The Indignity of Commuting by Bicycle: The Spring Classics

Here in New York, yesterday was a lovely spring day, and the streets were teeming with riders of all kinds. To wait at a red light, ordinarily a solitary affair in bad weather, meant to be joined by a cross-section of fellow cyclists: old crappy ten-speed pilots; roadies; triathletes; and fixters complete with low-rise stems, riser bars, and u-lock holsters. (Naturally, I did my best to avoid waiting at any red lights.) It seemed everywhere you looked, somebody was awkwardly enjoying a bicycle.

But while people were racing in the local parks, or cruising around enjoying the weather, or watching the Tour of Flanders amongst friends, I eschewed such frivolity. This is because I take cycling seriously. And as a serious cyclist, it just so happens that today marked the start of my own "Classics" season as well. So any riding I did this weekend was simply preparation for the first true test of the Classics: my Monday Morning Commute.

I'd been targeting this commute for nearly a year now, and going in I knew I had the legs to deliver a great performance. My coaches at Carmichael Training Systems and I had spent countless hours in the wind tunnel, experimenting with various pant cuff retention systems. While we got decent numbers with the Stroke's Extra Leg, we ultimately decided that it was too risky to use new technology like this for a Classic. Instead, we ultimately opted for a traditional setup: Custom Fit Khaki Pleated Dockers complete with hidden waitband, button-through back pockets, and a permanent crease, wrapped from knee to ankle in Saran Premium Wrap in order to prevent interference with the Ironic Orange Julius Bike's drivetrain. Sure, the Extra Leg might shave a few seconds in theory, but during a one-day event it's best not to take any chances.

I awoke this morning to find that we had made the right choice. Spring in New York is unpredictable, and while yesterday's weather was warm and sunny, today's was cool and rainy. As such, after applying the Saran Premium Wrap to my Dockers, my longtime Polish soigneur Thadeusz also used an old commuter's trick and sprayed me from the waist down with 3M Scotchguard Protector for Carpet. I topped it off with a waterproof poncho.

By the time Thadeusz was done with me I was wrapped up like a Sears loveseat out for delivery. Not only that, but the rain had also stopped. Still, off I went. In the Tour of Flanders, things start getting serious on the Koppenberg. Similarly, on my Monday Morning Commute, the first major selection comes at the Yuppieberg:



This is the view from the top of the Yuppieberg, from which the people of Park Slope can look down upon their lesser neighbors below. On Friday and Saturday evenings rivulets of balsamic vinegar and Pinot Noir flow from their brownstone soirées, along the gutter, down the Yuppieberg, and into New York Harbor. Yes, the only thing steeper than the gradient is the percentage with which the real estate values increase as you ascend. Even ITTET, the climb is as wallet-sapping as it is leg-sapping.



Once the Yuppieberg was behind me, I needed a rest, so I stopped at the Gowanus Canal. Here, the only thing more overwhelming than the natural beauty is the noxious gas.


Whenever I seek profound insight, I sit beside the Gowanus, and inevitably it comes. In this sense, it is very much like the Delphic Oracle--probably because they were basically just huffing fumes there too. This visit to the Gowanus Oracle was no exception, and I sat there until a gefilte fish emerged from the murky depths. I knew he was a gefilte fish because he looked like Charlie the Tuna, only he also had a beard and was wearing a Tallis. The gefilte fish told me who will win Paris-Roubaix this year, and then proceeded to go on at some length about what he felt were the shortcomings of the latest Dura Ace group. I wasn't particularly interested in this, since not only did he admit to not having actually tried the new Dura Ace, but also because when Shimano changed the ergonomics they probably didn't have riders with fins in mind. However, instead of pointing these things out to him I simply made an excuse and left.

Unfortunately, I didn't get a photo of the gefilte fish, but I did get one of a tan sedan with a tan raincoat stuck in the door:



I also got a picture of a bike with a pie plate and axle pegs:



Now that's a hot setup.

In Classics like the Tour of Flanders, there's always a lot of excitement when the race passes through the square and all the drunken townsfolk raise their beer glasses and cheer them on. On my Monday Morning Commute, the equivalent of the town square is Fulton Mall, and sadly the townsfolk don't greet me with the same enthusiasm:



Once through the square (I considered taking a feed at Popeye's but I'd wasted a lot of time with the talking fish by this point so decided against it) I came to the next epic climb on my commute, the Manhattan Bridge:


The approach to the Manhattan Bridge is a wide, sweeping turn:



Though some do cut it out cyclocross-style and take the run-up instead:



Once on the bridge, the mighty East River was on my right:


And the subway was on my left:



I always enjoy when the subway rumbles by on the Manhattan Bridge, because it gives me an opportunity to goad the passengers. And few goadings are more effective than those delivered by cyclists wearing ponchos and Dockers wrapped in Saran Wrap and who are still slightly buzzed from Gowanus Canal fumes. Here's one rider who's vainly trying to pretend it isn't happening:




As I crested the top of the climb while waving frantically, making faces, and snapping photos, I was pleased to discover that KOM points were actually on offer in the form of beer:


Not only that, but a little further along I encountered this styrofoam cup art:



If you find yourself Brooklyn-bound from Manhattan at any point today, make sure to grab yourself a cup from the styrofoam cup mural, then help yourself to a beer hanging from the fence in the middle of the span. If you're coming from Brooklyn, simply reverse these instructions. (Though if you're coming from Brooklyn, you're probably already half-drunk anyway.)

The Manhattan Bridge deposits you neatly into Chinatown:



The streets may seem clear and peaceful from up here, but as soon as you leave the bike path an alarm sounds and everybody starts leaping in front of you like when Jim Carrey tries to leave the island in "The Truman Show."

The climbs may have been behind me, but the worst was yet to come in the form of this sector of "urban pavé," or road resurfacing:



As I waited at the red light, I was nervous. Would I be able to make it through? I radioed my longtime Polish soigneur, Thadeusz. "What should I do?," I asked. Unfortunately, my radio wasn't working, but fortunately Thadeusz was right there next to me:


It turns out he'd been walking alongside me the entire time, since I'd only been riding at about 3mph. Thadeusz told me to stop being a "woosie" and to "put the hammer down." So I set aside my woodworking and gingerly made my way through the intersection:



It was treacherous, but thanks to my dorktastically wide tyres (that's the British spelling of "tires," and it's pronounced "tie-rays") I made it through.

Others with lesser setups were not so lucky. Here's a fenderless and bar-tapeless IRO that looks like it's just plotzed:



Here's the bike Boonen and Pozzato might as well have been riding in Flanders yesterday, since Pozzato didn't leave Boonen's wheel the whole time:


But as big a sense of accomplishment as I felt, it was suddenly diminished. After all, I'd only just commuted, which I do every day. I wasn't riding for a higher purpose, like curing cancer, or bringing about world peace:

I've often seen this bike in motion, though before now I'd never seen the "Love Your Lane" banner in the rear. This is because the rider is always going the wrong way in the bike lane. So, ironically, not only can I never read the message, but I also cannot love my lane because some hippie freak coming at me head-on is trying to flower-power my ass out of it. Of course, this hippie isn't all hypocrisy. I believe the front of the basket says "No War For Oil," and she's sticking to the anti-oil sentiment by using none whatsoever on her chain.

But while I may not have saved the world, I did "slay" my Monday Morning Commute Classic, and I plan to palp one of those beers on the way home.

BSNYC Fiday Frun Quiz!

This weekend the Spring Classics begin in earnest with the Tour of Flanders, and the excitement is palpable. ("Palping" is similar to "rocking," or "running," or "rubbing.") One of the most exciting things about the Spring Classics is that riders often palp more traditional wheels and equipment due to the rough cobblestones (except for George Hincapie, who palped crabon wheels at Paris-Roubaix last year with disastrous results.) For this reason, the Tour of Flanders is what's known as a "cobbled classic," and should not be confused with the crappy conversions on Craigslist and Fixedgeargallery, which are actually cobbled-together "classics."

In any case, if you're looking forward to the Tour of Flanders or to the weekend in general, I'd like to dampen your enthusiasm by presenting you with a quiz. As always, study the item, think, and click on your answer. If you're right, you'll know. If you're wrong, you'll see someone playing an ear-splitting guitar solo on a heaven-sent asterisk.

Palp you bike safely this weekend, and thanks for reading.

--BSNYC/RTMS

1) According to Shimano, there is such a thing as "increased levels of perfection."

--True
--False

2) What do these two things have in common?

--Lots of colors

--They are both named "Ritchey"

--Loose balls

--They're both idiots

3) Clip-on plastic fenders that almost touch the rear tire are the flat hat brim of 2009:

--True

--False

4) Cincinnati police are currently on the lookout for a man who stole which unwieldy item and then made his getaway on a bicycle?

--A flat-screen TV

--A gasoline-powered lawnmower

--A Vespa scooter

--Another bicycle

5) This rider, spotted in London, might benefit from which real-life exciting new product?

--Pedro's Handlebar Levelizer

--Stroke's Extra Leg
--Park's Fixed-Gear Colorway Coordination Chart
--iPhone's "Should I Go Out In Public?" App

6) What are the two big plastic things on the front of this bicycle, also spotted in London?

--High-powered headlights
--Tupperware, as this is the owner's ironic cake-fetching bike
--Intergalactic space breasts
--Together with the previous photo, a sign that London's cyclists may be going crazy





7) The message on this headband most likely means that:

--The wearer's head has been repaired via the cranial screwtop method of entry into the brain, pioneered by Dr. Michael Hfuhruhurr
--The wearer has been spayed or neutered
--The wearer believes that Barack Obama's election has effectively repaired (or "fixed") the United States
--The wearer likes fixed-gear bicycles




8) What does this tattoo depict?

--A disc brake rotor that has been thrown with ninja-like accuracy into the wearer's leg
--A delicious disc brake rotor pita bread sandwich
--An extreme close-up of a woman giving birth to a disc brake rotor
--It is impossible to determine with any certainty what this tattoo depicts

***Special Fill-In-The-Blank Knuckle Tattoo Bonus Question***

This is one half of a set of knuckle tattoos. What does the other half say?

--nutz
--ebra
--appa
--ygomorphic

My Bike, It's Full of Stars! Every Material, Every Color, All the Time

Obviously, many cyclists these days get very excited about crabon fiber. However, there are some riders for whom crabon alone simply isn't enough. After all, when you're out there on your road bike, you want to be confident that yours is the most desirable bike out there. While crabon bikes sure are desirable, what happens if you run into somebody with a titanium bike, or a bike with "exquisite lugwork?" These things too are highly coveted, and the experience can be humbling. Sure, you may also have a titanium bike and an "exquisitely lugged" bike back home in the garage, but without a "My Other Two Road Bikes are Titanium and Exquisitely Lugged Respectively" bumper sticker or jersey how is anybody going to know it? That's why you need one of these:






Independent Fabrication xs, Titanium-Carbon Lugged Frame! - $5000 (Brooklyn)
Reply to: [deleted]
Date: 2009-03-31, 12:08AM EDT

This is the real deal folks. A 100% true original work of art. Museum Quality, brand new condition Ultra Custom Independent Fabrication xs. Titanium Laser Cut Lugs, Carbon Fiber tubes, seat stays and fork.
This frame is truly a one of a kind gem. Hand built to ABSOLUTE perfection, by a former employee. Has been in ads for chris king. The paint job is not even available to customers and if it was it would be an up-charge of nearly $1000. Normally the fork and seat stays are not painted only the tubing, but ALL the carbon is painted on this frame with PPG clear coat with added purple iridescent flake, so it sparkles in the sun transitioning from purple to deep blue to silver. Quite a sight. Comes with the original paper work including in house build sheet. A true collectors item, honored and worshipped, given the treatment of the gods so it is in BRAND NEW condition
Now the specs...
This frame is built with compact geometry 48x53, for someone who would normally ride a 52x53
seat tube length 48cm
top tube: 53
head tube:121
Ht angle: 72
St angle: 73
tt angle: 5
wheelbase: 97.3
Standover: 76.4
Trail: 56.9
Chainstay: 410!!!

Here's the deal. NO LOOKILOOS, HAGGLERS, NON SERIOUS BUYERS. The asking price is $5500 or best REASONABLE and this frame in it's rarity alone is worth $7,000. Look at http://ifbikes.com/frames2/xs.shtml for more reference.
Sorry, the pink chris king head set does not come with the frame. You will the envy of all riding this ridiculous beauty around this spring!!

I have more images I can link you to. Good Luck.




Crabon? Not just carbon, but "purple iridescent flake" crabon. Titanium? Oh yeah--in fact, it's "museum quality," and as any frequenter of museums knows, all the great masters worked in crabon and titanium. Exquisitely lugged? Come on, didn't you read the ad? They're cut with lasers! Still, sometimes even a bike that's crabon, titanium, and exquisitely lugged by lasers all at the same time is still not enough. It needs a pedigree as well. Well, this frameset has that too, because it has been in ads for Chris King. Just imagine the thrill of riding around on your museum-quality sci-fi critanium dream bike and having some lesser cyclist on a plain crabon or ti or lugged bike approach you and ask, "Wow, is that the bike from that Chris King ad? I totally foffed off to that bike." Now that's cycling bliss.

But if you're the type of person who is prone to foffing off in the presence of lugwork, this seller wants you to know he's not running some kind of bicycle peep show or shady "lug and tug." As yo can see, he specifies "NO LOOKILOOS, HAGGLERS, NON SERIOUS BUYERS." So even if you're prepared to pay his full asking price but can't resist also asking if he's heard the one about the guy who walks into a bar with a metal box under one arm and a duck under the other, don't do it, because he'll boot you right out of there. Also, while "lookiloos" is slang for people who look without buying, the word originally referred to baby jackalopes:

(erik k)

That's probably not what he means, but still, if you have one of these you probably shouldn't bring it along.

And if you are sufficiently wealthy and serious and baby jackalope-free to actually acquire this frameset, the first thing you should to is purchase this saddle for it;


At first glance, the graphic on the saddle might look like flaming eyeballs, but anybody who's been to that nasty "Bodies" exhibition knows that they're actually disembodied testicles. I'm not sure why Troy Lee chose to emblazon a bicycle saddle with flaming disembodied testicles, but I guess it's either a placement guide, or else a veiled warning that this saddle is not comfortable. Or maybe flaming disembodies testicles are just the flaming dice of the new millennium.

Speaking of new trends, I have a very bad feeling that a new one is about to pounce like a rabid lookiloo. I recently received in the mail a catalog from a high-end clothing retailer (don't ask me where these things come from--junk mail is like herpes and I guess I must be promiscuous) and while thumbing through it I happened upon this:


Yes, that is somebody skating in a $1,520 designer helmet.

So why am I concerned? There are no bicycles involved, right? Well, just as I must have bought something somewhere with some credit card at some point and wound up with catalog herpes, fashion trends too are like STDs. This is a guy on a skateboard in a fashion retail catalog that also sells expensive jeans. And we know who draws much of their stylistic inspiration from skating and designers and retailers of overpriced trendy clothing. Yes, that's right--urban cyclists. From skating they've appropriated the sneakers and the cinematographic style, and from the world of fashion they've appropriated things like "lookbooks" and "colorways." So it's only a matter of time before someone else with catalog herpes happens upon this and starts marketing fashion helmets to urban cyclists. Look--here's another one:



And this one's $1,750.

With the world of bags and holsters and sneakers and hats and t-shirts already quite crowded, the helmet is the next logical step for trendification. Obviously, not all urban cyclists wear helmets, but many of them do. Even if they don't, they espouse helmet use when the subject comes up. In the fixed-gear world, brakes aren't cool, but helmets are, and here in New York I see brakeless helmeted riders all the time. Really, selling expensive fashion helmets to urban fixed-gear cyclists would be like shooting lookiloos in a laundry hamper. Anybody who can justify spending money on a cycling-specific utility belt or a $290 messenger bag "collabo" will certainly pay way more than that for a helmet, provided it's cool enough. After all, it's for safety, and you can't put a price on safety. (Unless that safety comes in the form of a brake, in which case you can't give it away.) Given the current trend climate of streetwear mixed with retro-chic, I'd imagine this helmet would be some updated take on the old hairnets. That way, they could also display their fitted caps underneath.

In the meantime, from the neck down, cycling fashion seems to have graduated from "colorways" to "color collisions." A number of readers forwarded me this, which comes from some kind of GQ fashion spread:


I'm glad to see some practicality finally coming to urban cycling fashion. As all cyclists know, it's extremely important to give your flaming pants yabbies plenty of breathing room. I'm assuming when it's time to actually get on the bike he just hikes the waist up to his armpits so the crotch doesn't get hung up on the nose of his saddle.

Here are some more hot looks. Actually, it looks like GQ have bypassed "color collisions" and gone straight to "color clusterfucks:"



Also, I'm assuming this photo shoot comes from Europe, so in this case it looks like the "color clusterfuck" look has bypassed the east coast of the United States and gone straight to Boise, Idaho:



Finally, speaking of trends, a reader has forwarded me this interview, which reveals that people are now actually asking their wheelbuilders to place messages on their rims for them:


Yes, putting words on your wheelset is now as integral to the wheelbuilding process as stress relieving.

AYHSMFDT.

BSNYC Product Review: Look 566 Road Bicycle

Well, it's April Fools' Day--unless you're French, in which case it's Poisson d'Avril, or unless you're from New Jersey, in which case it's "Bathe Your Pet Day." (For some reason, everybody in New Jersey bathes their pets on April 1st. Feel free to insert your own Jersey-themed wet pussy joke here:________) Obviously, pranks are the order of the day on April 1st, and on the various cycling-themed websites in particular hijinx and tomfoolery abound.

I have no inclination to engage in contrived hijinx or tomfoolery today (mostly because I pretty much do that every day anyway). However, since this is a day when people do things they might not ordinarily do, I'd actually like to be uncharacteristically straightforward and take a look at a bike that a company was foolish enough to lend me for testing. If this offends you, you're certainly welcome to pretend it isn't happening and move on to James Huang's wacky April Fools' post. If not, please read on.

Firstly, I'd just like to say that the fact I received a bike to test has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with my shark-jumping or my Dark Corporate Overlord (DCO). What happened was, shortly after I "tested" my Scattante, a publicist emailed me and asked if I'd like to try a Look 566. Since I like riding bikes I figured there was no harm in what really just amounts to borrowing one for awhile and riding it around, so I agreed. Plus, even though I maintain I have no interest in becoming some kind of serial product reviewer, I am interested in staying on top of what these companies are trying to sell. And I vastly prefer having stuff sent to me than going to bike shows or wherever else you see this stuff, since it allows me to avoid people. (People-avoidance is a passion of mine).

Anyway, after I agreed to try the bike I checked it out on the Look website:



Ride a century on Saturday. Race it on Sunday. This bike does it all.

With speed and efficiency, comfort is sometimes forgotten. At LOOK, we prioritize comfort just as high as speed and efficiency. Without comfort comes fatigue. Made of a secret blend of High Resistance and High Modulus carbon, and constructed by our proven tube to tube manufacturing method, the 566 is not only light, but extremely compliant while not sacrificing pedaling efficiency. The tuned flattened top tube and seatstays equate to a smooth ride, while the new Twisted Stay chainstay design means that no forward energy is lost under any pedaling load by resisting lateral flex and allowing vertical flex. We’ve also taken our proven Pro Tour geometry and shortened the top tube and heightened the head tube to ensure all day back and neck saving comfort. Ride the local century on Saturday and race the local criterium on Sunday. This bike does it all.

In understanding any bicycle (at least from a marketing perspective), we must understand the concept of the bicycle, and this can generally be found in the form of a catchy phrase contained in the marketing copy. So the concept of the Look 566 is a bike that "does it all," and that can be ridden all day comfortably as well as raced. While I can certainly appreciate this concept, I also thought that's what a road bike was supposed to be anyway. And as far as all the other stuff about a "secret blend" of crabon and "resisting lateral flex" while "allowing vertical flex" and so forth, that just means none of the tubes are round. Ultimately, the way they arrive at a bike that "does it all" is by making the headtube on the 566 taller than all their other bikes, which they finally mention there towards the end. Anyway, they sent me the SRAM Rival complete bike, and here's what the whole thing looks like once it's been put together and ridden for awhile:


The bike came with pedals (guess what kind?) but because I don't use that kind I installed my own. Also, the stem the bike came with was too short for me, so I used a longer one. And obviously, I added the bottle cage and dork-tastic saddle bag. Otherwise, though, this is the bike as Look sells it.

Obviously, when it comes to crabon fiber road bikes, rule #1 is that the bottom bracket shell must be..."beefy." And rule #1 when reviewing crabon fiber road bikes is that this..."beefiness" must be photographed up close and commented upon. So here goes:



The oversized bottom bracket...is beefy.

Big freaking deal.

The next rule of crabon fiber road bikes is that the frame must be covered with acronyms or buzzwords that highlight certain elements of the bike--kind of like real-life mouse-overs. The Look did not disappoint in this regard either:




Up front, it had "F2D Frontal Flex Design," which apparently means that it has a fork. A real reviewer would doubtless also comment on its "ingenious" cable guides as well. I, however, am not a real reviewer.



In the rear, it had STSC, which stands for "Special Twisted Section Concept." This sounds like a metal band, but it just means that the stays were a weird shape.





On the downtube was reassurance that this was no ordinary carbon fiber. It was "performance tuned" carbon fiber.

Now, you can buy the Look 566 as a frameset, but if you buy the complete bike they sent me it will come with these handlebars:



I couldn't find these on the FSA site, so I suspect they're some kind of OEM special. As you can see, they're carbon (or at least carbon wrapped) with flat tops, and the tape stops in plenty of time to leave the tops bare and show off the logos. This means that not only are the tops slippery, but also that when you're holding them you're also holding a handful of cable housing. Obviously, you can always buy new tape and wrap the bars completely, but there's still no groove for the cables. Sure, you can also just switch the bars, but I don't understand why a "does it all" bike designed for comfort would come set up this way in the first place. Perhaps worst of all, Look missed a chance to use another acronym: SCS (or "Stupid Cockpit Setup.")

Otherwise, though the components were fine. The wheels weren't exactly Jobst Brandtian, but at least they seem relatively serviceable and stayed perfectly true. Also, the Rival stuff was excellent. As far as the compact cranks, a 50/34 with a 12-26 cassette in the rear means that when you're going easy on the flats you're either crossed over in the big ring or crossed over in the small ring, but that's mostly just a consequence of living in a relatively flat area. Gearing can always be changed, and I certainly can't blame Look for my local topography.

So How Does It Ride?

The main reason bike reviews often sound so ridiculous is because they inevitably veer off into those sensuous descriptions of the bicycle's ride quality.  Either that, or they attempt to quantify something that is essentially subjective, which is often even more ridiculous.  

The truth is, any bicycle that fits well and is set up properly will ride well, provided it's being used in a reasonable way.  (Your well-fitting road bike is not going to ride very well through a rock garden, for example, just as your mountain bike is going to be sluggish on the road.)  All a frame really needs to do is place your components where they need to be and not break.  For this reason, the whole business of evaluating slightly different bicycles with slightly different combinations of components and attempting to discern those differences is mostly pointless.  

What you can do, however, is evaluate a bicycle's marketing.  So does the Look 566 do what it was designed to do?

Well, the Look rides well.  This is not because of the twisted stays and frontal flex and "performance carbon," because my other bikes that have none of these things (or if they do they're not called any of those things) also ride just as well.  So we can file those in the "subjective" drawer and safely forget about them.  The "objective" difference between the Look 566 and a lot of other road bikes, and the thing that really makes it what Look call a "does it all" bike, is the tall headtube.  And it is tall--it's about three centimeters taller than my own otherwise comparably-sized road bike.

This is certainly not a bad thing.  Higher bars can be more comfortable for some people.  Moreover, Look say you can "ride a century on Saturday" and "race it on Sunday."  This is true.  The bike was perfectly comfortable on long rides, and I was indeed able to race it as well.  Granted, I was a lot higher up than I usually am, which felt weird, but it really wasn't a problem and I'm happy to say I even passed.  So in this respect the bike did exactly what it was supposed to--while few people would want a headtube this tall on a race bike, it is a raceable bike.  So job done there.

However, the problem I have with the Look 566 is that while it's not a race bike, it looks like one, and it has all the limitations of one.  Certainly, pro bikes must be covered in decals and attention-grabbing color schemes.  And certainly, crabon fiber bikes do make good race bikes.  So if you need a pure race bike it's not surprising you wind up with one of these pro bike replicas, even if you don't particularly like the way they look.  You're also not going to worry about things like frame clearance or fender eyelets, since you're mostly using the thing to race.  On the other hand, if you're searching for a bike you can ride all day comfortably that can be raced as well on occasion, you don't need to settle for a misshapen crabon fiber billboard.  You're free to consider other bicycles that won't look dated next year, and that are versatile in other ways as well.  

So while I can see wanting a bike that fits like the Look 566 and is geared like it, and that allows me to ride hills slowly all day yet still jump into a race or a fast ride when I feel like it, I can't see wanting this one, since I don't really see the point of a bike that looks like a pro race bike but really isn't.  A number of companies make road frames with taller head tubes that also have eyelets here and there and are less expensive than this one to boot, and I'd much rather have one of those instead.  Still, if you do love everything about modern race bikes except for the fit, then the Look 566 is certainly a better choice than getting some pro bike replica and getting all kludgy with your stem setup.

In any case, I still enjoyed riding the bike, and I'm grateful to both Look and their publicist for letting me rub this one.  I also managed to find a use for the... beefy bottom bracket shell, which was actually wide enough to accommodate this pentabike sticker sent to me by my partner in bromance, Stevil:

I also used it to test a prototype front wheel I plan to bring to market:

I personally feel that the sticker and the wheel go great together and help mitigate the aesthetic effect of that giant headtube:


In any case, thanks for reading, and for suffering through my "review."  I can assure you that nothing was harmed during the course of this extensive test--except possibly my dignity.

Happy Bizarro April Fools' Day,

--BSNYC