It was designed by a hell of a guy...Andy Dyson, ruler of bike works and the bike church. It is marketed and sold by a monster who has been known to pull out and wave about the ak47 he keeps at his shop (!) and has been alleged to have no problem with buying and selling stolen parts/bikes. It's fine if you ride gently and not so often and have no interest in any street credibility (not that I'm advocating caring what others think, just saying). If you tend to push your whip more than the average bear and are on a tight budget, I would highly recommend the ebay Mercier.