Velo Routier at 1,100 miles

Spring has sprung as they say. Though winter saw some miles on the bike, they were far too few, so now that it's warming up it's time to get out on the road to get the cycling season really going in earnest. But before setting out this weekend I thought I'd spruce up the Velo Routier with a new colorway for the cockpit. I had originally intended to swap out the stem and handlebars too, but I bought a Nitto Technomic which was just too long for my short headset (I ride a 51cm frame). The Rivendell guys would probably approve, but I find super-long stems on road bikes a bit clownish. 

So until I get a new stem, I've stuck with the original Nitto "Young" stem and Nitto B114 "Olympiad" handlebar I swapped from my 1986 Fuji Allegro, simply adding new brake levers in brown with matching Cinelli in "corky" bar tape. As I was re-wrapping the bars I elected to add a bit of gel along the top of the bar, particularly at the bend, where my hands tend to spend the most time. 

Velo Routier in brown!

I like the brown brake hoods better than the black ones I had before. Both are made by Origin 8, but the brown version, "Classique" has more of a Campagnolo shape I much prefer with the added aesthetic bonus of drilled levers. $34 for the pair. In retrospect, I can't believe how much money I've spent over the years on integrated indexed "brifters" and associated parts. Yes, I get why racers want them, but for the rest of us? Friction shifting is more reliable, repairable and yes, affordable. 

Cycles Toussaint Velo Routier Version 2.0

The inaugural ride confirmed that the new brake levers, tape and gel were a good choice. All feels nice and cushy and my inner retrogrouch loves the look. It gives me nice flat ramps which provides lots of positions for my hands. I'll probably still swap out the cockpit for a Soma Fabrications Sutro stem and a Velo Orange Course handlebar the next time I'm ready to re-wrap. That'll let me get the bars just a tiny bit higher (roughly even with the saddle) and give me that classic Maes parallel look. It may also pull the shifters back toward me a skosh. 

I should say that I spent a bit of the ride fighting the horizontal dropouts. So that kind of spoiled what would otherwise have been a delightful, spring ride. For some reason (probably because I'm such an immensely powerful cyclist) the skewer repeatedly kept slipping, letting the wheel go askew and the tire rub against the chain stay. I assure you I had the quick-release as tight as I could make it. I could barely get it open to re-position the wheel. I'm not really sure about the optimum position of the axle in the dropouts and I have them close to the front. I will probably pull them back a bit, but I'm tightening the quick-release as tight as I can and it still keeps letting go. I'll figure it out, but it's kind of a pain. 

Horizontal dropouts.

Cycles Toussaint says of Version 2 of the Velo Routier, "instead of vertical, the Velo Routier 2.0 will have adjustable horizontal rear drop outs which will allow for internal hub and fixed-gear builds." I guess it's possible that someone has done this. Certainly one of the owners has done it. But I can't find many examples online. I'm sympathetic to the challenges of getting such a bike produced, but I wish they would have put the horizontal dropouts on the "fixie" version without the braze-ons and just left the road version with the much more sensible vertical dropouts as on Version 1.