy from the 2023 run, set up 
with Schwalbe tires, the Nitto medium rear rack and a dyno Atlas wheelset, 
no front  rack, and it is one of my heaviest bikes, only matched by my 46cm 
dyno Appa with a Mark’s rack in front and a Nitto x Crust rear rack, they 
are both in the 35-36lb range

On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 12:27:34 PM UTC-7 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
wrote:

> Dorothy - do it! 
>
> Ryan - that little purple beast has front and rear racks and is heavier 
> than the red Platy. I know…I have tried to think of how to better arrange 
> but I think this is the only way I can go. I used to have the little RBW51 
> rack and then it was easier to lift that red bike. But since its retired 
> from racing, I’ve got the Nitto Big Back rack on there and when that 
> Saddlesack is on the bike it’s comical to watch me try and hoist it up 
> there. I’m not giving up. It will be good for me.
>
> On Mar 14, 2025, at 2:37 PM, Ryan  wrote:
>
> If the purple is somewhat lighter, being smaller, maybe you could swap it 
> with the raspberry, so the heavier run-aroud raspberry is on the bottom.
>
>
> Just sayin'.
>
>  That charlie in the sunlight is smashing!
>
> On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 12:54:56 PM UTC-5 Dorothy C wrote:
>
>> So gorgeous Leah. You have me tempted to rebuild my (too small) 47cm 
>> Roadini to a 53cm mermaid Charlie in the next run later this year. 
>> Everything with the exception of the wheels/tires and downtube shifter 
>> mounts would be an exactly compatible swap
>>
>> On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 6:58:16 AM UTC-7 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
>> wrote:
>>
>>> I agree, John! So satisfying. Also satisfying: the ease with which I can 
>>> hoist the Charlie overhead. The combination of the heavier, longer Platypus 
>>> with the uneven tubes to hook is stressful every dang time. And I’m a 
>>> weight lifter. 😒
>>>
>>> On Mar 14, 2025, at 5:18 AM, John Johnson  wrote:
>>>
>>> The 4 bikes neatly arranged on their racks in the garage is oddly super 
>>> satisfying.
>>>
>>>
>>> Bravo, the Charlie looks great!
>>>
>>> On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 2:28:00 AM UTC+1 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
>>> wrote:
>>>
 [image: image0.jpeg][image: image1.jpeg][image: image2.jpeg][image: 
 image3.jpeg]

 On Mar 13, 2025, at 9:26 PM, Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! <
 jonasa...@gmail.com> wrote:

 Charlie is pretty dreamy. I really like how the bike is feeling and 
 I’ve got everything coming to make him whole. It’s hard to know how you 
 ought to set up a new bike, and I actually ended up with most of the same 
 stuff on my bars again. My setup is sick, why ruin it. I tried living 
 without a mirror and a phone mount but I can’t do it. That bike is like a 
 sunbeam when it stands in sunshine. I love the paint. I love the NL 
 accents. The anodizing is going to get nicked - while on the SUV’s bike 
 rack some gravel must have spit at the rim and chipped off the ano. Still, 
 I regret nothing.


 With the inauguration of the ‘25 riding season, our club had its first 
 Monday Night Ride, and Charlie and I went. He isn’t like anything else 
 there, and we got some attention. People are used to my alternative bikes 
 by now. It was, like it always is in the early season, a challenging first 
 few miles. Then we hit our stride. I went home not sure if Charlie is any 
 faster than a Platypus. Today I took out both bikes and compared. I 
 lowered 
 the stem because Jason and Kate told me I ought to try. The Charlie does 
 feel more like a road bike and my Racing Platypus, which held the road 
 bike 
 title before, feels slower than I remember. Who knows if any of this is 
 true. But the Charlie is compact, little, nimble and I do really like it. 

 I got grips from Deb @ Rivet from Philly Bike Expo, and a RivSister 
 sent me that ti cage you recommended here. My Randi Jo bag is being made, 
 so I have Baby Bear’s bag for now. I need a few more things and then I can 
 be done with this and just ride the bike.

 Tomorrow will be 70 and the women of my bike group are meeting for a 
 ride. I’m really excited to try another road ride and get to know Charlie 
 better. I feel kind of torn having 4 wonderful bikes because it’s hard not 
 to ride the newest one the most. I love all four of them, even though I 
 really only need 3. The mermaid Platy is redundant since the Racing 
 Platypus got a sturdy rear rack and can take a load now. But aren’t they 
 the most beautiful fleet your eyes have ever seen? Hearts were coming out 
 of my eyes when I saw them in the garage today. 

 Tomorrow should be a better feel for how Charlie and I do together. 
 There will only be 4 or 5 of us, so we’ll take our pulls regularly and it 
 will be more challenging t

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Ryan]

If the purple is somewhat lighter, being smaller, maybe you could swap it 
with the raspberry, so the heavier run-aroud raspberry is on the bottom.

Just sayin'.

 That charlie in the sunlight is smashing!

On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 12:54:56 PM UTC-5 Dorothy C wrote:

> So gorgeous Leah. You have me tempted to rebuild my (too small) 47cm 
> Roadini to a 53cm mermaid Charlie in the next run later this year. 
> Everything with the exception of the wheels/tires and downtube shifter 
> mounts would be an exactly compatible swap
>
> On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 6:58:16 AM UTC-7 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
> wrote:
>
>> I agree, John! So satisfying. Also satisfying: the ease with which I can 
>> hoist the Charlie overhead. The combination of the heavier, longer Platypus 
>> with the uneven tubes to hook is stressful every dang time. And I’m a 
>> weight lifter. 😒
>>
>> On Mar 14, 2025, at 5:18 AM, John Johnson  wrote:
>>
>> The 4 bikes neatly arranged on their racks in the garage is oddly super 
>> satisfying.
>>
>>
>> Bravo, the Charlie looks great!
>>
>> On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 2:28:00 AM UTC+1 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
>> wrote:
>>
>>> [image: image0.jpeg][image: image1.jpeg][image: image2.jpeg][image: 
>>> image3.jpeg]
>>>
>>> On Mar 13, 2025, at 9:26 PM, Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! <
>>> jonasa...@gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>> Charlie is pretty dreamy. I really like how the bike is feeling and 
>>> I’ve got everything coming to make him whole. It’s hard to know how you 
>>> ought to set up a new bike, and I actually ended up with most of the same 
>>> stuff on my bars again. My setup is sick, why ruin it. I tried living 
>>> without a mirror and a phone mount but I can’t do it. That bike is like a 
>>> sunbeam when it stands in sunshine. I love the paint. I love the NL 
>>> accents. The anodizing is going to get nicked - while on the SUV’s bike 
>>> rack some gravel must have spit at the rim and chipped off the ano. Still, 
>>> I regret nothing.
>>>
>>>
>>> With the inauguration of the ‘25 riding season, our club had its first 
>>> Monday Night Ride, and Charlie and I went. He isn’t like anything else 
>>> there, and we got some attention. People are used to my alternative bikes 
>>> by now. It was, like it always is in the early season, a challenging first 
>>> few miles. Then we hit our stride. I went home not sure if Charlie is any 
>>> faster than a Platypus. Today I took out both bikes and compared. I lowered 
>>> the stem because Jason and Kate told me I ought to try. The Charlie does 
>>> feel more like a road bike and my Racing Platypus, which held the road bike 
>>> title before, feels slower than I remember. Who knows if any of this is 
>>> true. But the Charlie is compact, little, nimble and I do really like it. 
>>>
>>> I got grips from Deb @ Rivet from Philly Bike Expo, and a RivSister sent 
>>> me that ti cage you recommended here. My Randi Jo bag is being made, so I 
>>> have Baby Bear’s bag for now. I need a few more things and then I can be 
>>> done with this and just ride the bike.
>>>
>>> Tomorrow will be 70 and the women of my bike group are meeting for a 
>>> ride. I’m really excited to try another road ride and get to know Charlie 
>>> better. I feel kind of torn having 4 wonderful bikes because it’s hard not 
>>> to ride the newest one the most. I love all four of them, even though I 
>>> really only need 3. The mermaid Platy is redundant since the Racing 
>>> Platypus got a sturdy rear rack and can take a load now. But aren’t they 
>>> the most beautiful fleet your eyes have ever seen? Hearts were coming out 
>>> of my eyes when I saw them in the garage today. 
>>>
>>> Tomorrow should be a better feel for how Charlie and I do together. 
>>> There will only be 4 or 5 of us, so we’ll take our pulls regularly and it 
>>> will be more challenging than with the big group we had on Monday.
>>>
>>> That’s it for now!
>>> Leah
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> -- 
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>>> .
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>>> 
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Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Dorothy C]

So gorgeous Leah. You have me tempted to rebuild my (too small) 47cm 
Roadini to a 53cm mermaid Charlie in the next run later this year. 
Everything with the exception of the wheels/tires and downtube shifter 
mounts would be an exactly compatible swap

On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 6:58:16 AM UTC-7 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
wrote:

> I agree, John! So satisfying. Also satisfying: the ease with which I can 
> hoist the Charlie overhead. The combination of the heavier, longer Platypus 
> with the uneven tubes to hook is stressful every dang time. And I’m a 
> weight lifter. 😒
>
> On Mar 14, 2025, at 5:18 AM, John Johnson  wrote:
>
> The 4 bikes neatly arranged on their racks in the garage is oddly super 
> satisfying.
>
>
> Bravo, the Charlie looks great!
>
> On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 2:28:00 AM UTC+1 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
> wrote:
>
>> [image: image0.jpeg][image: image1.jpeg][image: image2.jpeg][image: 
>> image3.jpeg]
>>
>> On Mar 13, 2025, at 9:26 PM, Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! <
>> jonasa...@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> Charlie is pretty dreamy. I really like how the bike is feeling and I’ve 
>> got everything coming to make him whole. It’s hard to know how you ought to 
>> set up a new bike, and I actually ended up with most of the same stuff on 
>> my bars again. My setup is sick, why ruin it. I tried living without a 
>> mirror and a phone mount but I can’t do it. That bike is like a sunbeam 
>> when it stands in sunshine. I love the paint. I love the NL accents. The 
>> anodizing is going to get nicked - while on the SUV’s bike rack some gravel 
>> must have spit at the rim and chipped off the ano. Still, I regret nothing.
>>
>>
>> With the inauguration of the ‘25 riding season, our club had its first 
>> Monday Night Ride, and Charlie and I went. He isn’t like anything else 
>> there, and we got some attention. People are used to my alternative bikes 
>> by now. It was, like it always is in the early season, a challenging first 
>> few miles. Then we hit our stride. I went home not sure if Charlie is any 
>> faster than a Platypus. Today I took out both bikes and compared. I lowered 
>> the stem because Jason and Kate told me I ought to try. The Charlie does 
>> feel more like a road bike and my Racing Platypus, which held the road bike 
>> title before, feels slower than I remember. Who knows if any of this is 
>> true. But the Charlie is compact, little, nimble and I do really like it. 
>>
>> I got grips from Deb @ Rivet from Philly Bike Expo, and a RivSister sent 
>> me that ti cage you recommended here. My Randi Jo bag is being made, so I 
>> have Baby Bear’s bag for now. I need a few more things and then I can be 
>> done with this and just ride the bike.
>>
>> Tomorrow will be 70 and the women of my bike group are meeting for a 
>> ride. I’m really excited to try another road ride and get to know Charlie 
>> better. I feel kind of torn having 4 wonderful bikes because it’s hard not 
>> to ride the newest one the most. I love all four of them, even though I 
>> really only need 3. The mermaid Platy is redundant since the Racing 
>> Platypus got a sturdy rear rack and can take a load now. But aren’t they 
>> the most beautiful fleet your eyes have ever seen? Hearts were coming out 
>> of my eyes when I saw them in the garage today. 
>>
>> Tomorrow should be a better feel for how Charlie and I do together. There 
>> will only be 4 or 5 of us, so we’ll take our pulls regularly and it will be 
>> more challenging than with the big group we had on Monday.
>>
>> That’s it for now!
>> Leah
>>
>>
>>
>> -- 
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>> 
>> .
>> 
>> 
>>
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Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Leah Peterson]

I agree, John! So satisfying. Also satisfying: the ease with which I can hoist the Charlie overhead. The combination of the heavier, longer Platypus with the uneven tubes to hook is stressful every dang time. And I’m a weight lifter. 😒On Mar 14, 2025, at 5:18 AM, John Johnson  wrote:The 4 bikes neatly arranged on their racks in the garage is oddly super satisfying.Bravo, the Charlie looks great!On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 2:28:00 AM UTC+1 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:On Mar 13, 2025, at 9:26 PM, Bicycle Belle Ding Ding!  wrote:Charlie is pretty dreamy. I really like how the bike is feeling and I’ve got everything coming to make him whole. It’s hard to know how you ought to set up a new bike, and I actually ended up with most of the same stuff on my bars again. My setup is sick, why ruin it. I tried living without a mirror and a phone mount but I can’t do it. That bike is like a sunbeam when it stands in sunshine. I love the paint. I love the NL accents. The anodizing is going to get nicked - while on the SUV’s bike rack some gravel must have spit at the rim and chipped off the ano. Still, I regret nothing.With the inauguration of the ‘25 riding season, our club had its first Monday Night Ride, and Charlie and I went. He isn’t like anything else there, and we got some attention. People are used to my alternative bikes by now. It was, like it always is in the early season, a challenging first few miles. Then we hit our stride. I went home not sure if Charlie is any faster than a Platypus. Today I took out both bikes and compared. I lowered the stem because Jason and Kate told me I ought to try. The Charlie does feel more like a road bike and my Racing Platypus, which held the road bike title before, feels slower than I remember. Who knows if any of this is true. But the Charlie is compact, little, nimble and I do really like it. I got grips from Deb @ Rivet from Philly Bike Expo, and a RivSister sent me that ti cage you recommended here. My Randi Jo bag is being made, so I have Baby Bear’s bag for now. I need a few more things and then I can be done with this and just ride the bike.Tomorrow will be 70 and the women of my bike group are meeting for a ride. I’m really excited to try another road ride and get to know Charlie better. I feel kind of torn having 4 wonderful bikes because it’s hard not to ride the newest one the most. I love all four of them, even though I really only need 3. The mermaid Platy is redundant since the Racing Platypus got a sturdy rear rack and can take a load now. But aren’t they the most beautiful fleet your eyes have ever seen? Hearts were coming out of my eyes when I saw them in the garage today. Tomorrow should be a better feel for how Charlie and I do together. There will only be 4 or 5 of us, so we’ll take our pulls regularly and it will be more challenging than with the big group we had on Monday.That’s it for now!Leah



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[RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Roberta]

Your Charlie looks great especially with those new Rivet grips. How do you 
choose

Roberta

On Thursday, March 13, 2025 at 9:26:10 PM UTC-4 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
wrote:

> Charlie is pretty dreamy. I really like how the bike is feeling and I’ve 
> got everything coming to make him whole. It’s hard to know how you ought to 
> set up a new bike, and I actually ended up with most of the same stuff on 
> my bars again. My setup is sick, why ruin it. I tried living without a 
> mirror and a phone mount but I can’t do it. That bike is like a sunbeam 
> when it stands in sunshine. I love the paint. I love the NL accents. The 
> anodizing is going to get nicked - while on the SUV’s bike rack some gravel 
> must have spit at the rim and chipped off the ano. Still, I regret nothing.
>
> With the inauguration of the ‘25 riding season, our club had its first 
> Monday Night Ride, and Charlie and I went. He isn’t like anything else 
> there, and we got some attention. People are used to my alternative bikes 
> by now. It was, like it always is in the early season, a challenging first 
> few miles. Then we hit our stride. I went home not sure if Charlie is any 
> faster than a Platypus. Today I took out both bikes and compared. I lowered 
> the stem because Jason and Kate told me I ought to try. The Charlie does 
> feel more like a road bike and my Racing Platypus, which held the road bike 
> title before, feels slower than I remember. Who knows if any of this is 
> true. But the Charlie is compact, little, nimble and I do really like it. 
>
> I got grips from Deb @ Rivet from Philly Bike Expo, and a RivSister sent 
> me that ti cage you recommended here. My Randi Jo bag is being made, so I 
> have Baby Bear’s bag for now. I need a few more things and then I can be 
> done with this and just ride the bike.
>
> Tomorrow will be 70 and the women of my bike group are meeting for a ride. 
> I’m really excited to try another road ride and get to know Charlie better. 
> I feel kind of torn having 4 wonderful bikes because it’s hard not to ride 
> the newest one the most. I love all four of them, even though I really only 
> need 3. The mermaid Platy is redundant since the Racing Platypus got a 
> sturdy rear rack and can take a load now. But aren’t they the most 
> beautiful fleet your eyes have ever seen? Hearts were coming out of my eyes 
> when I saw them in the garage today. 
>
> Tomorrow should be a better feel for how Charlie and I do together. There 
> will only be 4 or 5 of us, so we’ll take our pulls regularly and it will be 
> more challenging than with the big group we had on Monday.
>
> That’s it for now!
> Leah
>
>
>
>

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Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[John Johnson]

The 4 bikes neatly arranged on their racks in the garage is oddly super 
satisfying.

Bravo, the Charlie looks great!

On Friday, March 14, 2025 at 2:28:00 AM UTC+1 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
wrote:

> [image: image0.jpeg][image: image1.jpeg][image: image2.jpeg][image: 
> image3.jpeg]
>
> On Mar 13, 2025, at 9:26 PM, Bicycle Belle Ding Ding!  
> wrote:
>
> Charlie is pretty dreamy. I really like how the bike is feeling and I’ve 
> got everything coming to make him whole. It’s hard to know how you ought to 
> set up a new bike, and I actually ended up with most of the same stuff on 
> my bars again. My setup is sick, why ruin it. I tried living without a 
> mirror and a phone mount but I can’t do it. That bike is like a sunbeam 
> when it stands in sunshine. I love the paint. I love the NL accents. The 
> anodizing is going to get nicked - while on the SUV’s bike rack some gravel 
> must have spit at the rim and chipped off the ano. Still, I regret nothing.
>
>
> With the inauguration of the ‘25 riding season, our club had its first 
> Monday Night Ride, and Charlie and I went. He isn’t like anything else 
> there, and we got some attention. People are used to my alternative bikes 
> by now. It was, like it always is in the early season, a challenging first 
> few miles. Then we hit our stride. I went home not sure if Charlie is any 
> faster than a Platypus. Today I took out both bikes and compared. I lowered 
> the stem because Jason and Kate told me I ought to try. The Charlie does 
> feel more like a road bike and my Racing Platypus, which held the road bike 
> title before, feels slower than I remember. Who knows if any of this is 
> true. But the Charlie is compact, little, nimble and I do really like it. 
>
> I got grips from Deb @ Rivet from Philly Bike Expo, and a RivSister sent 
> me that ti cage you recommended here. My Randi Jo bag is being made, so I 
> have Baby Bear’s bag for now. I need a few more things and then I can be 
> done with this and just ride the bike.
>
> Tomorrow will be 70 and the women of my bike group are meeting for a ride. 
> I’m really excited to try another road ride and get to know Charlie better. 
> I feel kind of torn having 4 wonderful bikes because it’s hard not to ride 
> the newest one the most. I love all four of them, even though I really only 
> need 3. The mermaid Platy is redundant since the Racing Platypus got a 
> sturdy rear rack and can take a load now. But aren’t they the most 
> beautiful fleet your eyes have ever seen? Hearts were coming out of my eyes 
> when I saw them in the garage today. 
>
> Tomorrow should be a better feel for how Charlie and I do together. There 
> will only be 4 or 5 of us, so we’ll take our pulls regularly and it will be 
> more challenging than with the big group we had on Monday.
>
> That’s it for now!
> Leah
>
>
>
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>  
> 
> .
> 
> 
>
>

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[RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Steve]

Here's another option for a bar end mirror - 
https://cateyeamerica.com/products/bm-45?_pos=1&_psq=bm+45&_ss=e&_v=1.0

Similar to the Spurcycle, priced at $19.95.  I've been using them on two of 
my bikes (Santa brought them to me for Christmas!).  So far so good. 

Steve in AVL

[image: 430E9F23-CD11-4260-B829-5CA26EE3BA28_4_5005_c.jpeg]

On Saturday, March 1, 2025 at 10:19:36 PM UTC-5 Collin A wrote:

> One option for bike mirrors is the newer-entry spurcycle. I haven't tried 
> them yet, but they would fit where the bar end plugs would usually go - and 
> may work out if your ergon grips don't fully encase the end of the bars.
>
> Big, reflective, and svelt enough I'd think: 
> https://www.spurcycle.com/products/r50-mirror
>
> Collin, feeling like we're looking a little too far backwards right now, 
> in Oakland
>

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[RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Collin A]

One option for bike mirrors is the newer-entry spurcycle. I haven't tried 
them yet, but they would fit where the bar end plugs would usually go - and 
may work out if your ergon grips don't fully encase the end of the bars.

Big, reflective, and svelt enough I'd 
think: https://www.spurcycle.com/products/r50-mirror

Collin, feeling like we're looking a little too far backwards right now, in 
Oakland

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Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Ryan]

What is the rear hub.?..can't remember if you mentioned what it was

On Thursday, February 27, 2025 at 1:20:52 PM UTC-6 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
wrote:

> Thanks, everyone! I am just dying to try it out! It’s cold and drizzly and 
> I was taking pics and wanting to throw a leg over, even just for a bit and 
> then felt myself skid on black ice as I was having the thought. Nope nope 
> nope. I’ll have to wait for it to be just a bit warmer. The rear hub is so 
> quiet and the bike is so cute. In love over here!
> [image: image0.jpeg][image: image1.jpeg][image: image2.jpeg][image: 
> image3.jpeg]
>
> On Feb 27, 2025, at 10:01 AM, Sally Bidleman <3mu...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> 
>
> Outstanding!!
>
> On Thu, Feb 27, 2025 at 4:00 AM Ryan  wrote:
>
>> That turned out great! Now you and Bill L have to get together on your 
>> CHGs for a ride when he comes to Michigan. Can't wait for a ride report and 
>> pictures in the sunlight. Although, I have to say, even in the cloudy 
>> conditions, the gold frame pops! And looks good with the NL parts.
>>
>> You go girl!
>>
>> On Wednesday, February 26, 2025 at 11:30:14 PM UTC-6 JAS wrote:
>>
>>> There aren't enough superlatives in the dictionary to describe this 
>>> bike, but I'll start with exquisite!  Unsurpassed creativity, certainly.
>>>
>>> On Wednesday, February 26, 2025 at 8:17:50 PM UTC-8 Joe Bernard wrote:
>>>

 The bars and rims are INSANE. I love this bike! 
 On Wednesday, February 26, 2025 at 5:39:12 PM UTC-8 Bicycle Belle Ding 
 Ding! wrote:

> I got to go to Washington DC, and on my last day there, which was 
> yesterday, my favorite mechanic texted, “Charlie H. Gallop, first of his 
> name, is complete.” 
>
> I came home last night and today made haste to go see Charlie and 
> bring him home to live happily ever after with me. M, my favorite 
> mechanic, 
> is off today. A letdown! But I left him a card that will make him very 
> happy when he gets it; he deserves everything, he is that good. But the 
> other guys were there to chat about the NLC with me, which is half the 
> fun 
> of picking up a new bike.
>
> This bike looks *little* compared to the lengthy Platys that inhabit 
> my garage. 
> [image: image2.jpeg]
> Isn’t it cute? It’s the 53, so it has lighter tubing, too. 
>
> There was not one ray of sunshine today, making most of my color dull. 
> Only the rims catch the light and twinkle at you. 
>
> I asked the shop to hide the dyno wire and showed them an example. I 
> think I’ll snip their black zip ties and add my gray ones. These are 
> Ultradynamicos Cava Race tires in 38 mm.
> [image: image3.jpeg][image: image4.jpeg]
> The galloping horses on the chainstays really do it for me. Here is 
> the RapidRise Grant set me up with. I have no idea if that’s a thing I’ll 
> like; it’s a thing I wanted to *try. *I don’t know what the fuss 
> really is, except that in the event of a derailleur failure, I’d be in a 
> more pedal-able gear. M said, “RapidRise? Are we going to use it though?” 
> He was not convinced. R from the shop said he gave it a test ride, rode 
> up 
> a ramp was shocked when he went to downshift and ended up in a higher 
> gear.  If I hate it I’ll just swap it for the normal kind.
>
> [image: image5.jpeg]
> Some of Ashley’s excellent anodizing can be seen on the luscious 
> Silver3 cranks and chainguard. I cannot convey how wonderfully the cranks 
> took color. They drip with NL charm. 
>
> I chose this Spurcycle bell in a moody black and blue. It fits the 
> disposition of this bike - northern lights are never static. Wondrous, 
> elusive things. Moody.
> [image: image6.jpeg]
> You can see the Silver shifters did not take color well. They had a 
> flaky finish that came off in anodizing and they look like blue metal 
> now.  
> I heard they frustrated the junior mechanic helping M. “There’s no 
> directions to reassemble these! It’s just a schematic!” he was rumored to 
> have said. There’s a scratch on one of the shifters and I do not at all 
> care because I know they were a bear to reassemble. Mark at Riv had taken 
> them apart for anodizing. Will said he’d mash it if he tried, it’s hard 
> to 
> do. I told the guys we could send them back to Riv but they took on the 
> project themselves. In fact, if these shifters got ruined in this 
> process, 
> I will not be shocked. We’ll see how they perform.
>
>
> Here you a see I did do a little matching. I chose gold housing and a 
> gold headlight. You’ll notice gold valve stems on the wheels.
> [image: image7.jpeg]
>
> Again, the new Silver3 cranks in the shorter length (165?). The pedals 
> are oil slick (not NL) but I’m getting away with it somehow.
> [image: image8.jpeg]
>
> The spokes! 😍

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Sally Bidleman]

Outstanding!!

On Thu, Feb 27, 2025 at 4:00 AM Ryan  wrote:

> That turned out great! Now you and Bill L have to get together on your
> CHGs for a ride when he comes to Michigan. Can't wait for a ride report and
> pictures in the sunlight. Although, I have to say, even in the cloudy
> conditions, the gold frame pops! And looks good with the NL parts.
>
> You go girl!
>
> On Wednesday, February 26, 2025 at 11:30:14 PM UTC-6 JAS wrote:
>
>> There aren't enough superlatives in the dictionary to describe this bike,
>> but I'll start with exquisite!  Unsurpassed creativity, certainly.
>>
>> On Wednesday, February 26, 2025 at 8:17:50 PM UTC-8 Joe Bernard wrote:
>>
>>>
>>> The bars and rims are INSANE. I love this bike!
>>> On Wednesday, February 26, 2025 at 5:39:12 PM UTC-8 Bicycle Belle Ding
>>> Ding! wrote:
>>>
 I got to go to Washington DC, and on my last day there, which was
 yesterday, my favorite mechanic texted, “Charlie H. Gallop, first of his
 name, is complete.”

 I came home last night and today made haste to go see Charlie and bring
 him home to live happily ever after with me. M, my favorite mechanic, is
 off today. A letdown! But I left him a card that will make him very happy
 when he gets it; he deserves everything, he is that good. But the other
 guys were there to chat about the NLC with me, which is half the fun of
 picking up a new bike.

 This bike looks *little* compared to the lengthy Platys that inhabit
 my garage.
 [image: image2.jpeg]
 Isn’t it cute? It’s the 53, so it has lighter tubing, too.

 There was not one ray of sunshine today, making most of my color dull.
 Only the rims catch the light and twinkle at you.

 I asked the shop to hide the dyno wire and showed them an example. I
 think I’ll snip their black zip ties and add my gray ones. These are
 Ultradynamicos Cava Race tires in 38 mm.
 [image: image3.jpeg][image: image4.jpeg]
 The galloping horses on the chainstays really do it for me. Here is the
 RapidRise Grant set me up with. I have no idea if that’s a thing I’ll like;
 it’s a thing I wanted to *try. *I don’t know what the fuss really is,
 except that in the event of a derailleur failure, I’d be in a more
 pedal-able gear. M said, “RapidRise? Are we going to use it though?” He was
 not convinced. R from the shop said he gave it a test ride, rode up a ramp
 was shocked when he went to downshift and ended up in a higher gear.  If I
 hate it I’ll just swap it for the normal kind.

 [image: image5.jpeg]
 Some of Ashley’s excellent anodizing can be seen on the luscious
 Silver3 cranks and chainguard. I cannot convey how wonderfully the cranks
 took color. They drip with NL charm.

 I chose this Spurcycle bell in a moody black and blue. It fits the
 disposition of this bike - northern lights are never static. Wondrous,
 elusive things. Moody.
 [image: image6.jpeg]
 You can see the Silver shifters did not take color well. They had a
 flaky finish that came off in anodizing and they look like blue metal now.
 I heard they frustrated the junior mechanic helping M. “There’s no
 directions to reassemble these! It’s just a schematic!” he was rumored to
 have said. There’s a scratch on one of the shifters and I do not at all
 care because I know they were a bear to reassemble. Mark at Riv had taken
 them apart for anodizing. Will said he’d mash it if he tried, it’s hard to
 do. I told the guys we could send them back to Riv but they took on the
 project themselves. In fact, if these shifters got ruined in this process,
 I will not be shocked. We’ll see how they perform.


 Here you a see I did do a little matching. I chose gold housing and a
 gold headlight. You’ll notice gold valve stems on the wheels.
 [image: image7.jpeg]

 Again, the new Silver3 cranks in the shorter length (165?). The pedals
 are oil slick (not NL) but I’m getting away with it somehow.
 [image: image8.jpeg]

 The spokes! 😍
 [image: image9.jpeg]

 My bars are showstoppers but they look dark without sun. It’s a nice
 and muted look in cloudy weather, and will be dreamy in Michigan golden
 sunshine. They are Chocos, which I bought because I thought they looked
 sporty on someone else’s bike. 🙄
 [image: image10.jpeg]

 Even the Paul levers had to be pulled apart for anodizing. They always
 take color well, but again, you’ll have to wait for sun to see.
 [image: image11.jpeg]

 The weather was 30s and sleet today with black ice on the road. One of
 our surgeons spent a whole day fixing all the broken bones from falls on
 the ice recently. Test rides will have to wait, but just from handling the
 bike I can tell it’s light and nimble. It steers easily with one hand
 guiding it and it looks compact and quick.
>

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Ryan]

That turned out great! Now you and Bill L have to get together on your CHGs 
for a ride when he comes to Michigan. Can't wait for a ride report and 
pictures in the sunlight. Although, I have to say, even in the cloudy 
conditions, the gold frame pops! And looks good with the NL parts.

You go girl!

On Wednesday, February 26, 2025 at 11:30:14 PM UTC-6 JAS wrote:

> There aren't enough superlatives in the dictionary to describe this bike, 
> but I'll start with exquisite!  Unsurpassed creativity, certainly.
>
> On Wednesday, February 26, 2025 at 8:17:50 PM UTC-8 Joe Bernard wrote:
>
>>
>> The bars and rims are INSANE. I love this bike! 
>> On Wednesday, February 26, 2025 at 5:39:12 PM UTC-8 Bicycle Belle Ding 
>> Ding! wrote:
>>
>>> I got to go to Washington DC, and on my last day there, which was 
>>> yesterday, my favorite mechanic texted, “Charlie H. Gallop, first of his 
>>> name, is complete.” 
>>>
>>> I came home last night and today made haste to go see Charlie and bring 
>>> him home to live happily ever after with me. M, my favorite mechanic, is 
>>> off today. A letdown! But I left him a card that will make him very happy 
>>> when he gets it; he deserves everything, he is that good. But the other 
>>> guys were there to chat about the NLC with me, which is half the fun of 
>>> picking up a new bike.
>>>
>>> This bike looks *little* compared to the lengthy Platys that inhabit my 
>>> garage. 
>>> [image: image2.jpeg]
>>> Isn’t it cute? It’s the 53, so it has lighter tubing, too. 
>>>
>>> There was not one ray of sunshine today, making most of my color dull. 
>>> Only the rims catch the light and twinkle at you. 
>>>
>>> I asked the shop to hide the dyno wire and showed them an example. I 
>>> think I’ll snip their black zip ties and add my gray ones. These are 
>>> Ultradynamicos Cava Race tires in 38 mm.
>>> [image: image3.jpeg][image: image4.jpeg]
>>> The galloping horses on the chainstays really do it for me. Here is the 
>>> RapidRise Grant set me up with. I have no idea if that’s a thing I’ll like; 
>>> it’s a thing I wanted to *try. *I don’t know what the fuss really is, 
>>> except that in the event of a derailleur failure, I’d be in a more 
>>> pedal-able gear. M said, “RapidRise? Are we going to use it though?” He was 
>>> not convinced. R from the shop said he gave it a test ride, rode up a ramp 
>>> was shocked when he went to downshift and ended up in a higher gear.  If I 
>>> hate it I’ll just swap it for the normal kind.
>>>
>>> [image: image5.jpeg]
>>> Some of Ashley’s excellent anodizing can be seen on the luscious Silver3 
>>> cranks and chainguard. I cannot convey how wonderfully the cranks took 
>>> color. They drip with NL charm. 
>>>
>>> I chose this Spurcycle bell in a moody black and blue. It fits the 
>>> disposition of this bike - northern lights are never static. Wondrous, 
>>> elusive things. Moody.
>>> [image: image6.jpeg]
>>> You can see the Silver shifters did not take color well. They had a 
>>> flaky finish that came off in anodizing and they look like blue metal now. 
>>>  I heard they frustrated the junior mechanic helping M. “There’s no 
>>> directions to reassemble these! It’s just a schematic!” he was rumored to 
>>> have said. There’s a scratch on one of the shifters and I do not at all 
>>> care because I know they were a bear to reassemble. Mark at Riv had taken 
>>> them apart for anodizing. Will said he’d mash it if he tried, it’s hard to 
>>> do. I told the guys we could send them back to Riv but they took on the 
>>> project themselves. In fact, if these shifters got ruined in this process, 
>>> I will not be shocked. We’ll see how they perform.
>>>
>>>
>>> Here you a see I did do a little matching. I chose gold housing and a 
>>> gold headlight. You’ll notice gold valve stems on the wheels.
>>> [image: image7.jpeg]
>>>
>>> Again, the new Silver3 cranks in the shorter length (165?). The pedals 
>>> are oil slick (not NL) but I’m getting away with it somehow.
>>> [image: image8.jpeg]
>>>
>>> The spokes! 😍
>>> [image: image9.jpeg]
>>>
>>> My bars are showstoppers but they look dark without sun. It’s a nice and 
>>> muted look in cloudy weather, and will be dreamy in Michigan golden 
>>> sunshine. They are Chocos, which I bought because I thought they looked 
>>> sporty on someone else’s bike. 🙄
>>> [image: image10.jpeg]
>>>
>>> Even the Paul levers had to be pulled apart for anodizing. They always 
>>> take color well, but again, you’ll have to wait for sun to see.
>>> [image: image11.jpeg]
>>>
>>> The weather was 30s and sleet today with black ice on the road. One of 
>>> our surgeons spent a whole day fixing all the broken bones from falls on 
>>> the ice recently. Test rides will have to wait, but just from handling the 
>>> bike I can tell it’s light and nimble. It steers easily with one hand 
>>> guiding it and it looks compact and quick. 
>>>
>>> “Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club riding friends said. This 
>>> bike will not be what they 

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[JAS]

There aren't enough superlatives in the dictionary to describe this bike, 
but I'll start with exquisite!  Unsurpassed creativity, certainly.

On Wednesday, February 26, 2025 at 8:17:50 PM UTC-8 Joe Bernard wrote:

>
> The bars and rims are INSANE. I love this bike! 
> On Wednesday, February 26, 2025 at 5:39:12 PM UTC-8 Bicycle Belle Ding 
> Ding! wrote:
>
>> I got to go to Washington DC, and on my last day there, which was 
>> yesterday, my favorite mechanic texted, “Charlie H. Gallop, first of his 
>> name, is complete.” 
>>
>> I came home last night and today made haste to go see Charlie and bring 
>> him home to live happily ever after with me. M, my favorite mechanic, is 
>> off today. A letdown! But I left him a card that will make him very happy 
>> when he gets it; he deserves everything, he is that good. But the other 
>> guys were there to chat about the NLC with me, which is half the fun of 
>> picking up a new bike.
>>
>> This bike looks *little* compared to the lengthy Platys that inhabit my 
>> garage. 
>> [image: image2.jpeg]
>> Isn’t it cute? It’s the 53, so it has lighter tubing, too. 
>>
>> There was not one ray of sunshine today, making most of my color dull. 
>> Only the rims catch the light and twinkle at you. 
>>
>> I asked the shop to hide the dyno wire and showed them an example. I 
>> think I’ll snip their black zip ties and add my gray ones. These are 
>> Ultradynamicos Cava Race tires in 38 mm.
>> [image: image3.jpeg][image: image4.jpeg]
>> The galloping horses on the chainstays really do it for me. Here is the 
>> RapidRise Grant set me up with. I have no idea if that’s a thing I’ll like; 
>> it’s a thing I wanted to *try. *I don’t know what the fuss really is, 
>> except that in the event of a derailleur failure, I’d be in a more 
>> pedal-able gear. M said, “RapidRise? Are we going to use it though?” He was 
>> not convinced. R from the shop said he gave it a test ride, rode up a ramp 
>> was shocked when he went to downshift and ended up in a higher gear.  If I 
>> hate it I’ll just swap it for the normal kind.
>>
>> [image: image5.jpeg]
>> Some of Ashley’s excellent anodizing can be seen on the luscious Silver3 
>> cranks and chainguard. I cannot convey how wonderfully the cranks took 
>> color. They drip with NL charm. 
>>
>> I chose this Spurcycle bell in a moody black and blue. It fits the 
>> disposition of this bike - northern lights are never static. Wondrous, 
>> elusive things. Moody.
>> [image: image6.jpeg]
>> You can see the Silver shifters did not take color well. They had a flaky 
>> finish that came off in anodizing and they look like blue metal now.  I 
>> heard they frustrated the junior mechanic helping M. “There’s no directions 
>> to reassemble these! It’s just a schematic!” he was rumored to have said. 
>> There’s a scratch on one of the shifters and I do not at all care because I 
>> know they were a bear to reassemble. Mark at Riv had taken them apart for 
>> anodizing. Will said he’d mash it if he tried, it’s hard to do. I told the 
>> guys we could send them back to Riv but they took on the project 
>> themselves. In fact, if these shifters got ruined in this process, I will 
>> not be shocked. We’ll see how they perform.
>>
>>
>> Here you a see I did do a little matching. I chose gold housing and a 
>> gold headlight. You’ll notice gold valve stems on the wheels.
>> [image: image7.jpeg]
>>
>> Again, the new Silver3 cranks in the shorter length (165?). The pedals 
>> are oil slick (not NL) but I’m getting away with it somehow.
>> [image: image8.jpeg]
>>
>> The spokes! 😍
>> [image: image9.jpeg]
>>
>> My bars are showstoppers but they look dark without sun. It’s a nice and 
>> muted look in cloudy weather, and will be dreamy in Michigan golden 
>> sunshine. They are Chocos, which I bought because I thought they looked 
>> sporty on someone else’s bike. 🙄
>> [image: image10.jpeg]
>>
>> Even the Paul levers had to be pulled apart for anodizing. They always 
>> take color well, but again, you’ll have to wait for sun to see.
>> [image: image11.jpeg]
>>
>> The weather was 30s and sleet today with black ice on the road. One of 
>> our surgeons spent a whole day fixing all the broken bones from falls on 
>> the ice recently. Test rides will have to wait, but just from handling the 
>> bike I can tell it’s light and nimble. It steers easily with one hand 
>> guiding it and it looks compact and quick. 
>>
>> “Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club riding friends said. This 
>> bike will not be what they meant when they said that. But I love my Minimal 
>> Compromise Northern Lights Golden Charlie. (First of his name, you know.)
>>
>>  It’s the road bike no one wanted me to have but exactly the one I needed.
>>
>> Leah
>>
>> On Feb 24, 2025, at 10:12 AM, Doug H.  wrote:
>>
>> That is an amazing audio setup! So cool to see what people can do with 
>> their bicycles. 
>>
>>
>> I've ridden in bicycle groups and gotten into pretty good shape but could 
>> never

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Joe Bernard]

The bars and rims are INSANE. I love this bike! 
On Wednesday, February 26, 2025 at 5:39:12 PM UTC-8 Bicycle Belle Ding 
Ding! wrote:

> I got to go to Washington DC, and on my last day there, which was 
> yesterday, my favorite mechanic texted, “Charlie H. Gallop, first of his 
> name, is complete.” 
>
> I came home last night and today made haste to go see Charlie and bring 
> him home to live happily ever after with me. M, my favorite mechanic, is 
> off today. A letdown! But I left him a card that will make him very happy 
> when he gets it; he deserves everything, he is that good. But the other 
> guys were there to chat about the NLC with me, which is half the fun of 
> picking up a new bike.
>
> This bike looks *little* compared to the lengthy Platys that inhabit my 
> garage. 
> [image: image2.jpeg]
> Isn’t it cute? It’s the 53, so it has lighter tubing, too. 
>
> There was not one ray of sunshine today, making most of my color dull. 
> Only the rims catch the light and twinkle at you. 
>
> I asked the shop to hide the dyno wire and showed them an example. I think 
> I’ll snip their black zip ties and add my gray ones. These are 
> Ultradynamicos Cava Race tires in 38 mm.
> [image: image3.jpeg][image: image4.jpeg]
> The galloping horses on the chainstays really do it for me. Here is the 
> RapidRise Grant set me up with. I have no idea if that’s a thing I’ll like; 
> it’s a thing I wanted to *try. *I don’t know what the fuss really is, 
> except that in the event of a derailleur failure, I’d be in a more 
> pedal-able gear. M said, “RapidRise? Are we going to use it though?” He was 
> not convinced. R from the shop said he gave it a test ride, rode up a ramp 
> was shocked when he went to downshift and ended up in a higher gear.  If I 
> hate it I’ll just swap it for the normal kind.
>
> [image: image5.jpeg]
> Some of Ashley’s excellent anodizing can be seen on the luscious Silver3 
> cranks and chainguard. I cannot convey how wonderfully the cranks took 
> color. They drip with NL charm. 
>
> I chose this Spurcycle bell in a moody black and blue. It fits the 
> disposition of this bike - northern lights are never static. Wondrous, 
> elusive things. Moody.
> [image: image6.jpeg]
> You can see the Silver shifters did not take color well. They had a flaky 
> finish that came off in anodizing and they look like blue metal now.  I 
> heard they frustrated the junior mechanic helping M. “There’s no directions 
> to reassemble these! It’s just a schematic!” he was rumored to have said. 
> There’s a scratch on one of the shifters and I do not at all care because I 
> know they were a bear to reassemble. Mark at Riv had taken them apart for 
> anodizing. Will said he’d mash it if he tried, it’s hard to do. I told the 
> guys we could send them back to Riv but they took on the project 
> themselves. In fact, if these shifters got ruined in this process, I will 
> not be shocked. We’ll see how they perform.
>
>
> Here you a see I did do a little matching. I chose gold housing and a gold 
> headlight. You’ll notice gold valve stems on the wheels.
> [image: image7.jpeg]
>
> Again, the new Silver3 cranks in the shorter length (165?). The pedals are 
> oil slick (not NL) but I’m getting away with it somehow.
> [image: image8.jpeg]
>
> The spokes! 😍
> [image: image9.jpeg]
>
> My bars are showstoppers but they look dark without sun. It’s a nice and 
> muted look in cloudy weather, and will be dreamy in Michigan golden 
> sunshine. They are Chocos, which I bought because I thought they looked 
> sporty on someone else’s bike. 🙄
> [image: image10.jpeg]
>
> Even the Paul levers had to be pulled apart for anodizing. They always 
> take color well, but again, you’ll have to wait for sun to see.
> [image: image11.jpeg]
>
> The weather was 30s and sleet today with black ice on the road. One of our 
> surgeons spent a whole day fixing all the broken bones from falls on the 
> ice recently. Test rides will have to wait, but just from handling the bike 
> I can tell it’s light and nimble. It steers easily with one hand guiding it 
> and it looks compact and quick. 
>
> “Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club riding friends said. This 
> bike will not be what they meant when they said that. But I love my Minimal 
> Compromise Northern Lights Golden Charlie. (First of his name, you know.)
>
>  It’s the road bike no one wanted me to have but exactly the one I needed.
>
> Leah
>
> On Feb 24, 2025, at 10:12 AM, Doug H.  wrote:
>
> That is an amazing audio setup! So cool to see what people can do with 
> their bicycles. 
>
>
> I've ridden in bicycle groups and gotten into pretty good shape but could 
> never average 18 or more mph. I think 16 was my max average on a carbon 
> Felt Z6 road bike. I was never dedicated enough to road cycling to really 
> work to improve though so I was satisfied with my slower group. These days 
> I ride solo mostly.
> Doug
>
> On Monday, February 24, 2025 at 10:04:42 AM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Jason Noonievut]

Looks fantastic!On Feb 26, 2025, at 8:39 PM, Leah Peterson  wrote:I got to go to Washington DC, and on my last day there, which was yesterday, my favorite mechanic texted, “Charlie H. Gallop, first of his name, is complete.” I came home last night and today made haste to go see Charlie and bring him home to live happily ever after with me. M, my favorite mechanic, is off today. A letdown! But I left him a card that will make him very happy when he gets it; he deserves everything, he is that good. But the other guys were there to chat about the NLC with me, which is half the fun of picking up a new bike.This bike looks little compared to the lengthy Platys that inhabit my garage. Isn’t it cute? It’s the 53, so it has lighter tubing, too. There was not one ray of sunshine today, making most of my color dull. Only the rims catch the light and twinkle at you. I asked the shop to hide the dyno wire and showed them an example. I think I’ll snip their black zip ties and add my gray ones. These are Ultradynamicos Cava Race tires in 38 mm.The galloping horses on the chainstays really do it for me. Here is the RapidRise Grant set me up with. I have no idea if that’s a thing I’ll like; it’s a thing I wanted to try. I don’t know what the fuss really is, except that in the event of a derailleur failure, I’d be in a more pedal-able gear. M said, “RapidRise? Are we going to use it though?” He was not convinced. R from the shop said he gave it a test ride, rode up a ramp was shocked when he went to downshift and ended up in a higher gear.  If I hate it I’ll just swap it for the normal kind.Some of Ashley’s excellent anodizing can be seen on the luscious Silver3 cranks and chainguard. I cannot convey how wonderfully the cranks took color. They drip with NL charm. I chose this Spurcycle bell in a moody black and blue. It fits the disposition of this bike - northern lights are never static. Wondrous, elusive things. Moody.You can see the Silver shifters did not take color well. They had a flaky finish that came off in anodizing and they look like blue metal now.  I heard they frustrated the junior mechanic helping M. “There’s no directions to reassemble these! It’s just a schematic!” he was rumored to have said. There’s a scratch on one of the shifters and I do not at all care because I know they were a bear to reassemble. Mark at Riv had taken them apart for anodizing. Will said he’d mash it if he tried, it’s hard to do. I told the guys we could send them back to Riv but they took on the project themselves. In fact, if these shifters got ruined in this process, I will not be shocked. We’ll see how they perform.Here you a see I did do a little matching. I chose gold housing and a gold headlight. You’ll notice gold valve stems on the wheels.Again, the new Silver3 cranks in the shorter length (165?). The pedals are oil slick (not NL) but I’m getting away with it somehow.The spokes! 😍My bars are showstoppers but they look dark without sun. It’s a nice and muted look in cloudy weather, and will be dreamy in Michigan golden sunshine. They are Chocos, which I bought because I thought they looked sporty on someone else’s bike. 🙄Even the Paul levers had to be pulled apart for anodizing. They always take color well, but again, you’ll have to wait for sun to see.The weather was 30s and sleet today with black ice on the road. One of our surgeons spent a whole day fixing all the broken bones from falls on the ice recently. Test rides will have to wait, but just from handling the bike I can tell it’s light and nimble. It steers easily with one hand guiding it and it looks compact and quick. “Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club riding friends said. This bike will not be what they meant when they said that. But I love my Minimal Compromise Northern Lights Golden Charlie. (First of his name, you know.) It’s the road bike no one wanted me to have but exactly the one I needed.LeahOn Feb 24, 2025, at 10:12 AM, Doug H.  wrote:That is an amazing audio setup! So cool to see what people can do with their bicycles. I've ridden in bicycle groups and gotten into pretty good shape but could never average 18 or more mph. I think 16 was my max average on a carbon Felt Z6 road bike. I was never dedicated enough to road cycling to really work to improve though so I was satisfied with my slower group. These days I ride solo mostly.DougOn Monday, February 24, 2025 at 10:04:42 AM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:***Sorry! Noticed the video cut off the rest of my message. Here it is, below: ***Despite the prejudice, I have found that my non-traditional bikes keep up in the road rides I do, and when they (ok I) don’t, I’ll just go down a class. The fastest group I go with advertises 16.5-17mph, led by a couple on a tandem, isn’t that wild? I like that we are moving but not getting to that level where you’re gasping and wishing to be done. My women’s group goes 16, and that’s the sweet spot for chitchat, which I love. There is a group that goes 1

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Doug H.]

That is an amazing audio setup! So cool to see what people can do with 
their bicycles. 

I've ridden in bicycle groups and gotten into pretty good shape but could 
never average 18 or more mph. I think 16 was my max average on a carbon 
Felt Z6 road bike. I was never dedicated enough to road cycling to really 
work to improve though so I was satisfied with my slower group. These days 
I ride solo mostly.
Doug

On Monday, February 24, 2025 at 10:04:42 AM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
wrote:

> ***Sorry! Noticed the video cut off the rest of my message. Here it is, 
> below: ***
>
>
> Despite the prejudice, I have found that my non-traditional bikes keep up 
> in the road rides I do, and when they (ok I) don’t, I’ll just go down a 
> class. The fastest group I go with advertises 16.5-17mph, led by a couple 
> on a tandem, isn’t that wild? I like that we are moving but not getting to 
> that level where you’re gasping and wishing to be done. My women’s group 
> goes 16, and that’s the sweet spot for chitchat, which I love. There is a 
> group that goes 18, but it’s a bunch of dudes and I’m not brave enough to 
> ride with them. But I have ridden with their leader on a different ride 
> that he said would be slower and it was SO HARD. We had a mad-hilly route 
> and this guy just always averages 18, regardless of what the ride is 
> supposed to be. I couldn’t even hold a conversation and he said, “Just 
> think if you did this every week, you’d be so fit!” No thanks. 
>
> The RivSisters who went to HQ rodeo the Charlie and reported it was so 
> spritely and lively and fast. I guess we’ll see if it makes any difference 
> compared to my Racing Platypus. Maybe I *will* try the scary 18 mph dude 
> class with the rumored fast Charlie. 
> Leah
>
> On Feb 24, 2025, at 8:52 AM, Leah Peterson  wrote:
>
> Despite the prejudice, I have found that my non-traditional bikes keep up 
> in the road rides I do, and when they (ok I) don’t, I’ll just go down a 
> class. The fastest group I go with advertises 16.5-17mph, led by a couple 
> on a tandem, isn’t that wild? I like that we are moving but not getting to 
> that level where you’re gasping and wishing to be done. My women’s group 
> goes 16, and that’s the sweet spot for chitchat, which I love. There is a 
> group that goes 18, but it’s a bunch of dudes and I’m not brave enough to 
> ride with them. But I have ridden with their leader on a different ride 
> that he said would be slower and it was SO HARD. We had a mad-hilly route 
> and this guy just always averages 18, regardless of what the ride is 
> supposed to be. I couldn’t even hold a conversation and he said, “Just 
> think if you did this every week, you’d be so fit!” No thanks. 
>
> The RivSisters who went to HQ rodeo the Charlie and reported it was so 
> spritely and lively and fast. I guess we’ll see if it makes any difference 
> compared to my Racing Platypus. Maybe I *will* try the scary 18 mph dude 
> class with the rumored fast Charlie. 
> Leah
>
>

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Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Leah Peterson]

***Sorry! Noticed the video cut off the rest of my message. Here it is, below: 
***


Despite the prejudice, I have found that my non-traditional bikes keep up in 
the road rides I do, and when they (ok I) don’t, I’ll just go down a class. The 
fastest group I go with advertises 16.5-17mph, led by a couple on a tandem, 
isn’t that wild? I like that we are moving but not getting to that level where 
you’re gasping and wishing to be done. My women’s group goes 16, and that’s the 
sweet spot for chitchat, which I love. There is a group that goes 18, but it’s 
a bunch of dudes and I’m not brave enough to ride with them. But I have ridden 
with their leader on a different ride that he said would be slower and it was 
SO HARD. We had a mad-hilly route and this guy just always averages 18, 
regardless of what the ride is supposed to be. I couldn’t even hold a 
conversation and he said, “Just think if you did this every week, you’d be so 
fit!” No thanks. 

The RivSisters who went to HQ rodeo the Charlie and reported it was so spritely 
and lively and fast. I guess we’ll see if it makes any difference compared to 
my Racing Platypus. Maybe I will try the scary 18 mph dude class with the 
rumored fast Charlie. 
Leah

> On Feb 24, 2025, at 8:52 AM, Leah Peterson  wrote:
> 
> Despite the prejudice, I have found that my non-traditional bikes keep up in 
> the road rides I do, and when they (ok I) don’t, I’ll just go down a class. 
> The fastest group I go with advertises 16.5-17mph, led by a couple on a 
> tandem, isn’t that wild? I like that we are moving but not getting to that 
> level where you’re gasping and wishing to be done. My women’s group goes 16, 
> and that’s the sweet spot for chitchat, which I love. There is a group that 
> goes 18, but it’s a bunch of dudes and I’m not brave enough to ride with 
> them. But I have ridden with their leader on a different ride that he said 
> would be slower and it was SO HARD. We had a mad-hilly route and this guy 
> just always averages 18, regardless of what the ride is supposed to be. I 
> couldn’t even hold a conversation and he said, “Just think if you did this 
> every week, you’d be so fit!” No thanks. 
> 
> The RivSisters who went to HQ rodeo the Charlie and reported it was so 
> spritely and lively and fast. I guess we’ll see if it makes any difference 
> compared to my Racing Platypus. Maybe I will try the scary 18 mph dude class 
> with the rumored fast Charlie. 
> Leah

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[RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Jason Willey]

thanks for not adding to the lot of "just normal" looking road bikes.  
build and ride what you like!  and holding your own while on group rides 
while being non-traditional is even better!  

On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 7:07:31 PM UTC-5 meti...@gmail.com wrote:

> Your entire post makes me sort of giddy, Leah. YOUR JOB IS TO SHAKE US ALL 
> UP,  SISTER! 
>
> (I have Choco bars on my new purple Platypus and I love them)
>
> Liz in Cincinnati
>
> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 5:59:14 PM UTC-5 Joe Bernard wrote:
>
>> I cannot wait to see this bike. My position is all the carbon dropbar 
>> sleds are wrong and THIS is what a road bike looks like. Convert the masses 
>> Leah! 
>>
>> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 6:50:15 AM UTC-8 Bicycle Belle Ding 
>> Ding! wrote:
>>
>>> It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to talk 
>>> bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for pics and 
>>> not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be photos. 
>>>
>>>
>>> Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop 
>>> at the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to 
>>> build it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can 
>>> get to it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels at 
>>> the moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing Platypus 
>>> yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be 
>>> single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He eyed 
>>> my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you know.” 
>>> He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my 
>>> own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.
>>>
>>>
>>> This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much 
>>> considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of 
>>> this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was 
>>> expected? Should the bike be a compromise? 
>>>
>>>
>>> In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other bike 
>>> categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road cycling 
>>> ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take stock of 
>>> your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road bikes 
>>> should look *a certain way*. Road bike riders should also look *a 
>>> certain way*. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a 
>>> sparkly raspberry Rivendell mixte can hang with the mean-looking carbon 
>>> machines on club rides, the comments and the prejudice have become 
>>> tiresome. 
>>>
>>>
>>> Everyone wants to be accepted. 
>>>
>>>
>>> “Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club friends would say. I 
>>> always laughed it off, said I was content with the Racing Platypus. And I 
>>> was. But I started to wonder what it would feel like to have a Pure Road 
>>> Bike. 
>>>
>>>
>>> I bought my Charlie on a whim. I always get excited when Rivendell puts 
>>> out a new model. I read the product description; it was like they had 
>>> written it for *me*. At high noon of the presale, in the midst of 
>>> Rivendell’s New Yorker fame, I put a golden Charlie in my cart and expected 
>>> they’d snapped up before I could secure one. 
>>>
>>>
>>> The purchase went through.
>>>
>>>
>>> The frame arrived and then sat. I finally had a road bike and could not 
>>> decide how to build it. People thought I should keep it classy with silver 
>>> parts. Ok, add just a pop of color to make it yours. Maybe drop bars. Keep 
>>> it light - leave off those extras, you have them on your other bikes. I’d 
>>> tire of agonizing and leave the project.
>>>
>>>
>>> I looked at my purple Platypus. I’d chosen every part for that bike, and 
>>> it’s my favorite build. I anodized its parts and made it a rainbow-y blur 
>>> of color. Everybody likes that crazy bike, even the purists who’d never 
>>> choose rainbow and oil slick. They like it *for me*. I tossed the 
>>> classy, silver idea and decided I’d do what I like best: color. Since I 
>>> love the rainbow bike I decided on another natural wonder theme. I’d chased 
>>> the aurora borealis this summer and BAM, I knew what this bike was: A 
>>> Northern Lights Charlie.
>>>
>>>
>>> Velocity’s anodizer rides the Wednesday Evening Ride with me and he was 
>>> game to try a deep custom Quill rim in northern lights. He pulled out a 
>>> practice rim and laid the color down. Lifted it with acid and added 
>>> different colors, walking a tightrope that risked the colors running and 
>>> looking muddy. He aimed for a shimmering night sky look based on the 
>>> inspiration photo I’d sent. 
>>>
>>>
>>> He nailed it on the first try. 
>>>
>>>
>>> Meanwhile, the  Mountain West’s celebrated woman anodizer, Ashley, was 
>>> staring into my box of parts, wondering how best to capture the northern 
>>> l

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Leah Peterson]

Jason, your two things will be undeniably and unequivocally true, I know it. You put it perfectly. What will seem like a big change to me will barely a nudge toward Pure Road Bike to the club. But it is really fun to try something new and I’m so glad I can. I had no idea 5 years ago how different my bike life would be. I keep discovering new things and I suppose my bikes reflect that. Joe - I haven’t made a single convert yet.Roberta - aw, shucks. Thanks. I feel like after this winter I’ll be working pretty hard to get back to speed. Club rides start back up in March though! Actually, same week of Philly Bike Expo…Jim - thank you 💛 It blesses me to be among people who understand.On Feb 20, 2025, at 8:48 PM, Jason Fuller  wrote:I believe these two things are true:  the Norther Lights Charlie is going to feel, and be, vastly more Pure Road Bike than your fleet of Platypii; the Charlie will also be only a tiny increment towards a Pure Road Bike in the eyes of your club ride audience. I can certainly empathize with your experience, acknowledging it's even more stark of a contrast than my experiences of riding my shiny fendered but not overly-upright Rivs on rides with folks on typically modern gravel bikes. They see our bikes as novelty, but we know that's far from the truth. Maybe they get the same feeling as we do when they gaze at their own bike, but I doubt it honestly. And they certainly don't understand that they aren't just pretty bikes, either - they are joyous to ride. Maybe their beauty affects our judgement, but I don't see how that matters if the result is the same.  



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Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Jay]

It sounds like all your bikes are, uniquely, you.  I'm sure this one will 
be as well.  What's different, is that 'road' culture is ingrained in many 
people's minds.  Compare that to upright/alt bar bikes, those are so 
different bike to bike.  Road bikes, from the major brands, are all so 
'blah'.  Your 'road' bike will certainly be anything but, though that's 
pretty cool.  It may be more roadish than a Platy, and I'm sure it will be 
fun in a different sort of way.  Can't wait to hear about how it feels when 
you ride it :-)

On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 9:40:53 PM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
wrote:

> Jason, your two things will be undeniably and unequivocally true, I know 
> it. You put it perfectly. What will seem like a big change to me will 
> barely a nudge toward Pure Road Bike to the club. But it is really fun to 
> try something new and I’m so glad I can. I had no idea 5 years ago how 
> different my bike life would be. I keep discovering new things and I 
> suppose my bikes reflect that. 
>
> Joe - I haven’t made a single convert yet.
>
> Roberta - aw, shucks. Thanks. I feel like after this winter I’ll be 
> working pretty hard to get back to speed. Club rides start back up in March 
> though! Actually, same week of Philly Bike Expo…
>
> Jim - thank you 💛 It blesses me to be among people who understand.
>
>
>
> On Feb 20, 2025, at 8:48 PM, Jason Fuller  wrote:
>
> I believe these two things are true:  the Norther Lights Charlie is going 
> to feel, and be, vastly more Pure Road Bike than your fleet of Platypii; 
> the Charlie will also be only a tiny increment towards a Pure Road Bike in 
> the eyes of your club ride audience. 
>
>
>
> I can certainly empathize with your experience, acknowledging it's even 
> more stark of a contrast than my experiences of riding my shiny fendered 
> but not overly-upright Rivs on rides with folks on typically modern gravel 
> bikes. They see our bikes as novelty, but we know that's far from the 
> truth. Maybe they get the same feeling as we do when they gaze at their own 
> bike, but I doubt it honestly. And they certainly don't understand that 
> they aren't just pretty bikes, either - they are joyous to ride. Maybe 
> their beauty affects our judgement, but I don't see how that matters if the 
> result is the same.   
>
> -- 
>
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> Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group.
> To unsubscribe from this topic, visit 
> https://groups.google.com/d/topic/rbw-owners-bunch/alDVSkXugYY/unsubscribe
> .
> To unsubscribe from this group and all its topics, send an email to 
> rbw-owners-bun...@googlegroups.com.
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> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/3eb06b15-696d-4a1d-bc41-1740c32f457bn%40googlegroups.com
>  
> 
> .
>
>

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Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Leah Peterson]

Julian, alas, probably not. I have determined that I need a rack and Backabikes to be happy at PBE. Pam and I lived off of our bikes these last couple of years; we’d get up, hit a ride, go to the Expo, change clothes and hit the booths all day. Then you gotta have warm stuff to put on for your night rides and you have to have something to wear to dinner…the Charlie will have no rack, and therefore no cavernous bags for all our many things. It will likely be the Gravel and Travel Platy, which is also a mess of color, so you’ll have to settle for that! 😜On Feb 20, 2025, at 4:12 PM, Julian Westerhout  wrote:Leah, This is definitely NOT going to be a fit-in-with-the-crowd road bike, and as such it will be terrific!   Are you bringing it to Philly? It would be great to see it in person! Julian WesterhoutBloomington, IL On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 8:50:15 AM UTC-6 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to talk bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for pics and not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be photos. 

Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop at the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to build it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can get to it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels at the moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing Platypus yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He eyed my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you know.” He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.

This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was expected? Should the bike be a compromise? 

In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other bike categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road cycling ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take stock of your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road bikes should look a certain way. Road bike riders should also look a certain way. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a sparkly raspberry Rivendell mixte can hang with the mean-looking carbon machines on club rides, the comments and the prejudice have become tiresome. 

Everyone wants to be accepted. 

“Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club friends would say. I always laughed it off, said I was content with the Racing Platypus. And I was. But I started to wonder what it would feel like to have a Pure Road Bike. 

I bought my Charlie on a whim. I always get excited when Rivendell puts out a new model. I read the product description; it was like they had written it for me. At high noon of the presale, in the midst of Rivendell’s New Yorker fame, I put a golden Charlie in my cart and expected they’d snapped up before I could secure one. 

The purchase went through.

The frame arrived and then sat. I finally had a road bike and could not decide how to build it. People thought I should keep it classy with silver parts. Ok, add just a pop of color to make it yours. Maybe drop bars. Keep it light - leave off those extras, you have them on your other bikes. I’d tire of agonizing and leave the project.

I looked at my purple Platypus. I’d chosen every part for that bike, and it’s my favorite build. I anodized its parts and made it a rainbow-y blur of color. Everybody likes that crazy bike, even the purists who’d never choose rainbow and oil slick. They like it for me. I tossed the classy, silver idea and decided I’d do what I like best: color. Since I love the rainbow bike I decided on another natural wonder theme. I’d chased the aurora borealis this summer and BAM, I knew what this bike was: A Northern Lights Charlie.

Velocity’s anodizer rides the Wednesday Evening Ride with me and he was game to try a deep custom Quill rim in northern lights. He pulled out a practice rim and laid the color down. Lifted it with acid and added different colors, walking a tightrope that risked the colors running and looking muddy. He aimed for a shimmering night sky look based on the inspiration photo I’d sent. 

He nailed it on the first try. 

Meanwhile, the  Mountain West’s celebrated woman anodizer, Ashley, was staring into my box of parts, wondering how best to capture the northern lights on aluminum. Ashley can do anything; but she was conflicted about this project. First try yielded too much black in the background. The next attempt showed a colorful splatter effect. It was beautiful but lost the shimmering northern lights theme. Unsa

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Leah Peterson]

Yay, Sis, you got Choco bars??? I’m delighted to know it! I really hope I love them because I went to the trouble of anodizing them so I’m stuck with them now! I think talking bikes makes us Midwesterners (are MI and OH considered Midwest? The Michiganders sometimes say no) happy in these winter months. This is the most wintry winter since I moved here. It’s beginning to wear on me. We both have new bikes we want to ride, right? I hope you got the shifting figured out! Come to Philly Bike Expo!On Feb 20, 2025, at 7:07 PM, meti...@gmail.com  wrote:Your entire post makes me sort of giddy, Leah. YOUR JOB IS TO SHAKE US ALL UP,  SISTER! (I have Choco bars on my new purple Platypus and I love them)Liz in CincinnatiOn Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 5:59:14 PM UTC-5 Joe Bernard wrote:I cannot wait to see this bike. My position is all the carbon dropbar sleds are wrong and THIS is what a road bike looks like. Convert the masses Leah! On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 6:50:15 AM UTC-8 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to talk bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for pics and not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be photos. 

Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop at the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to build it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can get to it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels at the moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing Platypus yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He eyed my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you know.” He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.

This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was expected? Should the bike be a compromise? 

In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other bike categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road cycling ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take stock of your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road bikes should look a certain way. Road bike riders should also look a certain way. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a sparkly raspberry Rivendell mixte can hang with the mean-looking carbon machines on club rides, the comments and the prejudice have become tiresome. 

Everyone wants to be accepted. 

“Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club friends would say. I always laughed it off, said I was content with the Racing Platypus. And I was. But I started to wonder what it would feel like to have a Pure Road Bike. 

I bought my Charlie on a whim. I always get excited when Rivendell puts out a new model. I read the product description; it was like they had written it for me. At high noon of the presale, in the midst of Rivendell’s New Yorker fame, I put a golden Charlie in my cart and expected they’d snapped up before I could secure one. 

The purchase went through.

The frame arrived and then sat. I finally had a road bike and could not decide how to build it. People thought I should keep it classy with silver parts. Ok, add just a pop of color to make it yours. Maybe drop bars. Keep it light - leave off those extras, you have them on your other bikes. I’d tire of agonizing and leave the project.

I looked at my purple Platypus. I’d chosen every part for that bike, and it’s my favorite build. I anodized its parts and made it a rainbow-y blur of color. Everybody likes that crazy bike, even the purists who’d never choose rainbow and oil slick. They like it for me. I tossed the classy, silver idea and decided I’d do what I like best: color. Since I love the rainbow bike I decided on another natural wonder theme. I’d chased the aurora borealis this summer and BAM, I knew what this bike was: A Northern Lights Charlie.

Velocity’s anodizer rides the Wednesday Evening Ride with me and he was game to try a deep custom Quill rim in northern lights. He pulled out a practice rim and laid the color down. Lifted it with acid and added different colors, walking a tightrope that risked the colors running and looking muddy. He aimed for a shimmering night sky look based on the inspiration photo I’d sent. 

He nailed it on the first try. 

Meanwhile, the  Mountain West’s celebrated woman anodizer, Ashley, was staring into my box of parts, wondering how best to capture the northern lights on aluminum. Ashley can do anything; but she was conflicted about this project. First try yielded too much black in the background. The ne

[RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Roberta]

“they are joyous to ride”. Exactly!  That’s why I have mine. 

Leah already had been leading her group. I have a feeling with the Charlie 
she could if she wanted to ride with the next fastest group and be 
comfortable and joyous at the same time.

On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 8:48:34 PM UTC-5 Jason Fuller wrote:

> I believe these two things are true:  the Norther Lights Charlie is going 
> to feel, and be, vastly more Pure Road Bike than your fleet of Platypii; 
> the Charlie will also be only a tiny increment towards a Pure Road Bike in 
> the eyes of your club ride audience. 
>
> I can certainly empathize with your experience, acknowledging it's even 
> more stark of a contrast than my experiences of riding my shiny fendered 
> but not overly-upright Rivs on rides with folks on typically modern gravel 
> bikes. They see our bikes as novelty, but we know that's far from the 
> truth. Maybe they get the same feeling as we do when they gaze at their own 
> bike, but I doubt it honestly. And they certainly don't understand that 
> they aren't just pretty bikes, either - they are joyous to ride. Maybe 
> their beauty affects our judgement, but I don't see how that matters if the 
> result is the same.  

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[RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Jason Fuller]

To add - I'm really glad you've made the choice to stick to what excites 
you rather than try to conform to what is expected of you. It can feel 
alienating, but also connects you to a group of like-minded people over the 
wider geography. This is true of bikes but it's also true of so many 
things. 

Also I'm so freaking pumped to see the bike come together and see it in 
action. 

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[RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Jason Fuller]

I believe these two things are true:  the Norther Lights Charlie is going 
to feel, and be, vastly more Pure Road Bike than your fleet of Platypii; 
the Charlie will also be only a tiny increment towards a Pure Road Bike in 
the eyes of your club ride audience. 

I can certainly empathize with your experience, acknowledging it's even 
more stark of a contrast than my experiences of riding my shiny fendered 
but not overly-upright Rivs on rides with folks on typically modern gravel 
bikes. They see our bikes as novelty, but we know that's far from the 
truth. Maybe they get the same feeling as we do when they gaze at their own 
bike, but I doubt it honestly. And they certainly don't understand that 
they aren't just pretty bikes, either - they are joyous to ride. Maybe 
their beauty affects our judgement, but I don't see how that matters if the 
result is the same.  

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[RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[J J]

Lovely write up, Leah. Thank you. It’s great to hear about your inexorable 
drive to march to the beat of your own drum (or perhaps I should say, *to 
pedal to the cadence of your own crankset….*) and build a bike that 
expresses your vibe. 

Jim

On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 7:07:31 PM UTC-5 meti...@gmail.com wrote:

> Your entire post makes me sort of giddy, Leah. YOUR JOB IS TO SHAKE US ALL 
> UP,  SISTER! 
>
> (I have Choco bars on my new purple Platypus and I love them)
>
> Liz in Cincinnati
>
> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 5:59:14 PM UTC-5 Joe Bernard wrote:
>
>> I cannot wait to see this bike. My position is all the carbon dropbar 
>> sleds are wrong and THIS is what a road bike looks like. Convert the masses 
>> Leah! 
>>
>> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 6:50:15 AM UTC-8 Bicycle Belle Ding 
>> Ding! wrote:
>>
>>> It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to talk 
>>> bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for pics and 
>>> not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be photos. 
>>>
>>>
>>> Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop 
>>> at the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to 
>>> build it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can 
>>> get to it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels at 
>>> the moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing Platypus 
>>> yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be 
>>> single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He eyed 
>>> my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you know.” 
>>> He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my 
>>> own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.
>>>
>>>
>>> This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much 
>>> considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of 
>>> this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was 
>>> expected? Should the bike be a compromise? 
>>>
>>>
>>> In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other bike 
>>> categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road cycling 
>>> ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take stock of 
>>> your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road bikes 
>>> should look *a certain way*. Road bike riders should also look *a 
>>> certain way*. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a 
>>> sparkly raspberry Rivendell mixte can hang with the mean-looking carbon 
>>> machines on club rides, the comments and the prejudice have become 
>>> tiresome. 
>>>
>>>
>>> Everyone wants to be accepted. 
>>>
>>>
>>> “Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club friends would say. I 
>>> always laughed it off, said I was content with the Racing Platypus. And I 
>>> was. But I started to wonder what it would feel like to have a Pure Road 
>>> Bike. 
>>>
>>>
>>> I bought my Charlie on a whim. I always get excited when Rivendell puts 
>>> out a new model. I read the product description; it was like they had 
>>> written it for *me*. At high noon of the presale, in the midst of 
>>> Rivendell’s New Yorker fame, I put a golden Charlie in my cart and expected 
>>> they’d snapped up before I could secure one. 
>>>
>>>
>>> The purchase went through.
>>>
>>>
>>> The frame arrived and then sat. I finally had a road bike and could not 
>>> decide how to build it. People thought I should keep it classy with silver 
>>> parts. Ok, add just a pop of color to make it yours. Maybe drop bars. Keep 
>>> it light - leave off those extras, you have them on your other bikes. I’d 
>>> tire of agonizing and leave the project.
>>>
>>>
>>> I looked at my purple Platypus. I’d chosen every part for that bike, and 
>>> it’s my favorite build. I anodized its parts and made it a rainbow-y blur 
>>> of color. Everybody likes that crazy bike, even the purists who’d never 
>>> choose rainbow and oil slick. They like it *for me*. I tossed the 
>>> classy, silver idea and decided I’d do what I like best: color. Since I 
>>> love the rainbow bike I decided on another natural wonder theme. I’d chased 
>>> the aurora borealis this summer and BAM, I knew what this bike was: A 
>>> Northern Lights Charlie.
>>>
>>>
>>> Velocity’s anodizer rides the Wednesday Evening Ride with me and he was 
>>> game to try a deep custom Quill rim in northern lights. He pulled out a 
>>> practice rim and laid the color down. Lifted it with acid and added 
>>> different colors, walking a tightrope that risked the colors running and 
>>> looking muddy. He aimed for a shimmering night sky look based on the 
>>> inspiration photo I’d sent. 
>>>
>>>
>>> He nailed it on the first try. 
>>>
>>>
>>> Meanwhile, the  Mountain West’s celebrated woman anodizer, Ashley, was 
>>> staring into my box of p

[RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[meti...@gmail.com]

Your entire post makes me sort of giddy, Leah. YOUR JOB IS TO SHAKE US ALL 
UP,  SISTER! 

(I have Choco bars on my new purple Platypus and I love them)

Liz in Cincinnati

On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 5:59:14 PM UTC-5 Joe Bernard wrote:

> I cannot wait to see this bike. My position is all the carbon dropbar 
> sleds are wrong and THIS is what a road bike looks like. Convert the masses 
> Leah! 
>
> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 6:50:15 AM UTC-8 Bicycle Belle Ding 
> Ding! wrote:
>
>> It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to talk 
>> bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for pics and 
>> not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be photos. 
>>
>>
>> Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop at 
>> the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to build 
>> it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can get to 
>> it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels at the 
>> moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing Platypus 
>> yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be 
>> single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He eyed 
>> my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you know.” 
>> He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my 
>> own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.
>>
>>
>> This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much 
>> considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of 
>> this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was 
>> expected? Should the bike be a compromise? 
>>
>>
>> In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other bike 
>> categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road cycling 
>> ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take stock of 
>> your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road bikes 
>> should look *a certain way*. Road bike riders should also look *a 
>> certain way*. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a 
>> sparkly raspberry Rivendell mixte can hang with the mean-looking carbon 
>> machines on club rides, the comments and the prejudice have become 
>> tiresome. 
>>
>>
>> Everyone wants to be accepted. 
>>
>>
>> “Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club friends would say. I always 
>> laughed it off, said I was content with the Racing Platypus. And I was. But 
>> I started to wonder what it would feel like to have a Pure Road Bike. 
>>
>>
>> I bought my Charlie on a whim. I always get excited when Rivendell puts 
>> out a new model. I read the product description; it was like they had 
>> written it for *me*. At high noon of the presale, in the midst of 
>> Rivendell’s New Yorker fame, I put a golden Charlie in my cart and expected 
>> they’d snapped up before I could secure one. 
>>
>>
>> The purchase went through.
>>
>>
>> The frame arrived and then sat. I finally had a road bike and could not 
>> decide how to build it. People thought I should keep it classy with silver 
>> parts. Ok, add just a pop of color to make it yours. Maybe drop bars. Keep 
>> it light - leave off those extras, you have them on your other bikes. I’d 
>> tire of agonizing and leave the project.
>>
>>
>> I looked at my purple Platypus. I’d chosen every part for that bike, and 
>> it’s my favorite build. I anodized its parts and made it a rainbow-y blur 
>> of color. Everybody likes that crazy bike, even the purists who’d never 
>> choose rainbow and oil slick. They like it *for me*. I tossed the 
>> classy, silver idea and decided I’d do what I like best: color. Since I 
>> love the rainbow bike I decided on another natural wonder theme. I’d chased 
>> the aurora borealis this summer and BAM, I knew what this bike was: A 
>> Northern Lights Charlie.
>>
>>
>> Velocity’s anodizer rides the Wednesday Evening Ride with me and he was 
>> game to try a deep custom Quill rim in northern lights. He pulled out a 
>> practice rim and laid the color down. Lifted it with acid and added 
>> different colors, walking a tightrope that risked the colors running and 
>> looking muddy. He aimed for a shimmering night sky look based on the 
>> inspiration photo I’d sent. 
>>
>>
>> He nailed it on the first try. 
>>
>>
>> Meanwhile, the  Mountain West’s celebrated woman anodizer, Ashley, was 
>> staring into my box of parts, wondering how best to capture the northern 
>> lights on aluminum. Ashley can do anything; but she was conflicted about 
>> this project. First try yielded too much black in the background. The next 
>> attempt showed a colorful splatter effect. It was beautiful but lost the 
>> shimmering northern lights theme. Unsatisfied, she tried again and finally 
>> captured it. Shimmering northern lights twinkled at me from a Choco 

[RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Joe Bernard]

I cannot wait to see this bike. My position is all the carbon dropbar sleds 
are wrong and THIS is what a road bike looks like. Convert the masses Leah! 

On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 6:50:15 AM UTC-8 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
wrote:

> It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to talk 
> bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for pics and 
> not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be photos. 
>
>
> Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop at 
> the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to build 
> it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can get to 
> it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels at the 
> moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing Platypus 
> yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be 
> single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He eyed 
> my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you know.” 
> He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my 
> own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.
>
>
> This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much 
> considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of 
> this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was 
> expected? Should the bike be a compromise? 
>
>
> In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other bike 
> categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road cycling 
> ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take stock of 
> your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road bikes 
> should look *a certain way*. Road bike riders should also look *a certain 
> way*. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a sparkly 
> raspberry Rivendell mixte can hang with the mean-looking carbon machines on 
> club rides, the comments and the prejudice have become tiresome. 
>
>
> Everyone wants to be accepted. 
>
>
> “Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club friends would say. I always 
> laughed it off, said I was content with the Racing Platypus. And I was. But 
> I started to wonder what it would feel like to have a Pure Road Bike. 
>
>
> I bought my Charlie on a whim. I always get excited when Rivendell puts 
> out a new model. I read the product description; it was like they had 
> written it for *me*. At high noon of the presale, in the midst of 
> Rivendell’s New Yorker fame, I put a golden Charlie in my cart and expected 
> they’d snapped up before I could secure one. 
>
>
> The purchase went through.
>
>
> The frame arrived and then sat. I finally had a road bike and could not 
> decide how to build it. People thought I should keep it classy with silver 
> parts. Ok, add just a pop of color to make it yours. Maybe drop bars. Keep 
> it light - leave off those extras, you have them on your other bikes. I’d 
> tire of agonizing and leave the project.
>
>
> I looked at my purple Platypus. I’d chosen every part for that bike, and 
> it’s my favorite build. I anodized its parts and made it a rainbow-y blur 
> of color. Everybody likes that crazy bike, even the purists who’d never 
> choose rainbow and oil slick. They like it *for me*. I tossed the classy, 
> silver idea and decided I’d do what I like best: color. Since I love the 
> rainbow bike I decided on another natural wonder theme. I’d chased the 
> aurora borealis this summer and BAM, I knew what this bike was: A Northern 
> Lights Charlie.
>
>
> Velocity’s anodizer rides the Wednesday Evening Ride with me and he was 
> game to try a deep custom Quill rim in northern lights. He pulled out a 
> practice rim and laid the color down. Lifted it with acid and added 
> different colors, walking a tightrope that risked the colors running and 
> looking muddy. He aimed for a shimmering night sky look based on the 
> inspiration photo I’d sent. 
>
>
> He nailed it on the first try. 
>
>
> Meanwhile, the  Mountain West’s celebrated woman anodizer, Ashley, was 
> staring into my box of parts, wondering how best to capture the northern 
> lights on aluminum. Ashley can do anything; but she was conflicted about 
> this project. First try yielded too much black in the background. The next 
> attempt showed a colorful splatter effect. It was beautiful but lost the 
> shimmering northern lights theme. Unsatisfied, she tried again and finally 
> captured it. Shimmering northern lights twinkled at me from a Choco bar on 
> my screen. Undeniably beautiful, whatever your opinion about Pure Road 
> Bike. Some of the parts transferred color better than others; aluminum is 
> not all the same. The Rivendell Silver 2 shifters were problematic; the 
> finish is a plasticky, flaky compound that Ashley ended up blasting off. 
> They took color poorly. The Silver 

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[J G]

Makes sense.  I suspected the Velocity Ano guy was at the root of that term 
being used, just as I suspect he would also attribute the phrase to be 
rooted in Erik's work.

On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 2:27:22 PM UTC-6 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
wrote:

> Because Velocity is headquartered in Grand Rapids, I’ve had the pleasure 
> of meeting several of their employees on rides. They use the term “deep 
> custom.” You can get standard ano colors or if you want your own thing it’s 
> called “deep custom.” I’m pretty sure my local bike shop used the term when 
> we were ordering my Platypus wheels, too.
>
> On Feb 20, 2025, at 3:23 PM, J G  wrote:
>
> "Deep Custom" is a term that, I believe, was initially associated with 
> custom builder Erik Noren of Peacock Groove (and Cake bikes).
>
>
> See 30 second video from 2011 when the term came to the forefront:  
> https://vimeo.com/32808794
>
> Also see Anna Schwinn's concept bike if you like Purple:  
> https://road.cc/content/news/219054-schwinn-create-one-purple-bike-tribute-prince
>
> See the Evil Dead bike for something a little more out there:  
> https://theradavist.com/beautiful-bicycle-erik-norens-peacock-groove-evil-dead-tribute-track/
>
> For his projects, that meant far beyond a traditional custom frame with 
> each project really being a concept bike with layers of custom work at 
> every level right down to paint and Ano work.  Your bike project 
> immediately make me think of Erik and when the term "Deep Custom" came up 
> in your thread, I thought those words might have been seeded by your Ano 
> guy as the bike business is small and he may know Erik well.  You just do 
> not hear that term often and applied correctly.
>
> -Justus
> Mpls, MN
>
> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 1:04:07 PM UTC-6 Bicycle Belle Ding 
> Ding! wrote:
>
>> Doug - 🥰 Thank you so much. You’re such a pal. 
>>
>> Laing - wait we will! You have so many Rivs you have pretty much seen it 
>> all, so I’m flattered you are eager to see one of my little ol’ builds.
>>
>> Justus - I googled and came up short. I have no idea what two words I 
>> used and why they resonate with you, but spill.
>>
>> On Feb 20, 2025, at 1:54 PM, Michael Connors  
>> wrote:
>>
>> image search Google with his name and 'bicycle'
>>
>>
>>
>> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 12:33:37 PM UTC-6 Ryan wrote:
>>
>>> Well...Justin, obscure to me. Hockey player? Actor? I'm stumped and 
>>> Google didn't help. Enlighten me! :) 
>>>
>>> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 11:48:19 AM UTC-6 Roberta wrote:
>>>

 *“They will be so excited to hear I got a road bike. They will be so 
 let down when they see my version of that. I don’t think I can apologize. 
 I 
 think I have to be Leah.”*
 I’ve been following Leah‘s beautiful build decisions along the way and 
 I’m so excited for her. This will be the perfect Leah road bike and I 
 cannot wait to see the finished product.  It will be so “Leah,” perfect. 

 Roberta
 Philadelphia
 On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 9:50:15 AM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding 
 Ding! wrote:

> It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to 
> talk bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for 
> pics 
> and not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be 
> photos. 
>
>
> Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop 
> at the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to 
> build it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can 
> get to it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels 
> at 
> the moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing 
> Platypus 
> yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be 
> single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He 
> eyed 
> my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you 
> know.” 
> He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my 
> own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.
>
>
> This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much 
> considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of 
> this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was 
> expected? Should the bike be a compromise? 
>
>
> In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other 
> bike categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road 
> cycling ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take 
> stock of your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road 
> bikes should look *a certain way*. Road bike riders should also look *a 
> certain way*. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a 
>>

[RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Julian Westerhout]

Leah, 

This is definitely NOT going to be a fit-in-with-the-crowd road bike, and 
as such it will be terrific!   Are you bringing it to Philly? It would be 
great to see it in person! 


Julian Westerhout
Bloomington, IL 

On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 8:50:15 AM UTC-6 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
wrote:

> It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to talk 
> bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for pics and 
> not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be photos. 
>
>
> Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop at 
> the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to build 
> it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can get to 
> it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels at the 
> moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing Platypus 
> yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be 
> single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He eyed 
> my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you know.” 
> He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my 
> own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.
>
>
> This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much 
> considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of 
> this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was 
> expected? Should the bike be a compromise? 
>
>
> In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other bike 
> categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road cycling 
> ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take stock of 
> your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road bikes 
> should look *a certain way*. Road bike riders should also look *a certain 
> way*. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a sparkly 
> raspberry Rivendell mixte can hang with the mean-looking carbon machines on 
> club rides, the comments and the prejudice have become tiresome. 
>
>
> Everyone wants to be accepted. 
>
>
> “Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club friends would say. I always 
> laughed it off, said I was content with the Racing Platypus. And I was. But 
> I started to wonder what it would feel like to have a Pure Road Bike. 
>
>
> I bought my Charlie on a whim. I always get excited when Rivendell puts 
> out a new model. I read the product description; it was like they had 
> written it for *me*. At high noon of the presale, in the midst of 
> Rivendell’s New Yorker fame, I put a golden Charlie in my cart and expected 
> they’d snapped up before I could secure one. 
>
>
> The purchase went through.
>
>
> The frame arrived and then sat. I finally had a road bike and could not 
> decide how to build it. People thought I should keep it classy with silver 
> parts. Ok, add just a pop of color to make it yours. Maybe drop bars. Keep 
> it light - leave off those extras, you have them on your other bikes. I’d 
> tire of agonizing and leave the project.
>
>
> I looked at my purple Platypus. I’d chosen every part for that bike, and 
> it’s my favorite build. I anodized its parts and made it a rainbow-y blur 
> of color. Everybody likes that crazy bike, even the purists who’d never 
> choose rainbow and oil slick. They like it *for me*. I tossed the classy, 
> silver idea and decided I’d do what I like best: color. Since I love the 
> rainbow bike I decided on another natural wonder theme. I’d chased the 
> aurora borealis this summer and BAM, I knew what this bike was: A Northern 
> Lights Charlie.
>
>
> Velocity’s anodizer rides the Wednesday Evening Ride with me and he was 
> game to try a deep custom Quill rim in northern lights. He pulled out a 
> practice rim and laid the color down. Lifted it with acid and added 
> different colors, walking a tightrope that risked the colors running and 
> looking muddy. He aimed for a shimmering night sky look based on the 
> inspiration photo I’d sent. 
>
>
> He nailed it on the first try. 
>
>
> Meanwhile, the  Mountain West’s celebrated woman anodizer, Ashley, was 
> staring into my box of parts, wondering how best to capture the northern 
> lights on aluminum. Ashley can do anything; but she was conflicted about 
> this project. First try yielded too much black in the background. The next 
> attempt showed a colorful splatter effect. It was beautiful but lost the 
> shimmering northern lights theme. Unsatisfied, she tried again and finally 
> captured it. Shimmering northern lights twinkled at me from a Choco bar on 
> my screen. Undeniably beautiful, whatever your opinion about Pure Road 
> Bike. Some of the parts transferred color better than others; aluminum is 
> not all the same. The Rivendell Silver 2 shifters were problematic; the 
> finish is a plasticky, flaky compound that

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Leah Peterson]

Because Velocity is headquartered in Grand Rapids, I’ve had the pleasure of meeting several of their employees on rides. They use the term “deep custom.” You can get standard ano colors or if you want your own thing it’s called “deep custom.” I’m pretty sure my local bike shop used the term when we were ordering my Platypus wheels, too.On Feb 20, 2025, at 3:23 PM, J G  wrote:"Deep Custom" is a term that, I believe, was initially associated with custom builder Erik Noren of Peacock Groove (and Cake bikes).See 30 second video from 2011 when the term came to the forefront:  https://vimeo.com/32808794Also see Anna Schwinn's concept bike if you like Purple:  https://road.cc/content/news/219054-schwinn-create-one-purple-bike-tribute-princeSee the Evil Dead bike for something a little more out there:  https://theradavist.com/beautiful-bicycle-erik-norens-peacock-groove-evil-dead-tribute-track/For his projects, that meant far beyond a traditional custom frame with each project really being a concept bike with layers of custom work at every level right down to paint and Ano work.  Your bike project immediately make me think of Erik and when the term "Deep Custom" came up in your thread, I thought those words might have been seeded by your Ano guy as the bike business is small and he may know Erik well.  You just do not hear that term often and applied correctly.-JustusMpls, MNOn Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 1:04:07 PM UTC-6 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:Doug - 🥰 Thank you so much. You’re such a pal. Laing - wait we will! You have so many Rivs you have pretty much seen it all, so I’m flattered you are eager to see one of my little ol’ builds.Justus - I googled and came up short. I have no idea what two words I used and why they resonate with you, but spill.On Feb 20, 2025, at 1:54 PM, Michael Connors  wrote:image search Google with his name and 'bicycle'On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 12:33:37 PM UTC-6 Ryan wrote:Well...Justin, obscure to me. Hockey player? Actor? I'm stumped and Google didn't help. Enlighten me! :) On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 11:48:19 AM UTC-6 Roberta wrote:“They will be so excited to hear I got a road bike. They will be so let down when they see my version of that. I don’t think I can apologize. I think I have to be Leah.”I’ve been following Leah‘s beautiful build decisions along the way and I’m so excited for her. This will be the perfect Leah road bike and I cannot wait to see the finished product.  It will be so “Leah,” perfect. RobertaPhiladelphiaOn Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 9:50:15 AM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to talk bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for pics and not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be photos. 

Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop at the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to build it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can get to it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels at the moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing Platypus yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He eyed my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you know.” He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.

This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was expected? Should the bike be a compromise? 

In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other bike categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road cycling ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take stock of your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road bikes should look a certain way. Road bike riders should also look a certain way. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a sparkly raspberry Rivendell mixte can hang with the mean-looking carbon machines on club rides, the comments and the prejudice have become tiresome. 

Everyone wants to be accepted. 

“Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club friends would say. I always laughed it off, said I was content with the Racing Platypus. And I was. But I started to wonder what it would feel like to have a Pure Road Bike. 

I bought my Charlie on a whim. I always get excited when Rivendell puts out a new model. I read the product description; it was like they had written it for me. At high noon of the presale, in the midst of Rivendell’s New Yorker fame, I put a golden Charlie in my cart and expected they’d snapped up before I could secure one. 

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[J G]

Persistence.  Yes, just posted that as one of the examples!

On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 2:20:47 PM UTC-6 Ryan wrote:

> ok maybe this Evil Dead bike; scroll to the end...pretty wild!
>
>
> https://bikerumor.com/peacock-grooves-erik-noren-is-the-cycling-industrys-misunderstood-artist/
>  
>
> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 1:04:07 PM UTC-6 Bicycle Belle Ding 
> Ding! wrote:
>
>> Doug - 🥰 Thank you so much. You’re such a pal. 
>>
>> Laing - wait we will! You have so many Rivs you have pretty much seen it 
>> all, so I’m flattered you are eager to see one of my little ol’ builds.
>>
>> Justus - I googled and came up short. I have no idea what two words I 
>> used and why they resonate with you, but spill.
>>
>> On Feb 20, 2025, at 1:54 PM, Michael Connors  
>> wrote:
>>
>> image search Google with his name and 'bicycle'
>>
>>
>>
>> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 12:33:37 PM UTC-6 Ryan wrote:
>>
>>> Well...Justin, obscure to me. Hockey player? Actor? I'm stumped and 
>>> Google didn't help. Enlighten me! :) 
>>>
>>> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 11:48:19 AM UTC-6 Roberta wrote:
>>>

 *“They will be so excited to hear I got a road bike. They will be so 
 let down when they see my version of that. I don’t think I can apologize. 
 I 
 think I have to be Leah.”*
 I’ve been following Leah‘s beautiful build decisions along the way and 
 I’m so excited for her. This will be the perfect Leah road bike and I 
 cannot wait to see the finished product.  It will be so “Leah,” perfect. 

 Roberta
 Philadelphia
 On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 9:50:15 AM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding 
 Ding! wrote:

> It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to 
> talk bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for 
> pics 
> and not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be 
> photos. 
>
>
> Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop 
> at the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to 
> build it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can 
> get to it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels 
> at 
> the moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing 
> Platypus 
> yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be 
> single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He 
> eyed 
> my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you 
> know.” 
> He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my 
> own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.
>
>
> This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much 
> considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of 
> this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was 
> expected? Should the bike be a compromise? 
>
>
> In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other 
> bike categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road 
> cycling ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take 
> stock of your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road 
> bikes should look *a certain way*. Road bike riders should also look *a 
> certain way*. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a 
> sparkly raspberry Rivendell mixte can hang with the mean-looking carbon 
> machines on club rides, the comments and the prejudice have become 
> tiresome. 
>
>
> Everyone wants to be accepted. 
>
>
> “Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club friends would say. I 
> always laughed it off, said I was content with the Racing Platypus. And I 
> was. But I started to wonder what it would feel like to have a Pure Road 
> Bike. 
>
>
> I bought my Charlie on a whim. I always get excited when Rivendell 
> puts out a new model. I read the product description; it was like they 
> had 
> written it for *me*. At high noon of the presale, in the midst of 
> Rivendell’s New Yorker fame, I put a golden Charlie in my cart and 
> expected 
> they’d snapped up before I could secure one. 
>
>
> The purchase went through.
>
>
> The frame arrived and then sat. I finally had a road bike and could 
> not decide how to build it. People thought I should keep it classy with 
> silver parts. Ok, add just a pop of color to make it yours. Maybe drop 
> bars. Keep it light - leave off those extras, you have them on your other 
> bikes. I’d tire of agonizing and leave the project.
>
>
> I looked at my purple Platypus. I’d chosen every part for that bike, 
> and it’s my favorite build. I anodized its parts

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[J G]

"Deep Custom" is a term that, I believe, was initially associated with 
custom builder Erik Noren of Peacock Groove (and Cake bikes).

See 30 second video from 2011 when the term came to the 
forefront:  https://vimeo.com/32808794

Also see Anna Schwinn's concept bike if you like 
Purple:  
https://road.cc/content/news/219054-schwinn-create-one-purple-bike-tribute-prince

See the Evil Dead bike for something a little more out 
there:  
https://theradavist.com/beautiful-bicycle-erik-norens-peacock-groove-evil-dead-tribute-track/

For his projects, that meant far beyond a traditional custom frame with 
each project really being a concept bike with layers of custom work at 
every level right down to paint and Ano work.  Your bike project 
immediately make me think of Erik and when the term "Deep Custom" came up 
in your thread, I thought those words might have been seeded by your Ano 
guy as the bike business is small and he may know Erik well.  You just do 
not hear that term often and applied correctly.

-Justus
Mpls, MN

On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 1:04:07 PM UTC-6 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
wrote:

> Doug - 🥰 Thank you so much. You’re such a pal. 
>
> Laing - wait we will! You have so many Rivs you have pretty much seen it 
> all, so I’m flattered you are eager to see one of my little ol’ builds.
>
> Justus - I googled and came up short. I have no idea what two words I used 
> and why they resonate with you, but spill.
>
> On Feb 20, 2025, at 1:54 PM, Michael Connors  
> wrote:
>
> image search Google with his name and 'bicycle'
>
>
>
> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 12:33:37 PM UTC-6 Ryan wrote:
>
>> Well...Justin, obscure to me. Hockey player? Actor? I'm stumped and 
>> Google didn't help. Enlighten me! :) 
>>
>> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 11:48:19 AM UTC-6 Roberta wrote:
>>
>>>
>>> *“They will be so excited to hear I got a road bike. They will be so let 
>>> down when they see my version of that. I don’t think I can apologize. I 
>>> think I have to be Leah.”*
>>> I’ve been following Leah‘s beautiful build decisions along the way and 
>>> I’m so excited for her. This will be the perfect Leah road bike and I 
>>> cannot wait to see the finished product.  It will be so “Leah,” perfect. 
>>>
>>> Roberta
>>> Philadelphia
>>> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 9:50:15 AM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding 
>>> Ding! wrote:
>>>
 It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to 
 talk bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for 
 pics 
 and not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be 
 photos. 


 Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop 
 at the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to 
 build it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can 
 get to it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels 
 at 
 the moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing 
 Platypus 
 yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be 
 single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He eyed 
 my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you 
 know.” 
 He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my 
 own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.


 This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much 
 considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of 
 this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was 
 expected? Should the bike be a compromise? 


 In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other bike 
 categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road cycling 
 ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take stock of 
 your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road bikes 
 should look *a certain way*. Road bike riders should also look *a 
 certain way*. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a 
 sparkly raspberry Rivendell mixte can hang with the mean-looking carbon 
 machines on club rides, the comments and the prejudice have become 
 tiresome. 


 Everyone wants to be accepted. 


 “Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club friends would say. I 
 always laughed it off, said I was content with the Racing Platypus. And I 
 was. But I started to wonder what it would feel like to have a Pure Road 
 Bike. 


 I bought my Charlie on a whim. I always get excited when Rivendell puts 
 out a new model. I read the product description; it was like they had 
 written it for *me*. At high noon of the presale, in the midst of 
 Rivendell’s New Yorker fame, I put a golden Charlie in my cart and 
 expect

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Ryan]

ok maybe this Evil Dead bike; scroll to the end...pretty wild!

https://bikerumor.com/peacock-grooves-erik-noren-is-the-cycling-industrys-misunderstood-artist/
 

On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 1:04:07 PM UTC-6 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
wrote:

> Doug - 🥰 Thank you so much. You’re such a pal. 
>
> Laing - wait we will! You have so many Rivs you have pretty much seen it 
> all, so I’m flattered you are eager to see one of my little ol’ builds.
>
> Justus - I googled and came up short. I have no idea what two words I used 
> and why they resonate with you, but spill.
>
> On Feb 20, 2025, at 1:54 PM, Michael Connors  
> wrote:
>
> image search Google with his name and 'bicycle'
>
>
>
> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 12:33:37 PM UTC-6 Ryan wrote:
>
>> Well...Justin, obscure to me. Hockey player? Actor? I'm stumped and 
>> Google didn't help. Enlighten me! :) 
>>
>> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 11:48:19 AM UTC-6 Roberta wrote:
>>
>>>
>>> *“They will be so excited to hear I got a road bike. They will be so let 
>>> down when they see my version of that. I don’t think I can apologize. I 
>>> think I have to be Leah.”*
>>> I’ve been following Leah‘s beautiful build decisions along the way and 
>>> I’m so excited for her. This will be the perfect Leah road bike and I 
>>> cannot wait to see the finished product.  It will be so “Leah,” perfect. 
>>>
>>> Roberta
>>> Philadelphia
>>> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 9:50:15 AM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding 
>>> Ding! wrote:
>>>
 It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to 
 talk bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for 
 pics 
 and not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be 
 photos. 


 Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop 
 at the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to 
 build it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can 
 get to it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels 
 at 
 the moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing 
 Platypus 
 yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be 
 single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He eyed 
 my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you 
 know.” 
 He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my 
 own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.


 This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much 
 considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of 
 this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was 
 expected? Should the bike be a compromise? 


 In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other bike 
 categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road cycling 
 ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take stock of 
 your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road bikes 
 should look *a certain way*. Road bike riders should also look *a 
 certain way*. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a 
 sparkly raspberry Rivendell mixte can hang with the mean-looking carbon 
 machines on club rides, the comments and the prejudice have become 
 tiresome. 


 Everyone wants to be accepted. 


 “Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club friends would say. I 
 always laughed it off, said I was content with the Racing Platypus. And I 
 was. But I started to wonder what it would feel like to have a Pure Road 
 Bike. 


 I bought my Charlie on a whim. I always get excited when Rivendell puts 
 out a new model. I read the product description; it was like they had 
 written it for *me*. At high noon of the presale, in the midst of 
 Rivendell’s New Yorker fame, I put a golden Charlie in my cart and 
 expected 
 they’d snapped up before I could secure one. 


 The purchase went through.


 The frame arrived and then sat. I finally had a road bike and could not 
 decide how to build it. People thought I should keep it classy with silver 
 parts. Ok, add just a pop of color to make it yours. Maybe drop bars. Keep 
 it light - leave off those extras, you have them on your other bikes. I’d 
 tire of agonizing and leave the project.


 I looked at my purple Platypus. I’d chosen every part for that bike, 
 and it’s my favorite build. I anodized its parts and made it a rainbow-y 
 blur of color. Everybody likes that crazy bike, even the purists who’d 
 never choose rainbow and oil slick. They like it *for me*. I tossed 
 the classy, silver idea and decided I’d do what I like best: color. Since 
 I

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Leah Peterson]

Doug - 🥰 Thank you so much. You’re such a pal. Laing - wait we will! You have so many Rivs you have pretty much seen it all, so I’m flattered you are eager to see one of my little ol’ builds.Justus - I googled and came up short. I have no idea what two words I used and why they resonate with you, but spill.On Feb 20, 2025, at 1:54 PM, Michael Connors  wrote:image search Google with his name and 'bicycle'On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 12:33:37 PM UTC-6 Ryan wrote:Well...Justin, obscure to me. Hockey player? Actor? I'm stumped and Google didn't help. Enlighten me! :) On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 11:48:19 AM UTC-6 Roberta wrote:“They will be so excited to hear I got a road bike. They will be so let down when they see my version of that. I don’t think I can apologize. I think I have to be Leah.”I’ve been following Leah‘s beautiful build decisions along the way and I’m so excited for her. This will be the perfect Leah road bike and I cannot wait to see the finished product.  It will be so “Leah,” perfect. RobertaPhiladelphiaOn Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 9:50:15 AM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to talk bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for pics and not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be photos. 

Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop at the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to build it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can get to it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels at the moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing Platypus yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He eyed my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you know.” He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.

This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was expected? Should the bike be a compromise? 

In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other bike categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road cycling ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take stock of your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road bikes should look a certain way. Road bike riders should also look a certain way. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a sparkly raspberry Rivendell mixte can hang with the mean-looking carbon machines on club rides, the comments and the prejudice have become tiresome. 

Everyone wants to be accepted. 

“Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club friends would say. I always laughed it off, said I was content with the Racing Platypus. And I was. But I started to wonder what it would feel like to have a Pure Road Bike. 

I bought my Charlie on a whim. I always get excited when Rivendell puts out a new model. I read the product description; it was like they had written it for me. At high noon of the presale, in the midst of Rivendell’s New Yorker fame, I put a golden Charlie in my cart and expected they’d snapped up before I could secure one. 

The purchase went through.

The frame arrived and then sat. I finally had a road bike and could not decide how to build it. People thought I should keep it classy with silver parts. Ok, add just a pop of color to make it yours. Maybe drop bars. Keep it light - leave off those extras, you have them on your other bikes. I’d tire of agonizing and leave the project.

I looked at my purple Platypus. I’d chosen every part for that bike, and it’s my favorite build. I anodized its parts and made it a rainbow-y blur of color. Everybody likes that crazy bike, even the purists who’d never choose rainbow and oil slick. They like it for me. I tossed the classy, silver idea and decided I’d do what I like best: color. Since I love the rainbow bike I decided on another natural wonder theme. I’d chased the aurora borealis this summer and BAM, I knew what this bike was: A Northern Lights Charlie.

Velocity’s anodizer rides the Wednesday Evening Ride with me and he was game to try a deep custom Quill rim in northern lights. He pulled out a practice rim and laid the color down. Lifted it with acid and added different colors, walking a tightrope that risked the colors running and looking muddy. He aimed for a shimmering night sky look based on the inspiration photo I’d sent. 

He nailed it on the first try. 

Meanwhile, the  Mountain West’s celebrated woman anodizer, Ashley, was staring into my box of parts, wondering how best to capture the northern lights on aluminum. Ashley can do anything

[RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Michael Connors]

image search Google with his name and 'bicycle'

On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 12:33:37 PM UTC-6 Ryan wrote:

> Well...Justin, obscure to me. Hockey player? Actor? I'm stumped and Google 
> didn't help. Enlighten me! :) 
>
> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 11:48:19 AM UTC-6 Roberta wrote:
>
>>
>> *“They will be so excited to hear I got a road bike. They will be so let 
>> down when they see my version of that. I don’t think I can apologize. I 
>> think I have to be Leah.”*
>> I’ve been following Leah‘s beautiful build decisions along the way and 
>> I’m so excited for her. This will be the perfect Leah road bike and I 
>> cannot wait to see the finished product.  It will be so “Leah,” perfect. 
>>
>> Roberta
>> Philadelphia
>> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 9:50:15 AM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding 
>> Ding! wrote:
>>
>>> It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to talk 
>>> bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for pics and 
>>> not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be photos. 
>>>
>>>
>>> Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop 
>>> at the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to 
>>> build it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can 
>>> get to it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels at 
>>> the moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing Platypus 
>>> yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be 
>>> single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He eyed 
>>> my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you know.” 
>>> He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my 
>>> own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.
>>>
>>>
>>> This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much 
>>> considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of 
>>> this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was 
>>> expected? Should the bike be a compromise? 
>>>
>>>
>>> In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other bike 
>>> categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road cycling 
>>> ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take stock of 
>>> your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road bikes 
>>> should look *a certain way*. Road bike riders should also look *a 
>>> certain way*. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a 
>>> sparkly raspberry Rivendell mixte can hang with the mean-looking carbon 
>>> machines on club rides, the comments and the prejudice have become 
>>> tiresome. 
>>>
>>>
>>> Everyone wants to be accepted. 
>>>
>>>
>>> “Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club friends would say. I 
>>> always laughed it off, said I was content with the Racing Platypus. And I 
>>> was. But I started to wonder what it would feel like to have a Pure Road 
>>> Bike. 
>>>
>>>
>>> I bought my Charlie on a whim. I always get excited when Rivendell puts 
>>> out a new model. I read the product description; it was like they had 
>>> written it for *me*. At high noon of the presale, in the midst of 
>>> Rivendell’s New Yorker fame, I put a golden Charlie in my cart and expected 
>>> they’d snapped up before I could secure one. 
>>>
>>>
>>> The purchase went through.
>>>
>>>
>>> The frame arrived and then sat. I finally had a road bike and could not 
>>> decide how to build it. People thought I should keep it classy with silver 
>>> parts. Ok, add just a pop of color to make it yours. Maybe drop bars. Keep 
>>> it light - leave off those extras, you have them on your other bikes. I’d 
>>> tire of agonizing and leave the project.
>>>
>>>
>>> I looked at my purple Platypus. I’d chosen every part for that bike, and 
>>> it’s my favorite build. I anodized its parts and made it a rainbow-y blur 
>>> of color. Everybody likes that crazy bike, even the purists who’d never 
>>> choose rainbow and oil slick. They like it *for me*. I tossed the 
>>> classy, silver idea and decided I’d do what I like best: color. Since I 
>>> love the rainbow bike I decided on another natural wonder theme. I’d chased 
>>> the aurora borealis this summer and BAM, I knew what this bike was: A 
>>> Northern Lights Charlie.
>>>
>>>
>>> Velocity’s anodizer rides the Wednesday Evening Ride with me and he was 
>>> game to try a deep custom Quill rim in northern lights. He pulled out a 
>>> practice rim and laid the color down. Lifted it with acid and added 
>>> different colors, walking a tightrope that risked the colors running and 
>>> looking muddy. He aimed for a shimmering night sky look based on the 
>>> inspiration photo I’d sent. 
>>>
>>>
>>> He nailed it on the first try. 
>>>
>>>
>>> Meanwhile, the  Mountain West’s celebrated woman anodizer, Ashley, was 
>>> staring into my box of parts, wond

[RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Ryan]

Well...Justin, obscure to me. Hockey player? Actor? I'm stumped and Google 
didn't help. Enlighten me! :) 

On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 11:48:19 AM UTC-6 Roberta wrote:

>
> *“They will be so excited to hear I got a road bike. They will be so let 
> down when they see my version of that. I don’t think I can apologize. I 
> think I have to be Leah.”*
> I’ve been following Leah‘s beautiful build decisions along the way and I’m 
> so excited for her. This will be the perfect Leah road bike and I cannot 
> wait to see the finished product.  It will be so “Leah,” perfect. 
>
> Roberta
> Philadelphia
> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 9:50:15 AM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding 
> Ding! wrote:
>
>> It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to talk 
>> bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for pics and 
>> not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be photos. 
>>
>>
>> Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop at 
>> the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to build 
>> it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can get to 
>> it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels at the 
>> moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing Platypus 
>> yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be 
>> single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He eyed 
>> my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you know.” 
>> He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my 
>> own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.
>>
>>
>> This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much 
>> considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of 
>> this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was 
>> expected? Should the bike be a compromise? 
>>
>>
>> In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other bike 
>> categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road cycling 
>> ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take stock of 
>> your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road bikes 
>> should look *a certain way*. Road bike riders should also look *a 
>> certain way*. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a 
>> sparkly raspberry Rivendell mixte can hang with the mean-looking carbon 
>> machines on club rides, the comments and the prejudice have become 
>> tiresome. 
>>
>>
>> Everyone wants to be accepted. 
>>
>>
>> “Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club friends would say. I always 
>> laughed it off, said I was content with the Racing Platypus. And I was. But 
>> I started to wonder what it would feel like to have a Pure Road Bike. 
>>
>>
>> I bought my Charlie on a whim. I always get excited when Rivendell puts 
>> out a new model. I read the product description; it was like they had 
>> written it for *me*. At high noon of the presale, in the midst of 
>> Rivendell’s New Yorker fame, I put a golden Charlie in my cart and expected 
>> they’d snapped up before I could secure one. 
>>
>>
>> The purchase went through.
>>
>>
>> The frame arrived and then sat. I finally had a road bike and could not 
>> decide how to build it. People thought I should keep it classy with silver 
>> parts. Ok, add just a pop of color to make it yours. Maybe drop bars. Keep 
>> it light - leave off those extras, you have them on your other bikes. I’d 
>> tire of agonizing and leave the project.
>>
>>
>> I looked at my purple Platypus. I’d chosen every part for that bike, and 
>> it’s my favorite build. I anodized its parts and made it a rainbow-y blur 
>> of color. Everybody likes that crazy bike, even the purists who’d never 
>> choose rainbow and oil slick. They like it *for me*. I tossed the 
>> classy, silver idea and decided I’d do what I like best: color. Since I 
>> love the rainbow bike I decided on another natural wonder theme. I’d chased 
>> the aurora borealis this summer and BAM, I knew what this bike was: A 
>> Northern Lights Charlie.
>>
>>
>> Velocity’s anodizer rides the Wednesday Evening Ride with me and he was 
>> game to try a deep custom Quill rim in northern lights. He pulled out a 
>> practice rim and laid the color down. Lifted it with acid and added 
>> different colors, walking a tightrope that risked the colors running and 
>> looking muddy. He aimed for a shimmering night sky look based on the 
>> inspiration photo I’d sent. 
>>
>>
>> He nailed it on the first try. 
>>
>>
>> Meanwhile, the  Mountain West’s celebrated woman anodizer, Ashley, was 
>> staring into my box of parts, wondering how best to capture the northern 
>> lights on aluminum. Ashley can do anything; but she was conflicted about 
>> this project. First try yielded too much black in the background. The next 
>> attempt showed a colorf

[RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Roberta]

*“They will be so excited to hear I got a road bike. They will be so let 
down when they see my version of that. I don’t think I can apologize. I 
think I have to be Leah.”*
I’ve been following Leah‘s beautiful build decisions along the way and I’m 
so excited for her. This will be the perfect Leah road bike and I cannot 
wait to see the finished product.  It will be so “Leah,” perfect. 

Roberta
Philadelphia
On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 9:50:15 AM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
wrote:

> It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to talk 
> bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for pics and 
> not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be photos. 
>
>
> Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop at 
> the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to build 
> it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can get to 
> it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels at the 
> moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing Platypus 
> yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be 
> single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He eyed 
> my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you know.” 
> He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my 
> own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.
>
>
> This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much 
> considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of 
> this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was 
> expected? Should the bike be a compromise? 
>
>
> In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other bike 
> categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road cycling 
> ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take stock of 
> your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road bikes 
> should look *a certain way*. Road bike riders should also look *a certain 
> way*. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a sparkly 
> raspberry Rivendell mixte can hang with the mean-looking carbon machines on 
> club rides, the comments and the prejudice have become tiresome. 
>
>
> Everyone wants to be accepted. 
>
>
> “Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club friends would say. I always 
> laughed it off, said I was content with the Racing Platypus. And I was. But 
> I started to wonder what it would feel like to have a Pure Road Bike. 
>
>
> I bought my Charlie on a whim. I always get excited when Rivendell puts 
> out a new model. I read the product description; it was like they had 
> written it for *me*. At high noon of the presale, in the midst of 
> Rivendell’s New Yorker fame, I put a golden Charlie in my cart and expected 
> they’d snapped up before I could secure one. 
>
>
> The purchase went through.
>
>
> The frame arrived and then sat. I finally had a road bike and could not 
> decide how to build it. People thought I should keep it classy with silver 
> parts. Ok, add just a pop of color to make it yours. Maybe drop bars. Keep 
> it light - leave off those extras, you have them on your other bikes. I’d 
> tire of agonizing and leave the project.
>
>
> I looked at my purple Platypus. I’d chosen every part for that bike, and 
> it’s my favorite build. I anodized its parts and made it a rainbow-y blur 
> of color. Everybody likes that crazy bike, even the purists who’d never 
> choose rainbow and oil slick. They like it *for me*. I tossed the classy, 
> silver idea and decided I’d do what I like best: color. Since I love the 
> rainbow bike I decided on another natural wonder theme. I’d chased the 
> aurora borealis this summer and BAM, I knew what this bike was: A Northern 
> Lights Charlie.
>
>
> Velocity’s anodizer rides the Wednesday Evening Ride with me and he was 
> game to try a deep custom Quill rim in northern lights. He pulled out a 
> practice rim and laid the color down. Lifted it with acid and added 
> different colors, walking a tightrope that risked the colors running and 
> looking muddy. He aimed for a shimmering night sky look based on the 
> inspiration photo I’d sent. 
>
>
> He nailed it on the first try. 
>
>
> Meanwhile, the  Mountain West’s celebrated woman anodizer, Ashley, was 
> staring into my box of parts, wondering how best to capture the northern 
> lights on aluminum. Ashley can do anything; but she was conflicted about 
> this project. First try yielded too much black in the background. The next 
> attempt showed a colorful splatter effect. It was beautiful but lost the 
> shimmering northern lights theme. Unsatisfied, she tried again and finally 
> captured it. Shimmering northern lights twinkled at me from a Choco bar on 
> my screen. Undeniably beautiful, whatever your opinion about Pure Road 
> Bike

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[J G]

Leah,

I was going to keep my obscure comments to myself regarding your original 
post on this bike because sometimes the instant connections I make seem 
obtuse to others, however you used 2 words above that I have only heard in 
relation to what popped in my head when I initially saw your concept build.

"Somewhere Erik Noren is smiling"

I have to ask if that immediately tells you what 2 words I am referring to 
and I am curious if those 2 words were simply used by your Velocity Ano guy 
as my suspicion is that he used those words because he immediately made the 
same connection I did.

Will explain if my comment and question does not immediately resonate.

-Justus
Mpls, MN

On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 11:10:46 AM UTC-6 lconley wrote:

> In the words of Tom Petty - “The waiting is the hardest part.”
>
> I am looking forward to seeing this build. 
>
> Laing
> Delray Beach FL
>
>
> On Thu, Feb 20, 2025 at 10:42 AM Doug H.  wrote:
>
>> It surely will not look like the "cookie cutter" road bikes in your group 
>> or pretty much in any group of road cyclists. Embrace the difference 
>> especially since you and we know your CHG is superior in every conceivable 
>> way! Yes, I believe that to be true.
>> Doug
>>
>> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 9:50:15 AM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding 
>> Ding! wrote:
>>
>>> It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to talk 
>>> bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for pics and 
>>> not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be photos. 
>>>
>>>
>>> Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop 
>>> at the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to 
>>> build it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can 
>>> get to it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels at 
>>> the moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing Platypus 
>>> yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be 
>>> single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He eyed 
>>> my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you know.” 
>>> He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my 
>>> own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.
>>>
>>>
>>> This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much 
>>> considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of 
>>> this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was 
>>> expected? Should the bike be a compromise? 
>>>
>>>
>>> In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other bike 
>>> categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road cycling 
>>> ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take stock of 
>>> your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road bikes 
>>> should look *a certain way*. Road bike riders should also look *a 
>>> certain way*. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a 
>>> sparkly raspberry Rivendell mixte can hang with the mean-looking carbon 
>>> machines on club rides, the comments and the prejudice have become 
>>> tiresome. 
>>>
>>>
>>> Everyone wants to be accepted. 
>>>
>>>
>>> “Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club friends would say. I 
>>> always laughed it off, said I was content with the Racing Platypus. And I 
>>> was. But I started to wonder what it would feel like to have a Pure Road 
>>> Bike. 
>>>
>>>
>>> I bought my Charlie on a whim. I always get excited when Rivendell puts 
>>> out a new model. I read the product description; it was like they had 
>>> written it for *me*. At high noon of the presale, in the midst of 
>>> Rivendell’s New Yorker fame, I put a golden Charlie in my cart and expected 
>>> they’d snapped up before I could secure one. 
>>>
>>>
>>> The purchase went through.
>>>
>>>
>>> The frame arrived and then sat. I finally had a road bike and could not 
>>> decide how to build it. People thought I should keep it classy with silver 
>>> parts. Ok, add just a pop of color to make it yours. Maybe drop bars. Keep 
>>> it light - leave off those extras, you have them on your other bikes. I’d 
>>> tire of agonizing and leave the project.
>>>
>>>
>>> I looked at my purple Platypus. I’d chosen every part for that bike, and 
>>> it’s my favorite build. I anodized its parts and made it a rainbow-y blur 
>>> of color. Everybody likes that crazy bike, even the purists who’d never 
>>> choose rainbow and oil slick. They like it *for me*. I tossed the 
>>> classy, silver idea and decided I’d do what I like best: color. Since I 
>>> love the rainbow bike I decided on another natural wonder theme. I’d chased 
>>> the aurora borealis this summer and BAM, I knew what this bike was: A 
>>> Northern Lights Charlie.
>>>
>>>
>>> Velocity’s anodizer rides the Wednesday Evening Ride with me and he was 
>>> gam

Re: [RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Laing Conley]

In the words of Tom Petty - “The waiting is the hardest part.”

I am looking forward to seeing this build.

Laing
Delray Beach FL


On Thu, Feb 20, 2025 at 10:42 AM Doug H.  wrote:

> It surely will not look like the "cookie cutter" road bikes in your group
> or pretty much in any group of road cyclists. Embrace the difference
> especially since you and we know your CHG is superior in every conceivable
> way! Yes, I believe that to be true.
> Doug
>
> On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 9:50:15 AM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding
> Ding! wrote:
>
>> It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to talk
>> bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for pics and
>> not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be photos.
>>
>>
>> Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop at
>> the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to build
>> it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can get to
>> it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels at the
>> moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing Platypus
>> yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be
>> single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He eyed
>> my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you know.”
>> He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my
>> own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.
>>
>>
>> This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much
>> considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of
>> this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was
>> expected? Should the bike be a compromise?
>>
>>
>> In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other bike
>> categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road cycling
>> ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take stock of
>> your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road bikes
>> should look *a certain way*. Road bike riders should also look *a
>> certain way*. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a
>> sparkly raspberry Rivendell mixte can hang with the mean-looking carbon
>> machines on club rides, the comments and the prejudice have become
>> tiresome.
>>
>>
>> Everyone wants to be accepted.
>>
>>
>> “Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club friends would say. I always
>> laughed it off, said I was content with the Racing Platypus. And I was. But
>> I started to wonder what it would feel like to have a Pure Road Bike.
>>
>>
>> I bought my Charlie on a whim. I always get excited when Rivendell puts
>> out a new model. I read the product description; it was like they had
>> written it for *me*. At high noon of the presale, in the midst of
>> Rivendell’s New Yorker fame, I put a golden Charlie in my cart and expected
>> they’d snapped up before I could secure one.
>>
>>
>> The purchase went through.
>>
>>
>> The frame arrived and then sat. I finally had a road bike and could not
>> decide how to build it. People thought I should keep it classy with silver
>> parts. Ok, add just a pop of color to make it yours. Maybe drop bars. Keep
>> it light - leave off those extras, you have them on your other bikes. I’d
>> tire of agonizing and leave the project.
>>
>>
>> I looked at my purple Platypus. I’d chosen every part for that bike, and
>> it’s my favorite build. I anodized its parts and made it a rainbow-y blur
>> of color. Everybody likes that crazy bike, even the purists who’d never
>> choose rainbow and oil slick. They like it *for me*. I tossed the
>> classy, silver idea and decided I’d do what I like best: color. Since I
>> love the rainbow bike I decided on another natural wonder theme. I’d chased
>> the aurora borealis this summer and BAM, I knew what this bike was: A
>> Northern Lights Charlie.
>>
>>
>> Velocity’s anodizer rides the Wednesday Evening Ride with me and he was
>> game to try a deep custom Quill rim in northern lights. He pulled out a
>> practice rim and laid the color down. Lifted it with acid and added
>> different colors, walking a tightrope that risked the colors running and
>> looking muddy. He aimed for a shimmering night sky look based on the
>> inspiration photo I’d sent.
>>
>>
>> He nailed it on the first try.
>>
>>
>> Meanwhile, the  Mountain West’s celebrated woman anodizer, Ashley, was
>> staring into my box of parts, wondering how best to capture the northern
>> lights on aluminum. Ashley can do anything; but she was conflicted about
>> this project. First try yielded too much black in the background. The next
>> attempt showed a colorful splatter effect. It was beautiful but lost the
>> shimmering northern lights theme. Unsatisfied, she tried again and finally
>> captured it. Shimmering northern lights twinkled at me from a Choco bar on
>> my

[RBW] Re: Leah’s Northern Lights Charlie

[Doug H.]

It surely will not look like the "cookie cutter" road bikes in your group 
or pretty much in any group of road cyclists. Embrace the difference 
especially since you and we know your CHG is superior in every conceivable 
way! Yes, I believe that to be true.
Doug

On Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 9:50:15 AM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! 
wrote:

> It is so wintry in SW Michigan. I can’t ride bikes, but I’m game to talk 
> bikes. This is a long post with no photos, so if you are here for pics and 
> not for story time, come back in a couple weeks when there will be photos. 
>
>
> Yesterday, I dropped off everything I need to make a Charlie H. Gallop at 
> the bike shop. I requested my number one favorite master mechanic to build 
> it, and the price of that is time. It will take time before he can get to 
> it. He is in the middle of building my son’s new dyno Clem wheels at the 
> moment. He also just finished random, weird fixes on my Racing Platypus 
> yesterday, and he returned my purple Platypus to me last week. I could be 
> single-handedly keeping my bike shop in bread these winter months. He eyed 
> my bags of parts and said, “You have your own shelf in the back, you know.” 
> He handed one bag to N and said, “Put this on the Leah Shelf.” I have my 
> own charge code in the computer at that shop, but that’s another story.
>
>
> This was the hardest bike build I’ve planned. Which isn’t saying much 
> considering I have only had a handful of bikes, but still. The concept of 
> this golden Charlie eluded me. Should I do what I wanted or what was 
> expected? Should the bike be a compromise? 
>
>
> In my view, road bikes are the ultimate in snobbery. All the other bike 
> categories seem to live and let live. When you roll up to a road cycling 
> ride, you can know you are being evaluated as other riders take stock of 
> your bike and your kit. “Pure Road Bike” is what I call it: Road bikes 
> should look *a certain way*. Road bike riders should also look *a certain 
> way*. The Racing Platypus is not Pure Road Bike. And while a sparkly 
> raspberry Rivendell mixte can hang with the mean-looking carbon machines on 
> club rides, the comments and the prejudice have become tiresome. 
>
>
> Everyone wants to be accepted. 
>
>
> “Just think if Leah had a road bike,” my club friends would say. I always 
> laughed it off, said I was content with the Racing Platypus. And I was. But 
> I started to wonder what it would feel like to have a Pure Road Bike. 
>
>
> I bought my Charlie on a whim. I always get excited when Rivendell puts 
> out a new model. I read the product description; it was like they had 
> written it for *me*. At high noon of the presale, in the midst of 
> Rivendell’s New Yorker fame, I put a golden Charlie in my cart and expected 
> they’d snapped up before I could secure one. 
>
>
> The purchase went through.
>
>
> The frame arrived and then sat. I finally had a road bike and could not 
> decide how to build it. People thought I should keep it classy with silver 
> parts. Ok, add just a pop of color to make it yours. Maybe drop bars. Keep 
> it light - leave off those extras, you have them on your other bikes. I’d 
> tire of agonizing and leave the project.
>
>
> I looked at my purple Platypus. I’d chosen every part for that bike, and 
> it’s my favorite build. I anodized its parts and made it a rainbow-y blur 
> of color. Everybody likes that crazy bike, even the purists who’d never 
> choose rainbow and oil slick. They like it *for me*. I tossed the classy, 
> silver idea and decided I’d do what I like best: color. Since I love the 
> rainbow bike I decided on another natural wonder theme. I’d chased the 
> aurora borealis this summer and BAM, I knew what this bike was: A Northern 
> Lights Charlie.
>
>
> Velocity’s anodizer rides the Wednesday Evening Ride with me and he was 
> game to try a deep custom Quill rim in northern lights. He pulled out a 
> practice rim and laid the color down. Lifted it with acid and added 
> different colors, walking a tightrope that risked the colors running and 
> looking muddy. He aimed for a shimmering night sky look based on the 
> inspiration photo I’d sent. 
>
>
> He nailed it on the first try. 
>
>
> Meanwhile, the  Mountain West’s celebrated woman anodizer, Ashley, was 
> staring into my box of parts, wondering how best to capture the northern 
> lights on aluminum. Ashley can do anything; but she was conflicted about 
> this project. First try yielded too much black in the background. The next 
> attempt showed a colorful splatter effect. It was beautiful but lost the 
> shimmering northern lights theme. Unsatisfied, she tried again and finally 
> captured it. Shimmering northern lights twinkled at me from a Choco bar on 
> my screen. Undeniably beautiful, whatever your opinion about Pure Road 
> Bike. Some of the parts transferred color better than others; aluminum is 
> not all the same. The Rivendell Silver 2 shifters were problematic; the 
> fi