Hi Jim,

Attached are some shots of Margie, my 57cm A. Homer Hilsen from Rivendell. The name is an homage to 3 favorite Margies - my grandmother, the sheriff in the film FARGO, and that blue-haired vixen on the Simpsons.

My intent was to build it as an all-rounder kind of bike for commuting, brevets, and general around-town riding.ÊWith the higher bar and 35mm Panaracer Pasela TGs pumped to 55 lbs. it's super comfy on the local bike paths and just begs to go off the beaten path. I set up the gearing for the potential steep climb with a medium-light load, so 46/36/24 up front on the Mavic crank and a 13-34 8 speed cassette. I cobbled my own cassette together so I always have my favorite 60 and 67 inch cruising gears in the middle of the cassette. The XT derailleur is traditional rise and handles the range nicely.

I really like the Carradice camper bag set up with a slightly altered Gnashbar front rack for a saddle back support, and the khaki colored hemp belt webbing as bar tape. I've wanted some khaki bar tape for ages and just got lucky at the fabric/craft store with this. I'll do a shellack test strip and if the color is pleasant I may shellack the whole bar. The tape is finished off with colored hemp twine from another craft store, and though the picture doesn't show it the color is a close match for Margie's nice blue paint.

By using some additional attachment points at the rear rack and bending the front fender stays to follow the fork rake, the Zefal fenders are close to rattle-free. However, I do hope to get some Berthoud stainless fenders to replace the pretty soon.

As always, Cyclofiend is my favorite website for bike inspiration.

Jim Bailey
Knoxville, TN

j_sbailey@bellsouth.net