R+E CYCLES sent me a photo today: the frame of Future Bike has exited the paint shop!

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Scott AndersonThey remembered the bottle opener!
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1 year ago

Kelly IniguezVery nice!

Waiting for your new bicycle is the adult version of waiting for Christmas!
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1 year ago

Keith AdamsTo Kelly IniguezLOL!
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1 year ago

Keith AdamsTo Scott AndersonYep. I paid extra for it, so they'd *better* have remembered. :)
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1 year ago

Kelly IniguezHave you decided on the 'bling'? Will you be getting new panniers and racks, or moving those from the Trek? Kickstand? What type of shifters, etc?

Some of that was loosely covered in your thought process. What did you end up deciding on?

I have a terrible thing for panniers. I've purchased far more pairs than I could ever wear out. Jandd is my favorite brand for weight/durability/organization. I used their panniers more when I carried a heavy load/camping.

Having said that, I'm now a light weight motel/restaurant sort of bicycle tourist. My current favorite panniers are the Arkel Dry Lites. They are $90. a pair. I admit to being so lazy that I've purchased a set for each bike, so I don't have to move them around. I have one set of Ortleib Gravel Panniers that I put on the underseat rack of my recumbent. They are also small and lightweight.

I don't think any of my choices are something you'd be interested in, as you need more space for camping gear.

This year I splurged on a set of Rockgeist panniers. The attraction was the holster type pannier that a dry bag can slide in and out. Sorry, I can't post a link here. After using them for an overnight to Aspen, I decided they did not make the cut. My reasons sound frivolous, even to me. The fabric was noisy. The dry bag fastened with one clip. A second strap/clip held the dry bag in plus. Thus, I had to unfasten/fasten two clips each time I wanted in the bag during the day. That's not unreasonable - but it's double the number I'm used to. Despite liking the design, I didn't take them.
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1 year ago

Keith AdamsTo Kelly IniguezHi

I'm going to try to fit the low riders I had on the Trek (Blackburn SFL-1, a classic), and pictured below, if I can make them work with the disc brake. If not I'll have to find something suitable.

The rear rack in the photo below was a Performance cheapie that I never especially liked. I don't know for certain if I even still have it, but I have three or four others hanging up in dark and dusty corners if not.

The red panniers and handlebar bag are long gone from my gear. The panniers wore out after being used for years as commuting gear; the handlebar bag had a mount that is incompatible with modern stems (it only fit the older quill-type stems).

As replacements I got new Arkel front panniers (GT18) and a new handlebar bag (Arkel large) this year, ahead of my western tour. The rear panniers in the photo below are also ancient history, replaced several years back with panniers I like okay (Kootenay by Axiom- out of production now) but may still supplement / replace with the biggest Arkels (GT54s) or maybe the slightly more modest-size GT42 if I suffer a moment of weakness over the winter.

Shifters will be bar end, I think pretty much garden variety Shimano. The brakes will be by TRP, I think the Hy/Rd model (mixed cable/hydraulic).

I got a $14 kickstand from Amazon this week to put on my Bike Friday; I think I'll get another for the Rodriguez, at least to start. It seems reasonably robust and is adjustable for length. At that price it's almost disposable if it doesn't work out.
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1 year ago

Kelly IniguezDoes your Rodriguez come with the mounting plate for the doubled legged kickstand? Jacinto loves his. He says it doesn't matter how much weight the bike has, it is sturdy when parked with the Pletscher kickstand.

My new to me Phoenix recumbent came with the same kickstand. I haven't quite mastered the art of lifting the rear of the bike and sweeping the legs of the kickstand at the same time.
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1 year ago

Gregory GarceauYour Rodriguez looks great. I've always been just an "off-the-rack" bike buyer, so it's interesting to see how they keep you posted on every step of the construction process. I have a name in mind for your new bike, but it's not my bike so it's probably best that I keep my mouth shut (for now) and let you name it.
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1 year ago

Keith AdamsTo Kelly IniguezIt is supposed to have a kickstand plate. If so the plate should be suitable for either a single- or double-legged kickstand. I've got an ESGE (Swiss-made, no longer made) two-legged stand that I could move between the Rodriguez and our Bike Friday recumbent tandem if it ever sees service again.

I had the ESGE on my New World Tourist until it tore the plate off that frame. I didn't have the top plate for the ESGE, so was relying only on the bottom plate (welded to the underside of the Bike Friday frame) but it wasn't up to the task. The new rear end BF sent me has the mounting plate, and they *claim* they've beefed up the way they weld it on, but I'm a bit skeptical.

Whatever stand I put on the Rodriguez, I'll use a top plate as well as the bottom plate. Belt and suspenders...
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1 year ago

Keith AdamsTo Kelly IniguezI just looked at the Pletscher two-legged stand. It's a dead ringer for my ESGE.
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1 year ago

Kelly IniguezDoes the ESGE weigh about five pounds? Perhaps I exaggerate . . .
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1 year ago

Keith AdamsTo Kelly IniguezMaybe not five, but "svelte" is not an adjective I'd apply. :)
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1 year ago

Keith AdamsTo Gregory GarceauI'm definitely open to name suggestions, Greg. No promise that I'll use it but I'm interested to hear your idea. What could possibly rise to the level of The Reckless Mr. Bing Bong, though?
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1 year ago

Gregory GarceauTo Kelly IniguezKelly, I had to laugh at your comment about being so lazy that you purchased a set of panniers for each bike so you don't have to switch them around. I'm so lazy that I've been considering new panniers too. (Oh, it would be so much easier if my beloved REI panniers still existed.) I bought a new pannier rack this summer so I wouldn't have to move that around from bike to bike, and I'm considering buying more water bottle racks for the same reason. It's too weird to reconcile such laziness with a desire to pedal a bike hundreds or thousands of miles.
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1 year ago

Keith AdamsTo Gregory GarceauI forgot to mention this. I linked up recently with another CycleBlazer who was touring relatively close to my home. He's on a 2021 model Trek 520 that he bought last November.

It turns out that Trek dealers have to place their entire order for a year's inventory well in advance. When he contacted the Trek store closest to his house they told him they couldn't get a 520 for him before 2023 (this was in the fall of 2021, remember) because they'd already put in their 2022 order and that was it for the year.

He started checking with other Trek dealers farther and farther away and finally found one in the right size, some distance from his house. But before he bought it his wife found another one in the same size, closer to home. I forget whether it was a purely leftover bike on one that someone had ordered then backed out of, but it was a lucky find in either case.

So, finding even "off the rack" bikes can be something of a crap shoot. Assuming the Rodriguez fits correctly, I'll be pleased to have a made-to-measure bike with exactly the parts I chose rather than one that came preconfigured from a mass producer.
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1 year ago

Keith AdamsTo Gregory GarceauEvery bike I have has its own dedicated tool kit, tire pump, patch kit, rack (except for the road bike which isn't set up to accept racks), etc. With the exception of the GPS and my phone I have long since stopped trying to move things from bike to bike because I invariably forgot to do so and suffered accordingly, at some point.
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1 year ago

Kelly IniguezTo Gregory GarceauI've often said that I bicycle to the grocery store so I can park right next to the front door. That makes no sense to people . . . . it's a certain degree of lazy.

Along with the panniers for each bike, they also have pump/patch kit, etc. I do have one bigger tool kit that goes on the touring bike. But, at least I can change a flat tire, no matter what bike I'm riding.

Many years ago, before cell phones, Jacinto was going for an afternoon ride. I reminded him to switch over his pump. "Yea, yea, sure." He tells me. I'm just started on an afternoon nap when the phone rings. It's Jacinto, with a flat tire, and no means to fix it.

The good part of the story is the ride he got to town. He was out in the middle of NOWHERE when a white haired ranching lady in a pick up truck stops for him as he's walking along. Would he like a ride? He certainly would! Jacinto loads the bike and hops in the cab. THEN he notices an unsheathed bowie knife on the seat between the two of them!

Jacinto was the most polite passenger you'd ever seen. Yes ma'am, no, ma'am - all the way to town.
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1 year ago

Keith AdamsTo Kelly IniguezGreat story, Kelly.
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1 year ago

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Next up will be the assembly and, of course, a test ride by the R+E staff to ensure everything's copacetic.  I hope they can limit their enthusiasm to under 1,000 miles.

I've been expecting a late-November delivery date but suddenly hope that may move up by a couple weeks.  The name remains un-chosen but that will come with time.