The Vintage Rides of D2R2:  Saddle Up

The first stories in this series had an unexpected consequence:  several people wrote to me saying, "Well, I rode the early years, but I don't have any such stories like that ..."  To which I replied, "No need!  Please send a pic (or two or three or .....)"  These pics are stories unto themselves.

So, for today, the first of several thematic sets of pics with a few anecdotes.  This is a group of classic adventure rigs with saddle bags - almost like the bag itself is a bumper sticker saying, "Yup, out riding ALL DAY today!"

Bill sent this pic of his custom Waterford at the Rowe lunch site:

Zoom in, there's so much going on here - the ornate lug work, plush tires, indexed down tube shifters, TA cranks, some leather items, and of course the water bottles teasing us whether you have a vintage Sachs in your stable as well.  The thing is, this is not an early D2R2 bike, but his latest in a long line of D2R2 machines.  He writes:

"I should have added, my first D2R2 was the second edition. I did the 180 on my Merckx MXL. I shoehorned 27mm Vittoria Mastercross cyclocross tires into the frame, and I used a 53/39 and a 13x29 for gearing [Anybody else's kneecaps implode at the very thought of it? - Ed.], and thought I would be over-geared for the event because they seemed like milquetoast gearing at the time. Ha, I had quite an education once I warmed into the ride. I didn't walk any hills, but I may have called out to my mother a few times. The older we get, the faster we were."

LOL.

I excitedly asked for pics of the MXL - a legendary machine on its own.  He replied,

"My MXL was a fabulous machine, but following my first D2R2 event in 2006, I was already seeking a machine that could accommodate larger volume tires, and so I punted. I think I got my first Zank at around that time, and I could shoehorn 30mm tires into it.  I believed at that time I could never possibly desire tires larger than that!"

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Adam, from my old Downeast haunts, sent along this pic of his Heron Road from 2010:

Again, much like Bill's setup - leather saddle, quill stem, down tube shifters, and saddle bag, along with some S&S couplers so this bike can travel anywhere.

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Aaron sent along his custom Igleheart:

Rohloff hub!  50c tires!  And then I have to laugh at the goats who volunteered to model in this picture.  Any of you recall our 2008 T-shirt artwork?

Rumor has it that we may try to do a throw back shirt like this for this year ...

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Joseph sent along the Riv' Atlantis that he's ridden most recently:

Single ring, woodchipper bars, plush knobbies, and the wide Carradice bag with enough room for a change of clothes and a French press!  Joseph will appear again in a later set of pics because he's been riding since Year 1.  So, much like Bill's machine, you can look over Joseph's Atlantis as a highly refined embodiment of one rider's ideal D2R2 setup.  Like, sheesh, you guys, I'm bummin' that I have to work all day, because I'd love to test ride every single one of your machines .....

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Mark sent along his machines from 2017 and 2018, for which the only common thread was none other than the saddle bag!

2017 was his vintage Huffy, calmly catching its breath at the top of Pennel:

531 tubes, Sugino AT cranks, cantilevers, and FLAT PEDALS!

In 2018 he rode a 1970's Takara:

So much to smile at here, not the least of which are the Suntour VGT derailleurs and "retro-friction" shifters (i.e. having springs to counter the derailleur springs), still tickin' at 50 years of age!

He added a scan of a Bicycling Mag test ride for the Takara from 1975, when the base model sold for "a rather modest price of $175!"

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Again, thanks to everyone for your submissions to date.  Please keep 'em coming!  I have four more themes to illustrate already.