After trying for years to get used to a couple of domestic framed bikes , - a Litespeed Classic and a Cannondale Synapse carbon, -- i pulled an old late 80's Ciocc off my office wall and took it for a short spin

It felt like i had come home --- (I rode an Italian bike through the 90's) --- Riding it felt nice, - not effortless, but it seemed to at least come close to fitting me

Until i had to shift gears, - then leaning down to hit the downtube friction shifters with my Clyde belly was a pain
The bike is well preserved and has a great Campy group on it from the era, --- so i decided not to "modernize " it and instead went looking for something newer but with the traditional squarish Italian geometry
- the longer, lower American style geometry (even on the Synapse, which is their "classics" or comfort frame) i guess hasnt sat well with me
i have gone through all manner of spacers, stems, seatposts with varying offsets , seats - almost anything i could think of to get a sporty but moderately comfortable ride i could do 50 miles on without regretting it

I am hoping this one will, if not end the eternal search, at least get me a bit closer to happiness - Its a Pinarello Opera with the steel front triangle and carbon rear stays that was popular in the late 90's until the mid 2000's when the new market switched to carbon and never looked back -

------ Pics are from the ebay ad - To start out it will be a "budget build" - The Litespeed is wearing a Dura Ace 7800 groupset with less than 1000 miles on it, so it will give up its shifters, rear derailleur, brakeset and Mavic training wheelset it is wearing so i can get a few rides in and see if its going to work out -- 10 speed is good enough and 7800 fits into this frame's era anyway -- Due to the proprietary and odd sizing on many newish bikes now i suppose -- the seller is including the front derailleur, headset, seatpost, bottom bracket and a nice looking FSA carbon compact crankset

I am looking for a 11/8 Look ergo stem to start out with , but those critters are pricey --- if no joy is there with that, i will select a stem that gets the handlebars close to or just slightly under saddle height , with the reach measurement as close as i can get to my Ciocc

I posted a thread in the road cycling forum asking if anyone was familiar with the ride characteristics of these frames, but no responses yet ---









Its really a lovely riding little Cannondale --- but like i said, just couldnt get truly comfortable -- someone will be able to enjoy it more than i did hopefully --

--- wish me luck, i hope i am not just tilting at windmills here , but if i am to put in some LSD rides , i need to be able to tolerate the thing longer than an hour






Edited to include a pic of the wallhanger Ciocc, whose ride inspired more bike building tomfoolery---