Thursday, December 29, 2011

Riding EPS Electronic: Nice, and It Works Manually, Too

England's Road.cc online magazine published a story describing their first road test of the new EPS system, and their review is generally positive. They report good shifting, including a nifty feature that aligns the front derailleur when you shift gears on the cassette. Cons include high cost and a slight weight penalty.

They didn't mention the fact that electronic shifting relies on batteries, which run down. However, the article notes,

"... if the worst happens and you do manage to break it out on the road, you can manually put it into the gear you want and it’ll stay put."

Manual shifting. What a concept. And of course, if your dead battery forces you into manual mode, you'll need to stop and get off the bike every time you want to shift (back to the 1920s) or stay in the same gear (back to the 19th Century).

Still, Campy Only stands by our long-held belief that Campagnolo will sell every single EPS gruppo they make, regardless of cost or drawbacks. Let us know in the Comments whether you plan to buy it.

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

New Campy Stuff Under Your Tree?

Reminder to add your comments to our "What did Santa bring you" post. Let Campy fans around the world know what kind of new cycling stuff you found on Christmas morning.

Friday, December 23, 2011

Cyclepedia: Campy Fans Who Own an iPad Need This App

Wow!  

We own plenty of bicycling books, but this just-released app for the iPad goes way beyond them. Cyclepedia offers exquisite, detailed photographs and write-ups on 100 noteable bicycles from the 1920s to the present day. Anyone with even a passing interest in the history of bicycles and their technology will enjoy this app. Click on a bike, and you have the option to see an interactive, 360-degree view (spin the bike around to see the sides, front, and back), plus detailed, zoom-able photos of various parts. It's quite striking and very well done.

At $9.99, it's among the more expensive iPad apps we've bought, but worth every penny. If you're looking for a gift idea, or if Santa drops an iTunes gift card in your stocking, this is a must-have item.

Screenshot from the app (yes, there's plenty more Campagnolo stuff):



What Did Santa Bring You?

Christmas is almost here, and we're interested in what kind of cycling (and Campy) related gifts Santa brings you. Use the Comments below to tell your fellow Campy fans around the world what ya got!

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Great Wintry Bicycling Art

From the vast Campy Only archives ...


Cycle Italia's Campy-Covered Support Van

Our friends over at Cycle Italia (a Campy Only sponsor) sent us this photo of their support van. It's clear what type of components they use ...



Monday, December 19, 2011

Cycling Week Looks at EPS (But Can't Touch It ... Yet)

The folks over at www.cyclingweekly.co.uk have weighed in on the new electronic EPS gruppos (figuratively and literally), and based on what they see, they like it.  They haven't been able to ride it yet, so for now,

"We'll wait and try a production set for ourselves before we go along with Campagnolo's statement but it certainly looks as though electronic is here to stay."


Friday, December 16, 2011

Electronic Shifting on the Web

Campagnolo has launched a web site just for the new EPS electronic shifting gruppo. Check it out at http://eps.campagnolo.com/en

Thursday, December 15, 2011

Videos from Vicenza

Campagnolo SRL has a bunch of videos on YouTube explaining EPS (electronic) shifting and other topics. 

To see them, search YouTube for "CampagnoloSRL"  Here's one example:

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Campy Only Photo Fun

Some of the photos from last weekend's ride in the Sierra Foothills, run through photo apps on the Campy Only iPhone:



Monday, December 12, 2011

Today's Blast From the Past: The Campagnolo Jumpsuit

Today's item comes from contributor Mike McGary:

Mike writes,

This blast from the past came from Chris at Pro Peloton in Boulder CO and is on display in the shop. It’s a Campagnolo Servicio Corsa jumpsuit for their team mechanics circa late 70s (?)  Notice the removable shop rags attached to thighs so you can wipe your hands.

Sunday, December 11, 2011

Bikes and Wine

Not a lot of Campy content, but some nice scenery and some great wine in the Sierra Nevada foothills of California of yesterday's wine-tasting ride. More photos here.
 Note: If you're in the area and planning to do some wine-tasting on your bike, do not go to Green Family Wines. They refused to serve our group for the sole reason that we were riding bikes. 

Saturday, December 10, 2011

$172 for a Half-Full Tub of 40-Year-Old Grease?

That's the winning bid in a recent eBay auction.  Anybody out there have some old grease they want to sell?

Thanks to reader Bernie R for this item

Do You Know This Headset?

One of our readers has a 1959 Mercian with this headset. If you can identify which year the headset was produced (he thinks it's original), let us know: enorris (at) campyonly (dot) com

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Why Didn't Somebody Think of This Before?

Riders of a certain age (like yours truly) have probably noticed that things like bike computer screens are getting smaller and harder to read.  Or at least getting harder to read. Campy Only has started using bike computers with bigger and bigger displays, but some of our bikes have units that display in (seemingly) tiny digits.
Dual V6 Sunglasses

There are lots of riders like us out there, so it's a wonder that nobody (that we know of) has come up with the product recently launched by Dual eyewear. Dual's product is simple: Cycling-oriented sunglasses with a built-in bifocal at the bottom so you can more easily read your computer, or watch, or route sheet.

Sure, you can go to your optometrist and have lenses or inserts made for Oakleys or Rudy Project sunglasses, but Dual's product is relatively cheap--$50 for a nicely made pair of sunglasses--and doesn't require a visit to your local optician. For the price of one set of prescription inserts, you can probably buy half a dozen pair of Dual's sunglasses.

We've been wearing Dual's glasses for several days now (their V6 version, with a bifocal portion that matches our prescription for reading glasses). Having never worn bifocals in the past, they took a little getting used to, but after a little practice they work exactly as advertised. Suddenly, bike computers are easier to read, and my wristwatch face is in sharp focus. They'll even serve to read the menu at your lunch stop. (In case you're wondering, from more than a few inches away the bifocal isn't visible. Your friends won't know unless you tell them.)

The design is nice, and the overall quality is good. The lenses aren't polarized (or preference--we don't like riding with polarized lenses). The lenses aren't replaceable, but Dual offers a lifetime warranty in the event they break. 

Of course, Dual's glasses won't work if you're nearsighted and need prescription lenses for distant viewing. But if you're one of the millions of riders who use reading glasses, they could be just what you've been looking for.


Note: Dual provided a pair of sunglasses to Campy Only for road testing. 

Monday, December 5, 2011

Beausage ... or Abuse?

The owner of this Campy-equipped Bianchi (spotted in Campy Only's hometown of Davis, CA) is either into the Grant Petersen "beausage" concept (bikes should show signs of use ... beauty + usage), or they just don't care about their bike. Tell us in the Comments below which you think is the case.


Stuff We're Using: Smart Sleeve iPhone Case

When we ride, we always carry our iPhone in a jersey pocket. And that means we're in need of a way to keep sweat (and sometimes rain) from creeping into the electronics.

One solution we've found is the Smart Sleeves cover. We first found these at the California State Fair this year, and have been using them ever since. Smart Sleeves are made of a very clear plastic that lets you see the screen and use the touch controls while the phone is still in the bag (an improvement on other carriers that require you to remove the phone). The manufacturer claims that the bags are waterproof, although in practice we've never tried submerging the phone.

Yes, a less expensive ZipLoc bag will also work, but the Smart Sleeve allows easier use of the phone and can last much longer.  More info: www.smartsleeves.com

Campy Only's Annual Post-Thanksgiving Ride

For your holiday viewing enjoyment ... video from our annual post-Thanksgiving ride, which this year involved 140 miles of riding and 5,000 feet of climbing. Perfect for working off that second helping of stuffing.

View the video in HD on YouTube here.  Our video was filmed with the Spark HD camera from Bad Vision (a Campy Only sponsor).

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Electronic? Ha! SRAM Looks to Hydraulics

Interesting report from BikeRumor.com about the updates to SRAM's "Red" lineup, including news that they're looking at adding hydraulic brakes next year.