Originally Posted by
non-fixie
Unless you're racing or want to join fast group rides, outright speed isn't all that important. For me it's all about look & feel, and the bikes I like best are the ones I can poodle around on all day long without feeling tired or bruised or whatever afterwards. In general, those are not my lightest or most expensive bikes, but the ones that fit well, look nice and feel "just right". Whatever that is.
Case in point: this is a rather heavy (32lbs) cheap gaspipe chain store frame with mostly old, well-used parts and cheap Vietnamese tires. Yet I'd choose it over most of my other bikes for a long day out:
Hey that is a pretty looking bike!
I do get pretty tired on my bike. I wonder if I'm just pushing too hard and need to chill out. But also, 9mph seems pretty damn slow.
Also, shoutout to the Vivere link in your signature! As a lover of old jazz and all things Italian, I'm a big fan of Carlo Buti.