Carmella's Road build...

Boxes are piled high in my storage area...I don't know why, but i HATE to throw away any usable parts.  I've got box after box of random components, partially completed prototypes, and random memories from years of playing with these two wheeled treasures. 

Sometimes, it pays.

In this case, Carmella, flush with excitement from her local ride, quickly loaded her bike onto her trunk mounted car rack and backed out of her parking space.  Her excitement rapidly turned to dismay when she heard the crunch of her bicycle meeting a steel parking barrier, just out of sight behind her.

Her faithful ride had taken a new shape...the chainstay now bent through her wheel to touch the stay on the opposite side, broken free from it's bondage at the bottom bracket and it's dropout end twisted into a funky, Joker like smile.

She brought the bike to me in hopes I could save it's 6000 series aluminum frame, alas, the cost to repair the frame far exceeded it's value.  A frown of disappointment upon her visage, I began to scan the boxes and frames sitting around the storage areas in the shop... "I think we've got some hope" 

So...meet her new ride.

This was the first road frame I built just over 18 years ago for a friend's wife.  Although it has well over 20K miles on it, she could not stand to see it sit in a corner, now replaced with a new model.  I rehab'd it about 5 years ago for Kalten to ride as he grew...that lasted about 9 months before he was rapidly outgrowing it.  Onto the shelf it went.

With a mix of new and old parts, Carmella now has a new bike to flash about our country roads on.  I know she'll take good care of it and perhaps it will be passed on again some day.

cheers,

rody