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@Velocio
As I mentioned to Rourke, as flattering as it is and as tempting as it is, there's a clear plan this year to NOT have a bling bike.
Instead the point is to showcase the community, warts and all.
The Cycle Show 2010 guide says that manufacturers are only allowed to bring down next seasons wares and to bling them out. Old products can't be shown.
As we're pretty much the only entity that isn't a manufacturer or selling something (except, ephemerally ourselves)... we have the opportunity (which I'm seizing) to put up bikes that have real beausage scars. Bikes with chipped paint, bikes that get used daily and whilst being a bit batterted still show the love of their owners.
And that's what we're doing. We're not putting new bikes on the stand, we're putting bikes that are people's daily workhorses on the stand.
We're showing people that the bling doesn't matter, that it's about the zen of riding one gear and the aesthetics and reduced maintenance that comes with it. We're showing the essence of cycling with none of the bells and whistles (or gears, or bling).
So it's all very flattering and extremely tempting, but putting up a perfect 953 bike painted for the occasion is a long way from why the stand is being put together.