My Roadini (set to the tune of "My Adidas")

[EB]

Long time listener, first time caller.

I got a new job where I'm in San Francisco every weekday for the first time since March 2020. I wanted to get back to riding the Golden Gate Bridge to work, and my fleet had all gone to the 2.4"+ tire size. From 2016 to 2020 I did the passage twice a day, every weekday, rain or shine, sometimes with a group known as the Raiders.

The Raiders are scattered to the four winds, but the Roadini pre-order came up, so I got a Periwinkle 57cm, pictured below taking a rest on Old Railroad Grade. Being local (ish) to Walnut Creek, I asked RBW to build it for me and picked it up in person. It's setup to be fun to ride and sprightly with parts I know how to work on[1], with a generator setup and rack for the commute. But the story does not end with the bike.

About 2 and a half weeks into the new job, I was heading northbound just after dark and had just passed through the narrow section at the north end of the bridge. A mountain biker on a Yeti SB120 appeared in my lamp light out of nowhere and I had about a half second to react - he was sprinting downhill as he entered the narrow gap and I had nowhere to go. Long story short, the impact caused a fully displaced fracture of my left distal radius and completed fractured my left index finger. I was about 2mm of displacement away from a compound fracture. He was uninjured, but his carbon Enve M5 handlebar was shattered. I will spare you all the horror story of the injuries and the hospital and the surgery, but as far as the Roadini goes - it was completely unscathed other than a bent Nitto Noodle and a broken left brake lever.

Many weeks later as my recovery was beginning, I asked RBW if they could inspect the bike. Not only did they agree to do that, they fixed it up for the cost of the parts. I cannot imagine a better experience as a member of the community and a customer of the store. And Grant and I got to have a fun conversation about the broken carbon handlebars of the guy who hit me.

I have tentatively started commuting again, a few times a week. The Roadini is still everything I wanted. Looking forward to swapping in an OM-1 when they come out of presale, though there is nothing wrong with the Altus M310 on there right now.

[1] Yes, those are clipless pedals. No, I will not change this. :)

[TOM CUNNINGHAM]

Glad to hear that you're Back in the Saddle..

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[Dan]

Eli,

Glad to hear you're ok and that's a stunning Roadini you have there. The saddle, bar tape, hoods and tyres set off the Periwinkle perfectly!

I can foresee many miles ahead of you on the bike.

PS: What tyres do you have there?

[Zac]

Eli,

That's a beautiful bike. 

I know I've just barely missed an injury like this on the bridge, especially with some of the aggro chumps who show blithe disregard to other bikers and pedestrians. I hope the other rider was penitent. 

The upside is further affirmation that the folks at RBW are good people. When I was hit by a car, my Gunnar frame cracked, and Richard Schwinn offered a crash replacement 35% off retail. It made me feel even better about supporting a company like that. 

[Patrick Moore]

Eli: Very sorry to hear of the accident and very glad that you are well on the way to healing and that you are back on the bike. 

Did you get any satisfaction from the other rider, who I gather was responsible for the collision? Some years ago another rider trying to draft me ran into the rear of my 1999 Joe Starck at speed and bent my wheel. I got him to pay up, tho’ with some grumbling. I only later noticed a tiny (thank God) dent in the right seatstay from his impact. Beausage.

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Patrick Moore

Alburquerque, Nuevo Mexico, Etats Unis d'Amerique, Orbis Terrarum

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[Eli Bingham]

On Tue, Mar 10, 2026 at 10:40 AM Patrick Moore <bert...@gmail.com> wrote:

Did you get any satisfaction from the other rider, who I gather was responsible for the collision? Some years ago another rider trying to draft me ran into the rear of my 1999 Joe Starck at speed and bent my wheel. I got him to pay up, tho’ with some grumbling. I only later noticed a tiny (thank God) dent in the right seatstay from his impact. Beausage.

The total "list price" of the encounter was $192,000, excluding ambulance costs. The other rider apologized about 20 times. He does not have umbrella insurance and is not wealthy, so I decided to live and let live rather than wasting everyone's time with a pro se s***show trying to recover some fraction of that money that would immediately be subrogated by my health insurance company.

[Eli Bingham]

On Tue, Mar 10, 2026 at 4:17 AM Dan <gril...@gmail.com> wrote:

Eli,

Glad to hear you're ok and that's a stunning Roadini you have there. The saddle, bar tape, hoods and tyres set off the Periwinkle perfectly!

I can foresee many miles ahead of you on the bike.

Thank you, so far it has made every commute that much more enjoyable / tolerable. The only negative I can think of is some slight toe overlap, which I could solve by swapping in shorter cranks, but it's a mild annoyance, so I haven't bothered.

PS: What tyres do you have there?

Teravail Rampart 38s setup tubeless (shock horror). They are a favorite big slick because they are easy to set up, handle glass-strewn SF roads well, roll nicely and are about 40 to 50 dollars cheaper than anything made by Panaracer.