As another NYC resident and an Riv owner, I will say that I think there is a quiet minority of Rivendellians here in the city. I ride my Atlantis with mustache bars around town a fair amount, and have had the bike recognized as well as seen a smattering of others. One fellow even spotted and commented on the Jack Brown tires on my bike while I was stopped at a red light!
I've always felt that Grant and Rivendell should have a great beachhead here in NYC. There is such significant niche of people here who are obsessed with being retro-chic that you'd think it would hold some appeal for them. Unfortunately none of the stores here are regular Riv dealers or seem to hold a lot of interest in that area, though many are fine general purpose bike shops. >From what I've seen, the Riv aesthetic may fall just a little bit in the cracks. As Joe notes, there are plenty of the carbon-head triathlete types pounding around Central and Prospect Parks. And the last five years has seen a huge explosion of people riding rather elegant city bikes, and they're the ones most likely to appreciate a Riv, but for most people $2000+ is a bit steep for a city bike, when there are lots of decent options in the sub$1000 range. Thus Rivs are a pricey for a city bike (in a city that is notoriously hard on bikes) and a little too quirky for most of the higher end crowd, leaving us contrarians in a distinct minority. And while I appreciate the inclination to try to shift the culture of the local clubs, I don't know how much success any of us would have influencing the hammerheads. They've got their niche and they like it. The best we can do is lead by quiet example. These days with two young kids I don't get to do much in the way of long rides, but I do ferry my child around town to piano, and dance, and swimming lessons on a trail-a-bike attached to my Atlantis and I do lock it on the street regularly and occasionally get to enlighten interested passersby. I've been very tempted by the East Coast Riv Rallies that Montclair Bobby organized last year and this, but they've always been on bad weekends for me and just a little too far away to be practical. I've done the Croton Aquaduct BOB ride a number of times (and seen lots of Rivs being ridden there) and while it is on groomed trails and not terribly off road, it still is a bit bumpy and the tempo they take is just a notch higher than I'm comfortable doing these days. Thus fitting my choice to be a Rivendell contrarian, I mostly ride on my own and enjoy the scenery and setting my own pace. Look for the guy with the moustache bar Atlantis on the West Side and I'm always happy to share the road for a bit with whoever is going my way. Peter NYC (PS - Joe, I think you and I have traded emails before on this subject and on new music. I know quite a number of composers and contemporary musicians who ride (in a similar manner to us) and have always thought about organizing a New Music ride some time. Maybe this is the year for it when things warm up a bit. I'll keep you and everyone posted if I do it.) -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
