Originally Posted by froze

I have a similar background as you and it appears we're about the same age. I use to race and my first bike was a Trek TX900 that used the top of the line columbus tubeset but found the tubing to flexy. I sold the bike to buy a better car because the girls didn't appreciate a fine bike and a junker car!! But I race it for a couple of years and faired well considering I was working full time and attending college full time which meant my training hours were limited whereas the guys I raced with trained full time because their parents supported them. I never bought into the smaller frame BS that the LBS's tried to sell me on.

I just bought a Mercian Vincitore with touring specs and 853 tubing that was completly customed built English made bike for just about the same price as the production Atlantis which I had considered. The Mercian is a very comfortable ride even after having them use 3" long spearpoint lugs to beef up the bottom bracket and fork crown (I did this because I felt the longer wheelbase could lend to flexing the bottom bracket more then I would be willing to accept when cranking hard). I had other options I customed for the bike too that the Atlantis would not have been able to do. Like you, I too went with the B17 saddle because for touring and long rides it would be the most comfortable-once broken in which right now it isn't.

Personally I hate the looks of the Kogswell it looks too industrial, like something I would see riding in China by the masses!!!

There was better touring bike then the one I got or the Atlantis but I couldn't afford it so passed on it made by Robert Beckman called the Sakkit Expedition, I think this is the best one on the market from any manufacture but it's just too much to justify purchasing it then watch it get banged up on a tour. https://www.coinet.com/~beckman/bikeframes.html