The two sweetest bikes I've ever owned, and they're goin' up on eBay tomorrow...

This one arrived the week between Christmas and New Year's Day back in '99. I'd wanted a road bike for months, and I could finally afford to plunk down the Visa for an employee purchase deal at the ol' bike shop. An '00 Bianchi Veloce, in a color scheme they hadn't done before or since. Italian-made steel frame. Every single component has been replaced at least once. It's as good a road bike as I'd really ever need, and it's in pristine condition. I'm gonna miss it.



This thing I just bought because I needed a geared mountain bike. I'd been all set to pick up a Kona Kaboom, this rough-an'-tumble singlespeed, when a slot opened up for 24 Hours of Snowshoe back in '01 and suddenly I needed a full-on XC mountain bike. More Italian-designed steel. Welded in Taiwan, but those folks know their stuff; the frame was as near-flawless as my Italian-made road bike. Again, all the parts have been swapped out once or twice since I bought it... well, almost. I think the front derailleur is original. And the fork. That fork has seen better days, and in the interests of full disclosure I think I'll point out in the eBay ad that it's probably time to replace it. This thing has been banged around and knocked down more often than I can remember. Not gonna miss it so much, though. Why? Check out the entry below. My grin should say it all.