Cycling in middle age - ride a beautiful classic steel bike

Sunday, 8 January 2012

Guys - forget cars, they're so yesterday. Now we're really grown up we can start to think about others, think about the environment, think about our children (and maybe grandchildren) and think about our own health and fitness. Forget about Top Gear and start to indulge in the coolest and fastest growing participation sport in the West - cycling!

I've been cycling for some decades now, racing mountain bikes in the early nineties, then becoming a roadie following the Tour de France and cycle sport until it turned out they were nearly all performance-enhancing drug-taking cheats (but I'm back with it now), watching track cycling and now riding many miles each year, commuting and for pleasure.

In that time I've spent quite a lot on my hobby and recently I've realised that, for the price of a brand new and fairly mid-range bike, it's possible to buy a beautiful classic bicycle to cruise around on.

Photo Grey Fox

A classic bike is probably made of steel rather than carbon fibre or aluminium, both used with more modern cycles. Steel bikes tend to look beautiful, as the proportions of the tubing are just right. Modern carbon bikes, however, can be less attractive, with poorly-proportioned bulging tubes and garish graphics.

Below I show a classic steel Bianchi and one of the better-looking modern carbon fibre bikes. You could buy the steel bike for a fraction of the cost of the carbon-framed one. OK, it's heavier, slower and has fewer gears, but which do you prefer for style and beauty?

Steel-framed Bianchi - Grey Fox photo

Trek Madone - carbon fibre

5 comments

Ulrich von Boffke3 November 2012 at 07:13
Yes! Finally, someone else who shares my love of old steel frame bikes. Do you know that when I was in the market for a new road bike myself five years ago, I was unable to find anything in steel at an affordable price in my neck of the woods? Something not right in that.

Best Regards,

Ulrich von B.
Roger Machin23 June 2013 at 02:27
Is that your red bike (top photo)? I had one similar in the 1980's. Mine was a Raleigh Ace. I have seen some of the more upmarket clothing brands selling their own branded bikes, some in limited numbers. Over the past few years I have seen two for sale in shops in Manchester. Gant and Gucci have both had them. Have a search on the internet and you'll find them. They've also done a collaboration on cars with the Gucci Fiat 500's and Gant did a model with Jeep on the continent.
Grey Fox25 June 2013 at 06:22
Yes Roger, it's Ti Raleigh in the colours of the TdF team that used UK Raleigh bikes.

Yes, I think I've mentioned Aston Martin and maybe a couple of others in previous posts.

GF
andywatson4 February 2014 at 11:15
Sorry to come into this debate late. I have only recently discovered your blog and the photo of the Raleigh Pro grabbed my attention as it illustrates where bike design subsequently took a wrong turn. I consider the Raleigh Pro (possibly the later 753 version) and it's contemporaries the peak of >practical< bike design before marketing and race led hype led to an "arms race" which, away from competition, has compromised the purity and technical elegance of bikes.

- Steel is fatigue resistant and springy giving a good ride. It is also relatively cheap and easy to repair wheras more modern materials render damaged frames impossible to repair economically. It might not be "sexy" but I think if it arrived now steel would be the new wonder material.

-The Raleigh Pro and similar bikes had parts which were user serviceable and interchangeable - even with components fitted to bikes produced decades earlier. Nowadays even the brakes (due to the integrated levers) and gears are not interchangeable with even last years models from the same manufacturer.
This is exacerbated by a buying public who count the number of gears on a bike to judge it's quality. I predict that soon after 11 speed systems are common the 12 speed will follow!

I am glad to see the growing popularity of high end steel frames and look forward to some kind of Campagnolo Record equivalent if a manufacturer had the will to make it.
william22 February 2016 at 21:57
My dad also have a classic steel bike. Even these bike have more weight than aluminium one but still these bike have great riding and other features that they have.