Meet phoenix, a dream bike no more, acquired by trading up my atomic bike to a lightstorm and finally trading it plus cash for a peerless firebird, 3 – 4 months ago. Replaced a few parts from the build of the previous owner. bike to work bike everyday.
Riding my Vitesse T10 day in and day out led me to a few realizations on what I wanted out of a bicycle. The little blue Dahon is a great machine, but not without flaws – many of which are just inherent to the small 20″ (406mm) wheel size and the folding bike form factor.
After lots of contemplation and study, I realized I wanted a cyclocross bike.
Mud, drop handlebars, running, and flying remounts – this is cyclocross. Photo from cxmagazine.com.
WHAT IS CYCLOCROSS?
For the uninitiated, cyclocross (or “CX” for short) is a sport originally meant to keep competitive road bike riders busy in the off-season cold of winter – but quickly developed into its own discipline. CX riders race their bikes in varying terrains normally unsuitable for a road bike, such as mud, snow, sand and gravel, so they run wider tires than road bikes do. The mud can clog up the caliper brakes on a normal road bike, so they run cantilevers instead. Riders may even have to dismount and shoulder their bikes while running and jumping over obstacles they can’t ride through, such as stairs and logs. Despite rising to popularity fairly recently in the Philippines, as a competitive discipline CX is much older than mountain biking (MTB).
Rider Don Myrah shouldering his cyclocross bike as he runs across a log. The rider behind him is in the middle of a running dismount. Photo courtesy of cxmagazine.com.
In 2010, competitive cycling’s governing body, the UCI, formally accepted the use of disc brakes for the unique demands of cyclocross. Normally the preserve of mountain bikes, this meant that dependable all-weather stopping power was now in reach for people who didn’t want MTBs, and served as impetus for mainstream road bikes to get their own disc brakes in the next three years.
A shot from the 2013 Cyclocross World Championship Masters men’s event. Notice the brakes on these two bikes – the left one uses cantilevers, while the yellow bike on the right has discs. Photo from cxmagazine.com.
Still confused? Here’s a video to show it all in motion.
CX = COMMUTER?
For the average Juan and Juana, a cyclocross bike can make sense as an all-weather commuter bicycle. The classic mile-munching road bike position is altered just slightly, with more relaxed geometry and a taller head tube made for greater comfort over long rides, and the large 700c wheels make for efficient progress and a higher speed range. However, they detract from the cut-and-thrust agility of a small-wheeled folding bike or mini velo, which is useful in urban gridlock.
A disc-equipped Surly Straggler fitted with a rack, full-length fenders and a front dynamo hub. Photo from joe-bike.com.
With disc brakes, a CX rider does not lose braking power when it rains or when the rims get wet. While made tougher than a road bike, a cyclocross bike doesn’t carry the added weight of a MTB and its suspension. Many CX bikes have eyelets for racks and fenders, both for loaded touring and to keep a rider and the bike’s drivetrain safe from dirty standing water.
Lastly, the wider tire fitment allows riders to run a little less air pressure for more ride comfort. Wider rubber is also a good fit for the bad potholes, ruts and road acne that characterize the typical Philippine urban street. With proper tire choice, fire roads and light trails aren’t off-limits either. In better conditions, traditional thin-width road bike tires can be fitted on a CX bike if the rider chooses.
CHOICES, CHOICES
As with many major things we plan to buy, we all have non-negotiables. Mine were disc brakes and mounts/eyelets for racks and fenders, and it had to be either a cyclocross bike, or an “endurance” road bike with the relaxed geometry to ride long-distance sportives or gran fondos in comfort.
My original choice was a Jamis Nova Sport, with a Claris drivetrain, Tektro Lyra disc brakes, and classic CX top-tube cable routing. Great value, but I waited for months in vain for stocks to arrive. Photo from cxmagazine.com.
The relative novelty of CX bikes in the Philippine context means building one from scratch isn’t the best way to go – especially since disc brake options for road bike levers are few and far between in the aftermarket. The best-known of these is Avid’s single-piston BB7, available in both Road and Mountain versions, differing in cosmetics and cable-pull ratio.
Initially I was keen on relatively inexpensive built-bike options that had 8-speed drivetrains, such as the Jamis Nova Sport, thinking that upgrading cogs would be easier than the braking system. Unfortunately, none of them were in stock – even after months of waiting.
A Giant Anyroad 1. This was attractive because of the good stock spec: Avid BB7 brakes, a wide-range Tiagra-class 2×10 drivetrain, and those uniquely shaped interrupter brake levers on the bar tops. Sadly I couldn’t get one in my size with this spec. The best I saw were Anyroad 2s in a size too small for me.
Moving up a notch on the pricing ladder meant bikes with 9- and 10-speed drivetrains. I had my sights on Giant’s Anyroad gravel racer, willing to give up a second bottle mount and awkward rack mounting for BB7 brakes and a drivetrain revolving around Tiagra-class parts and a Deore XT 11-34T MTB cassette. Disappointingly however, there was no stock of the bike in my size and desired spec.
The Orbea Avant H10D. Very good spec, but just a smidge too expensive – even in frameset form.
Spanish bike maker Orbea also popped up in my radar with their Avant H10D. TriSwimBikeRun is the closest local bike shop to where I live and they happen to sell Orbea bikes. The Avant is their endurance road bike model, and the aluminum-framed H10D variant is equipped from the factory with Shimano BR-R317 road mechanical disc brakes – very rarely seen on the aftermarket. Alas, while the cleverly hidden fender and rack mounts increase utility, the Avant H10D was priced a little out of my budget, limited to 28mm-width tires, and designed a little too cleverly.
AND THEN…
LifeCycle then offered me the Giant TCX SLR 2. At a slight premium over the Anyroad, it had everything I wanted, and then some. The componentry this bike came with beat out the Orbea Avant H10D’s, and pretty much future-proofed it for me.
Straight out of the box.Rear non-drive side chainstay with TRP’s Spyre twin-piston mechanical disc brake caliper. Older single-piston designs such as Avid’s BB7 and Shimano’s BR-R317 push and bend the rotor toward an inboard “fixed piston.” You can see the rack eyelet on the right.Mang Boy of LifeCycle Makati performing final assembly. Gotta like his workstand!Shimano 105 FD-5700-F braze-on front derailleur.FSA Omega 46-36T double crankset spinning within a BB86 press-fit MegaExo bottom bracket.Shimano 105 RD-5700-SS rear derailleur mated to a Tiagra CS-4600 12-30T cassette. I have the exact same cassette on my Vitesse.A look at the inboard side of the TRP Spyre front brake caliper. Pad spacing is adjustable on both sides.Official UCI clearance stamp for cyclocross racing above the Giant spec and size decals.A decent saddle made for Giant by Velo. A white saddle on a CX bike? It looks nice, but I wonder what they’re smoking over at the factory in Taichung…Shimano 105 ST-5700 STI lever for the rear shifting and brakes mounted on a Giant Sport anatomic drop handlebar.My cockpit. Yes, Giant throws in a dinky little bell and front reflector. Yes, that’s white bar tape on a CX bike. Yes, it gets dirty quickly. No, I don’t know what they smoke at the Taichung factory. 🙂Front fork and handlebar.Presenting my TCX SLR 2 in commuter duds with lights on. No rack and fenders yet, though. Check out the U-lock “mounting.”Lights off, and with one f-stop worth’s light over the previous photo.“Crouching Dahon, hidden roadie”
RETURN TO FORM
It had been almost 15 years since I last rode a road bike and it took some patience to get used to the sleek riding position again. Once I did, though, the TCX came alive. The frame has both light weight and stiffness, harnessing all my pedaling power without flexing or creaking, while the carbon-fiber fork and seatpost take the sting out of Manila’s pockmarked roads. Shimano 105 STI levers and derailleurs smartly shove the KMC X10 chain across a familiar Tiagra 12-30T cassette and an FSA Omega 46-36T double crankset. Best of all, the TCX came with TRP’s twin-piston Spyre calipers – arguably the best mechanical disc brakes around. All of this rode on Giant S-X2 wheels shod with bespoke knobbly Schwalbe rubber. I thought the Anyroad 1 looked handsome in its gray and blue, but heck, the TCX SLR 2’s stealthy gloss black finish with red and white accents is pretty damn good too.
Cockpit pieces may get swapped out as I go, but mechanically speaking there is practically nothing left to upgrade on the TCX. All it needs is a rear rack and full-length fenders.
Checking the bike fit on the TCX while riding on the hoods. From what I’ve studied on road bike fit, the frame is correctly sized for my body. Any adjustments afterward will be minute tweaks.Maximum leg extension. Looks like saddle height’s fineI repurposed a few decals that came with my Fox helmet to personalize the TCX and make it my own without overdoing it. This one is on the top tube.Another decal on the fork blade where the speed sensor is. I like how this one fits.A last decal on the seatpost. This is a handy way of marking the saddle height too.I took it on a 41.3-kilometer ride around Daang Hari and Daang Reyna and it felt great. Some cockpit aspects could be improved, but this is a good start.
Since taking delivery of the bike, I’ve taken it on quite a few long rides and logged 280 kilometers on it pretty quickly. It’s a fun machine to punt around, and definitely a contender for a road bike that will do almost everything you ask. The price may be a little steep, but you’re also getting a whole lot of bike for the money and it’s a great all-rounder. The Giant TCX SLR 2 just might be all the bike you need…I know it’s the last bike I’ll be buying for a good long while.
It didn’t take long for me to take the bike out on my longest ride yet.
Dwight Eschliman is a photographer in San Francisco who felt inspired by the bicycles he saw on the street every day. He invited quite a few into his portrait studio for a collection he calls Bicycle San Francisco. He also built a wonderful interactive gallery to display his work with some details and a backstory about each bike and its owner.
He explains the project below:
Ever since I got that Bianchi catalog from the local bike shop in 1981 or 1982, I’ve been hooked on the bicycle. I never did get the blue-green Bianchi (decked out in Campagnolo) that I craved, but I did work all summer for a red Trek 400 (decked out in something less). That first Trek eventually collided with a car and I moved on to a series of other bicycles from there.
My studio in San Francisco’s SOMA district is situated along a major bicycle commuting corridor. This affords me the opportunity to observe—and document—our evolution into a more bike-friendly city, with many distinct cycling subcultures. One thing that has always fascinated me about the bicycles I see is the way each bicycle reveals its owner’s personality. The hundreds of bikes I see streaming past my studio every day include everything from hipster fixies to pragmatic folding bicycles to durable bike messenger customs. By extension, the way that bicycle culture reflects the larger cultural context is just plain cool.
This is a project that’s just beginning, and it’s as much an anthropological study as a photographic series. Bicycle San Francisco is a visual study of the bicycle, but also a broader look at a compelling place and time in San Francisco right now.
Pre-release inspection of my Dahon Vitesse D7 at Glorious Ride.
I picked up my Dahon Vitesse D7 from Glorious Ride Bike Shop in Quezon City back in June 2013. I dubbed it my “modern-day Motocompo,” taking inspiration from the little folding motorbike that partnered the signature Honda Today patrol car of the anime “Taiho Shichauzo!” or “You’re Under Arrest!” I figured the homage was appropriate, as my own car is a 2005 Honda Jazz – a larger descendant of the 1980s-vintage Today hatchback.
The characters and vehicles of “You’re Under Arrest!” / “Taiho Shichauzo!” On top is the heavily modified patrol-use Honda Today G kei-car, and at the bottom is its partner folding motorcycle, the Honda Motocompo.Modern-day Motocompo: The Vitesse folded up inside my Jazz. Notice that it fits even without any folding of the seats.
Pretty soon I was outfitting the Vitesse as a commuter bicycle. On went lights, a saddle bag, tools and a bottle cage. The farthest I want toward this direction was the fitment of panniers.
Outfitted with Vincita’s B050WP-A small waterproof panniers. This model is now out of production, but the Thai firm still makes its larger B060WP-A cousin.
Custom wheelset by Tryon. Red LitePro hubs are laced with black Newson Sportec spokes and nipples to silver Newson Sportec rims. I had the rims drilled for Schrader (automotive) valves.Test-fitting the Tiagra 12-30T 10-speed cassette to the rear wheel’s freehub. Gearing is 12-13-14-15-17-19-21-24-27-30T.The Tiagra RD-4600-GS rear derailleur. A medium-cage design.Tiagra SL-4600 + SL-4603 3×10 flat handlebar shifters.
After seven months with the stock parts and time spent slowly collecting the parts, I pushed through with the upgrade and had Rene of Tryon install them.
Technically, it’s a misnomer to call my bike a “D7” as it now has 10 gears. Under Dahon and Tern’s naming scheme, my bike doesn’t quite fit into the stripped-down C- and D- trims, but is in no way a premium P-, S- or X- specification machine.
So…I’ve decided to call my bike a “Dahon Vitesse T10” going forward. “T” is an unused letter in the Dahon/Tern spec nomenclature, and it’s a quiet reference to the parts used from Shimano’s Tiagra groupset, as well as its use for touring.
Rear gearing and wheelset upgrade completed.The Tiagra rear derailleur installed.The rear derailleur at full extension on the 30T cog. Clearance of the cage from both the ground and the tire is pretty slim, but I figure it shouldn’t be a problem.For comparison, this is my stock rear derailleur, a Shimano Tourney RD-FT30 unit. This is a short-cage model and there is around 6 cm clearance from the ground.
As of this writing I’ve had only a few rides on the Vitesse T10, and I’m still getting used to the finer jumps between cogs on the cassette, as well as the mechanics of the shifter itself. I miss the grip shifter’s single-bound leap to the largest cog when coming to a stop at a red light. Shift quality is now undoubtedly better, crisper and snappier, though, and the LitePro hubs have better power transmission properties, with less of a dead spot while cranking away at the pedals.
Thanks for viewing!
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2013 DAHON VITESSE T10 SPECIFICATIONS
FRAME
Dahon KA-series 6061 aluminum alloy frame, TIG-welded, double-butted drawn tubing; ViseGrip main frame hinge
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