Well, here she is everyone...

FAST ATTACK

I got the final coat of clear shot last weekend. I now have the bike assembled. I tuned it up, and took it for a short spin around the block.

My initial impression of this bike is nothing short of impressive. I hate to say this, but Trinity has some serious competition here. Amazingly, the bike weighs only 16.8lbs with pedals, cages, and computer. I am thoroughly impressed, as I thought this machine would come in closer to 17.3lbs from all of my initial calculations.

The ride is unbelievably stable. It is actually more stable and feels less twitchy than Trinity (14.9lbs), and the frame is extremely stiff. The extra 2lbs gives it a sense of stability, yet feels just as fast. As a matter of fact, this bike feels faster on the flats than Trinity, yet it also has a slightly better low gear for climbing.

- The Trigon integrated bars are VERY comfortable, and the large tops really feel good with my larger hands.

- The drivetrain is a Chorus group, with a gorgeous chrome plated Miche Primato 11-23 cassette, and a Trigon 50/34 carbon compact crank with Ultegra BB.

- The brakes are the new '06 Mirage brakes w/Upgraded pads for less weight and replacable pads.

- The seatpost is 27.2mm Ascent carbon with Ascent carbon bottle cages.

- The Nashbar racing saddle is also a big surprise. I rode around for 30 mins with my thin tights (no chamois), and had no discomfort at all. This is very odd for me. It is shaped similar to my Selle SLR, yet it flexes a bit more, and forms around your sitbones better. The padding is also a little nicer than the SLR. An incredibly comfortable saddle that weighs only 187g for $30 on sale. The only thing that I am not so certain of, is that it's not leather, it's synthetic. No real big issue for only $30 though.

- The headset is an American Classic Ultra-Lite 1". Not much else to say there.

- The computer is a Ciclo Master CM414 Altimeter. Good computer.

- Now for the big cheese. The Wheels. They are a 16/20 wheel with a 30mm aero rim, weighing 1510g for only $192 shipped. They are adorned with Michelin Carbon 700x23's. Now one may ask, where to get these wheels. Well, these are the Formula Xero XR-1's I got a couple months ago off Ebay. I have only a few miles on them, so the jury is still out, but I will say this so far. For $192, they are quite the wheel. I am hoping they will survive my punishing rides. They are very stiff, and didn't give when I put the hammer down on a quick test sprint over 32mph.
As you can see, I pulled the red and white decals. I think they look much better stealth for a Navy blue and gold bike. And, the yellow striped Carbs match beautifully.

All in all, I am very impressed with the whole setup. My total investment was about $2000 with lots of shopping around for the best deals on parts. It is hard to find a Chorus equipped Titanium bike for under $3500 anywhere, let alone what I paid. But then, I did the paint job myself, and the build, etc.

And finally, the name. Some of you may wonder where I got the name. Well, I used to be in the Navy, and served in the submarine fleet. Those nuclear subs are called, "Fast Attack" submarines. The frame is also adorned with our ships creed, which I carried over to become the famous OCP creed, "Faith - Vigilance - Service". The name of the ship I served on, is also applied to the seat tube. That's it. Enjoy my sad pics.

I'll have to bring this one down to Portland when I go on my weekend trip in a few weeks. See you guys there.