My bike was stolen: Bikefanclub.com

There is an issue, folks, that I must explain to you for my reason to get a Guru. I am such a physical size that my leg proportion versus my trunk is a three-size difference. What the means is my legs are longer than what is normally proportional for a body trunk and arms. Riding a stock frame that fits my legs makes the bike too long for my trunk. Using a very short stem puts my body weight too far forward on such a frame. I originally got a Tetra Pro because I could get the custom geometry. Most people would not like riding my bike because of the dimensions it had.

To get the same dimensions I would have to go with another Tetra Pro, minimum, not a Luna.

The money I can spend on a new bike will be about $1000 dollars less than what I paid for my Custom Tetra Pro. That pretty much puts the Tetra out of my price range, for components and wheels would have to be a lot cheaper to make up the difference. The Guru frame can have the same geometry as my Calfee. The ride qualities should be identical, from a geometry standpoint. The components will be the same, wheels and drivetrain. This is why I believe I will have valuable insights (no pun intended) into what qualities a bike has which are determined by the materials they are made of.

My LBS talked with Calfee to find out what they could do for me. I could get a reworked frame for cost with the paint job free for me as a compensation. I could not get a custom frame, though, and of those frames available in my size, they have one-inch steerers, not the current standard 1 1/8. This limits how high the spacers can go on my steerer, putting me in a lower and more-stretched riding position. For a young person that would not be much of an issue. I'm 52 and have some joint damage I live with. I need a more upright stance on a bike to keep the strain off my back.

One of the things that made my Calfee my dream bike was how tremendous a difference it was to ride a bike that fit me. My bike looked like the wheels were too close to each other, the wheelbase was that short. I had significant toe overlap with the front wheel, an issue I had to keep in mind when mounting the bike when slowly turning. The standover also left me with being flush with the top tube when standing over the bike. This also is a non-issue because I only had to lean the bike to one side to keep the clearance I need when dismounted, such as when waiting for a stop light.

I loved how comfortable the cockpit was. When I was in my groove I could ride the drops for long stretches with ease. I only had to pivot forward to hit the hoods, I did not have to stretch foreward as I was used to doing with every other bike I owned. I had optimal seat to crank height and position. I could limp walking with my bad knee and ride for hours then find my knee felt better after the ride. That is due to the right fit on the bike. I got blood flowing with joint movement within the limits I have in my joints. Part of staying fit is still excercising in spite of the pain. Everyone who is getting older can relate to that.

I had my bike, finally. This was my machine, one so fine and so robust that it would outlive me. The first time I ever had a frame finer than the parts that were hung on it, just the opposite of most mass-produced bikes. It was strong, not heavy, just very strong and stiff, yet comfortable on bumpy roads. I've been on roads with steel bikes that rattled my eyeballs so much I could only see in a blur. On my Calfee the bumps seemed to be muted a bit, not quite as jarring as I recall from riding my aluminum Giant OCR2.

This bike was the first one in my entire life that cost more than a thousand dollars. Most bikes I bought were less than 650 dollars when I bought them. Most bikes left the shop the way they were displayed. My Giant was the first bike I was properly fitted on. My LBS changed the stem to a stubby one so it would fit me better. I put almost 2500 miles on my Giant in about two years. I put over 1200 miles on my Calfee in just 5 months, which is a big improvement for me, personally. The difference between the Giant, fitted to me, and Tetra Pro, properly fit to me made a big difference. I found I could ride a couple of miles per hour, average with the same effort I put out on my Giant. I could ride 35 to 50 per cent longer distances with about the same total fatigue I had on my Giant. Proper fit made that much difference.

I've had enough time since my bike was stolen to be close to fully accepting it. I've had discussion with friends since I agonized over what to do as far as getting a replacement bike. I lust for carbon but need to be pragmatic. I disdain aluminum but know, in the main triangle it is stiff and light. At least the stays and fork are carbon where they can flex without fatigue where aluminum needs to be overbuilt because it has no flexible limit. An aluminum fork will eventually fail, it's the nature of the material.

I lust for light, but know that physics require strength and to be strong enough it has to have weight. I lust for a Porche but know that it's better to have a Toyota in the long run. My Calfee was that caliber of bike, one that would last for years and just keep on going.

I could go for Dura-Ace on the Guru. I know the price difference compared with Ultegra can't justify it for anything other than the bling factor. I'll go with the Ultegra. I'll go with a bling paint job. On the Calfee I liked the look of carbon fiber under the clear coat. I figure a compromise would be an impressive paint job on the Guru.

I have not made a firm decision, just a preliminary one. I have hope, however tempered by reality, that my Calfee could be recovered. It is so unique, no other bike, even another Calfee, is just like it. I'm trying to determine the wizest choice for me. Some of my reasoning is my personal bias. The options laid out for me were from my LBS. Many times he's told me what I want when I felt differently and he has always been right, in hindsight. He knows my dimensions, he knows my passion for riding, he knows my riding style and he knows what I dream for.