A Redline Conquest is as good as mine!

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I've been lusting over a CX bike since last Fall. Once the snow flew I had to move my riding indoors...snowy road season in MI is WAY too long. I was jealous of my friends (and hubby) with CX bikes and studded tires. And CX races look kinda fun and painful...just the sort of challenge that looks perfect for Fall.

For about the past 6 months our LBS owner/friend would taunt me with the Redline Conquest in the shop in my size. All these months later that bike is STILL there. Our LBS is phasing-out Redline (replacing the Redline CX bikes with Ridley), so now it's clearance-priced, too. But the bike is equipped with low-end Shimano...my first bike had Shimano and I never got the hang of it. My current road bike has SRAM, which is much more intuitive for me.

I happened to mention to our LBS buddy that the Shimano group was kind of a deal-breaker. He said "oh, it's a non-issue--we can easily swap the Shimano for SRAM Apex."

Uh...

So hubby and I agreed that we should get while the gettin's good. The plan is that I will ride it for 2-3 years, then hand it down to our DS (who is currently 10 and growing like a weed). At that time I would upgrade to something a bit lighter with better components, assuming I still want to do some racing.

It looks like this, only is much flashier in-person...the blue is a royal metallic. We'll put lime green tape and bottle cages on "him" (I think I've settled on "Ed" as his name...after Shaun's best mate in Shaun of the Dead. Ed will be the perfect zombie apocalypse escape vehicle) and he'll even match our LBS's new kit.

[pll]

Nice!!

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Nice!!

I sure think so! We have oodles of unpaved roads in our area that I can't wait to explore, too!

[pll]

I think it's going to look great with the lime green handlebar tape. It's a great color combination, white/blue/lime green.

Love how cyclo cross bikes look. I need an excuse to get one.

Many happy rides with your new bike! (are you going to practice bunny hopping? )

[spokewench]

I had a redline conquest - it's a nice bike. I sold mine to my sister in law when she wanted to do some riding in New Hampshire. It is perfect for her cause she can ride the dirt roads and the paved.

Have fun!

[redrhodie]

Yay! You're going to be so happy come winter! Winter cycling is so fun. I'm actually pining for it already, as the traffic gets crazier by the day here.

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Many happy rides with your new bike! (are you going to practice bunny hopping? )

Bunny hopping scares me, but I guess I have to give that a try to make it over logs and stuff.

[zoom-zoom]

Yay! You're going to be so happy come winter! Winter cycling is so fun. I'm actually pining for it already, as the traffic gets crazier by the day here.

There is at least one winter CX race in our area, too. Guess I'm going to have to dump some money into better cold-weather gear. I have lots of stuff for running, but staying warm running in the Winter isn't too tough. Hubby wears ski goggles when he rides in the Winter, sometimes...it's a sight!

[redrhodie]

I don't race, but I was often the only cyclist out last winter, riding my own solo breakaway!

I should own stock in Ibex. I wear a lot of wool.

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I <3 wool, too. I am a total Smartwool sock snob. I don't even own any non-merino socks, nowadays.

[Owlie]

Very pretty!
(Must. stop. looking. at. bikes...)

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(Must. stop. looking. at. bikes...)

Ha, good luck with that!

[Tri Girl]

nice bike!!! The lime green on him will look fantastic! Congrats!

[Miranda]

Great bike, congrats! My cx bike is only a mutt in terms of brands lol... but just the same, I love her. Versitility of a cx bike rocks. Hope the two of you have many happy and safe miles together.

[zoom-zoom]

Great bike, congrats! My cx bike is only a mutt in terms of brands lol... but just the same, I love her. Versitility of a cx bike rocks. Hope the two of you have many happy and safe miles together.

I'm really looking forward to exploring roads that are "off-limits" on my road bike. We're going to take her out for her inaugural ride, tomorrow.