Colnago C50 Pista

lpg Alright then, alright. But hear this - what you said about the ferrari's/porsches is not really relevant : any sucker can put their put down on an accelerator. With bikes, one needs the physical capability to do certain things, and with a guitar, one needs experience and practice. Now, i don't really play guitar, so if i went out and bought a £6K guitar, the amount of 'enjoyment' i get out of it will NOT be 100x greater than a £60 second hand strat, because i don't know how to strum a chord.

In no way am i insulting your bikeriding skillz, but you aren't at the level where that bike is what you need.

Peace.

You're not actually trying to argue that only a few people could actually ride a Colnago are you?

And have you tried playing guitar? Clapton could certainly whip my arse if I had the finest guitar in the world and he just had a knock-off copy strat that was falling apart... but still, my personal enjoyment will be increased immeasurably by playing the expensive guitar because even though I might fumble and miss a chord change, it sure as hell would sound a hell of a lot better than me fumbling the cheap guitar that had terrible pickups and acoustics, and it would feel better, and I would love every second of it.

There is nothing wrong, at all, with enjoying the finer things in life. Be it drinking fine wine and gulping it down without being able to discern the many subtleties... providing you really enjoyed the gulping down. Be it driving a sports car to Sainsburys and ham-fisting the clutch... providing you really have the time of your life each time you take the car out.

I don't see why you have this elitist streak, I don't see why anyone does. So long as you derive a great amount of pleasure out of riding a bike, then great. On both of the bikes I currently own I love riding them. Absolute blasts.

I know I'll buy more fine bikes over time. Because I love riding them.

Why on earth does it upset you that I get such great pleasure out of riding such bikes?

Well, why did you create the post - for us all say 'yeah go on DK buy it!', or to get some different opinions?

I didn't. I started the thread hoping people would talk me out of it. But an argument for talking someone out of it should go along the lines of "you've got great bikes already" or "there's better out there, dream of the BMC" or "you're broke sonny, leave it a while and buy a Vanilla instead"... but an argument based on "you're a crap rider, you aren't even racing, the bike is too good and you're not worth it" is pretty damn insulting and also hardly in the spirit of things.

I hope to f**k i never lose that ability to stand gobsmacked in front of something i consider to be really lovely...

For us oldies it's a lovely reminder of how it felt the first time you saw one of the kids at school turn up with a flame red raleigh chopper,

yeah it all gets a bit muddied with spending amounts of money that would make a sh*t load of difference to someone in a different social and financial situation but thats a matter of personal conscience - has nothing to do with matching ability to what bike you're 'qualified" to buy.

One of my favourite sights at the giro this year was watching the pre race festivities where they let all the local cycling clubs parade up the last Kilometre of the course - some fantastically large chaps who tested the tensile qualities of lycra to it's limit on the most beautiful colnagos and pinarellos,

a real and inclusive riding culture

Don't listen to them, David! Just buy the fecker. I know I would if I could afford it, and I'm the slowest fecker around!

Hardly a case of "all the gear, no idea".

buy a vanilla instead those look sooo nice are you getting rid of the bob

This argument -- if it is indeed an argument -- is getting a bit silly. People should buy what they like if they can afford it, whether it's a cheap £20 beater or a £8k racer. Ultimately it affects the rider and the rider only.

Hovis Brown This argument -- if it is indeed an argument -- is getting a bit silly. People should buy what they like if they can afford it, whether it's a cheap £20 beater or a £8k racer. Ultimately it affects the rider and the rider only.

Yeah, you're right - sorry velocity boy didnt mean to insinuate that you are a crappy rider, i wanted to give you my opinion. Guitar comment : jes' a joke. It isn't my place to involve myself in your financial situ but last time i saw ya you never had a dime for a shoeshine. Also, think of the depreciation! Buy some colnago shares instead, eh.

dicki buy a vanilla instead those look sooo nice are you getting rid of the bob

That's how the idea started. It always starts this way.

I start by thinking... mmm I could just buy the frame and fork, and transfer all the stuff off another bike (the Bob) onto it.

And then I think, yeah, I'll buy the frame and fork. But, it's a shame to not have the stuff hanging off it matching it... perhaps I should also buy stem, seatpost... little things to make it work.

And then I think, why bother taking stuff off the Bob. I could leave that as a complete bike and just hang new stuff off the Colnago.

And I think, I'll just buy cheap stuff. Yeah. Except... it's only £x to go from Formula to Goldtec, and you can't ride Formula's on a bike like this. And it's only £x to go from Goldtec to Phil Wood, and they'd do the frame justice.

And that's basically how I always get new bikes. I start with thinking I can do it cheap, and I end up buying everything new and top of the range.

I should wait for a Vanilla. I'm on the waiting list, it's 4 years away. But I should just wait and not buy bikes in the meantime. It's hard not to bike lust though, even harder when the shop is wonderful and members of the Colnago family are standing there. And a few of you know, I wanted a Colnago long before I wanted the Serotta, I only ended up with a Serotta because Condor showed shitty customer service so I walked down the road to Cyclefit instead. I still want a Colnago, but I know I should wait.

The only opinion I have is that you shouldn't buy the BMC. It's nice from a design/aesthetic point of view but it's got slack angles and I don't think it would be as good on the track as many other bikes.

I also wouldn't spend that much on a bike as I've got other things that I'd prefer to do (travel etc) rather than spending money on objects. However, if you buy any of these super flashy bikes then I'll be first in line asking to try it out!

Buy buy buy bling bling

Roberto Buy buy buy bling bling

You're no help!

I would've thought it an obvious question to ask someone if they're spending so much money on a racing track bike....

I'm amazed.....at how much you can deduce from my attitude from only seven words.

This is a bike forum so I'm not going to go into my opinions of men who feel the need to by Porsches or Ferraris, but from what I can gather my views are widely held by others!

If you've got that kind of budget, why don't you ask Ernesto to build you a bike that looks exactly the same but has geometry, weave patterns, clearances, flex, fork rake angle etc suitable for going up and down kerbs and in and out of potholes instead of doing 40mph on smooth tracks.....that's a serious suggestion by the way.....alternatively buy a Pinarello track frame, because according to visiting Italians at Good Friday, Pinarello full-carbon track frames are essentially standard road frames with track-ends!

"Not everyone who buys such a guitar imagines that they'll be playing like hendrix, some simply appreciate and love the skill of the person who created the guitar, the workmanship that went into it, and the quality and sound of it"

I wonder where the craftsmen who build Colnago c50 pistas think their machines that they put so much love into are going? pro track riders? aspiring sponsored junior track racers? enthusiastic retired veteran track racers? pub runners?......does it bother them I wonder?.....probably not....it's what pays their wages I guess.

I wonder if production Colnago stuff is even the same quality as what they furnish the pros with...their brand is so strong they could quite easily mass produce lookalike pop-outs with the same decals....unless you've got legs like Chris Hoy would you notice?

Sounds like a good question to ask of all frame builders, "Do you have any opinion on your bikes being purchased by enthusiasts and not professionals, and being ridden for purposes other than the specific one for which the frame was designed?".

Actually, it's such a good question I'll go and ask it :)

And winston, I didn't derive anything from your 7 words. You asked if I would go down to HH, my answer was perhaps, perhaps not. The rest of my answers were directed all at lpg as he had provided arguments which I felt were quite insulting.

One of my favourite sights at the giro this year was watching the pre race festivities where they let all the local cycling clubs parade up the last Kilometre of the course - some fantastically large chaps who tested the tensile qualities of lycra to it's limit on the most beautiful colnagos and pinarellos

were they Track bikes?

Are the clubs inset into the frame or just stickers and are the lugs as decorative as on their steel frames.
Colnago are one of the only european frames I think really do nice lugs and would consider buying (I prefere lugless). If it is less decorative (as it appears from the picture) it would leave me a bit cold and feeling cheated if I owned it. If I got one I'd want all the trimmings of a Colnago and possibly a flag that said look at my lovely Colnago lugs.
I agree with the centiment that bike are made for riding regardless of the pricetag so don't get the nay sayers negativity in this tread. Supporting high level craftmanship is a good thing!)

There were a group from the local velodrome on the parade on their track bikes, also some of the smallest road bikes i've seen - the junior section had kids as young as 5 fully kitted out on their 'racers',

oh and i get to meet mario cipollini,

which was nice...

ok.....

I'd like to know the answer to that question too actually, maybe ask the design team as well, no offence but they could design you a bike that looks like what you want but is made for your personal needs?

I went to that Independent Fabrications night the other day and although I would never spend that kind of money the idea that the bike is designed and built to your riding requirements is attractive.....you could say: "I want a shit-hot looking bike that looks like a track bike but has ride qualities for the road"?

If you do come down to HH with the bike that has created so much discussion, then you'd better have found yourself a sponsor, shaved your legs, wear skin tight lycra and have completed about 100 hours of interval sessions!!!......now I am kidding....the more the merrier on the track....and there is a huge variety of frames down there.

PEGORETTI is the best....period.

Isn't this a similar argument that appeared in the 4x4 crash thread? ie. why would someone drive something that's not meant for London's roads in London?
Isn't the 4x4 case just a wee bit similar to riding a full carbon track bike on the streets of London? Just with less fuel consumption and less risk to other road users?
We paid out the 4x4 driver, surely you don't think you can escape a certain amount of the ol' "elitist" flack? It's human nature dude, I'm sure there's nothing sinister behind it.. just the usual 'wish i had the cash for that' ribbing.

winston ok.....

I'd like to know the answer to that question too actually, maybe ask the design team as well, no offence but they could design you a bike that looks like what you want but is made for your personal needs?

I'll ask it of the Colnago's on Friday.

I've just asked it of Richard Sachs, Sacha White, Richard Kirk, and all of the others who hang out on the frame builders forum that I'm a lurker on. They're a wonderful bunch all of them, and I'm sure they'll be pretty honest about what they think. I'll let you know their responses.

I really think it's a great question. I build software for a living, and I do despise idiot users, but even then I'm glad that my software helps them in some way and makes their life easier, or their job less stressful, etc.

I'm going to be Frank. (you can be Mary if you like)
**
You're a shop-a-holic!**

It's hard not to be these days - but buying that bike is just ridiculous - damn near obscene
(in my opinion) unless you're going to use it. And i mean really USE it. I think you'd get more
pleasure out of planning to buy it and planning the modifications and stroking it than you'd have
time to use it!

You don't want to hear my opinion on blokes who buy shiny £80k cars to pop down the high street...

I wouldn't wan't to deprive anyone of the right to own a bling bike - and i suppose £2.5k is the amount you'd
spend on a little 2nd hand car - so i guess it's not that obscene if you look at it in a uk-wide perspective.
However, with that money you could take a month holiday off work to go riding anywhere
in the world - on your existing, and already very blinging bikes! (Or pay off half those debts! You do
know interest rates are going up, up, up from here right!?)

I hope i don't come across as nasty. It's just my view and i admit i don't know enough
about you/ your situation to fully comment. For all I know, having bought that bike you'll
not want another for a decade and you'll be really happy and ride it every day for hours and hours.
In which case i'd've been wrong to say: DONT BUY IT!

Stef PEGORETTI is the best....period.

"57 strat played through a tweed vibroking.......mmmm.....mmmmm

Skinning a cat with a chainsaw..

when you can climb highgate hill fixed then you can buy that as a gift to yourself !! set yourself a target and when you acheive it then treat yourself
working towards owning a bike like should be a long slow tortuous thing makes the waiting all the more worthwhile !!