Bored on Thanksgiving? Enjoy my ‘optimized’ bike stable

I have hemmed and hawed over my bikes for the last twenty years, always trying to have the fewest number that do what I need them to do while still giving myself over to nostalgia and “cool factor” here and there. These six represent my “perfect stable.”

1. Goofiest bike. E-Stay Clydesdale, perfect for everyday commuting, groceries, and a “lockup” bike. Not afraid of weather or the occasional trail.

2. Fast roadie ‘race’ bike. Love the Gevenalle shifters. Nostalgic as a Medici was my first real road bike at 16.

3. Road tourer. This is my most indulgent bike in terms of being a restoration, with a bunch of period correctish parts I had to track down and the NOS decals.

4. “Fast” fair-weather commuter. This Erickson is definitely the nicest riding bike I own, redundant to a few of the others but it’d be a shame to get rid of it. I love the way the Riv bullmoose bars match the fillet brazed frame.

5. Bikepacking bike and trail MTB. Long live the ECR. My only stock bike, can’t think of a thing I’d change on it. I miss low thread count Knards.

6. Fixed gear beater. My only clipless pedals, I generally find I don’t need em anymore but they lend themselves to the elegance of riding fixed.

General thoughts: All steel (oops), 4/6 quill stem, half lugged half not, 4/6 upright bars, yes I love the Specialized Phenom saddle. I could be talked into getting a BMX bike to ride with my kids, but otherwise feel like this covers what I do.

My most ridden bike isn’t even pictured: I’m a stay at home dad and mostly lug my two kids around on a Yuba bakfiets. But nobody wants to look at a minivan, so here we are.