tag
With all the talk of Cavendish a few feet from breaking the outright TDF stage win record, then failing, and then crashing out, artist Richard Pool found inspiration in the G.O.A.T. and drew this up. It seems the outright stage win record, will now never be broken. Read on below for an op-ed on why Eddy Merckx will always be the king.
While I missed this in time for this morning’s Radar Roundup, I had to share it!
I love browsing Bring a Trailer if for no other reason than gems like this. Vintage cars, much like vintage bikes have a panache unmatched by their modern counterparts. Take, for instance, this 1977 Volvo 244 DL that was refinished in Molteni Orange, one of Eddy Merckx’s teams in the 1970s, and covered in team decals like the original TdF chase vehicles.
These little 2.1-liter inline-four Volvo engines are legendary, yet that is no Merckx. Check out more photos at Bring a Trailer.
For those of us who are taken by steel frames and appreciate their ride feel and longevity, the idea of a “lifetime” bike is a familiar one. In practice, however, the idea that a bike could last a lifetime is often just that – an idea – and for some reason or another bikes don’t always stay with us as long as we’d initially envisioned. Not so with Karen’s Merckx.
Karen bought her Eddy Merckx brand new when she was living in Edmonton, AB, in the ’80s. It was originally equipped with a mix of Dura-Ace AX and Campy Record, 6-speed downtube of course. She rode it for a number of years before hanging up the road bike in favor of mountain bikes in the mid ’90s.
Now based in Kelowna, BC, Karen and her husband Chris run a full service repair shop for vintage and modern European cars, with a focus on the details that those machines deserve. Chris took this attention to detail to Meshkat at The Lions Cyclery in the form of a restoration project, and Karen was inspired to dust off the Merckx.
To retain the bike’s classic aesthetic, a silver Campagnolo Veloce group was installed from front to back. The tan sidewall Strada LGGs look perfect on the polished Weinmann rims. The stem, bar, and headset are all that’s left of the original build; with its bombproof new groupset, Karen’s Merckx is ready for its next 30 years.
____
Follow Morgan on Instagram and follow The Lions Cyclery on Instagram.
“Eddy Merckx embodies that spirit of excellence…”
Last week was Eddy’s birthday and to celebrate this excellence, the folks at River City Bicycles in Portland made an homage video, showcasing their in-shop shrine of the Cannibal.
In my opinion, Merckx still holds the hour record in an era before aerodynamics were a main concern. His Colnago-built Molteni track bike was completely laced out with Pino Morroni drillium componentry to reduce weight and nothing protected the hardened cyclist from a potential collision, save for a Cinelli hairnet. In 1972, Merckx was the man of the hour and his legacy still lives to this day. This video showcases other greats from the Hour Record.
Don’t miss this Merckx Mondays from 2009 and the discussion on the original Merckx Hour Record bike…
Great find, Tracko!
Morgan happened upon one of the Girl Rick McCrank Merckx skate decks during his recent visit to Super Champion in Vancouver.
Photo by Doug Dalrymple
When I saw this on Crihs’ Instagram from the Bicycle Film Festival‘s Joy Ride art show in Mexico City, I had to get a higher res photo for Merckx Mondays. Luckily, Doug D was there and shot a proper photo. I’m so stoked on this piece and if I had the wall space, I’d try to purchase it from the artist! Here’s the scoop:
Name: 148+fracc
Website: www.facebok.com/yopower
Materials: wood and acrylic paint
Technique: xylography
Work description:
“This piece is based on Eddy Merckx’s hour record done in Mexico’s Agustin Melgar velodrome in 1972. The name of the piece comes exactly from that: 148 laps and fraction that he did to complete the record. The rasterized image is carved on wood pieces with the regalement size for velodromes. Also the colour lines are official except that the cuerda line is red instead of black just as it was back then.
Generally in my work I use a contrast between antique techniques and new concepts. That’s what gives all my work a discursive character. In this case this piece was specially made for the Joy Ride art show of the Bicycle Film Festival Mexico.”
So rad! Speaking of art pieces, Tracko came across this eBay auction!
Happy Merckx Mondays! This Recent Roll post is brought to you by David Flores and Division 1, a new shop on the east side of Austin, Texas. The guys at D1 flew Mr. Flores out to paint this massive Eddy Merckx mural on the eastern façade of their new building. It’s impressive!
Tools of the trade:
Mamiya 7ii / 80mm
Fuji Pro400H
This Eddy Merckx Panasonic road frame was crashed in a criterium race this year. Its mangled stays are hanging in Affinity Cycles in Brooklyn. How’s that for a Merckx Mondays post? Be careful out there guys
