My 1989 Ritchey Ultra

After several comments and requests in the recent “If you could only keep ONE of your bikes, which would it be?” thread here, I thought I’d share some more pictures of my 1989 Ritchey Ultra here.

As a product of the 1980s myself, This is a grail-level bike that I was thrilled to add to my very modest stable which currently includes a 2010s Cannondale road bike, and a MKE Bruiser Fixed Gear which I’m rebuilding for the 3rd time as we speak (more on that down the road.)

The biggest struggle with Bikes (and cars for that matter) of this sort–those of a certain vintage that are classics, but not quite collectibles–is not to over-modify them. This Bike came to me in pretty incredible shape for its age, so I think of my role here as a sort of “stewardship” (lol) in which my job is to ride and enjoy it, and keep it in good shape with mostly period-appropriate components, while keeping modifications and updates to a minimum.

The bikes current non-stock components and accessories include:

Shimano Deore LX shifters
Nitto S83 Seatpost
Selle Italia Flight Racer Saddle
Panaracer Dart/Smoke Tires
MKS XC-III Pedals
Sim Works John Cage
Forager Brass Quill Stem Top Cap
Forager Brass Cable Cherries
Spurcycle Bell Black/Brass
Gramm Tourpacking Seat Bag 2-3L
I am very happy with it in its current state, and don’t have anything else planned for the near future other than maaaaaaybe a bar swap, but even that seems kinda ridiculous as I’m really happy riding it with the cockpit as-is. I will probably add a second cage (likely a Nalgene-sized one) as I’m finding that summer rides in the northeast of any real duration have been requiring more water than one bottle provides.

I’ve been getting out with it on some local dirt singletrack, gravel roads and paths, and just zipping around town on it as well and it’s a real pleasure to ride at any opportunity. It has been a while since I rode a steel frame with high-quality tubing of this sort and it feels both lively and compliant in equal measure. Looking forward to continuing to ride and enjoy it for years to come…:)