Ritchey Break-Away Cross 1x9

Just wanted to show you pictures of my Ritchey Breakaway 'Cross with her lovely new 1x9 drivetrain. So far it's work like a charm and I love all the Ritchey bits, including the Zero-Dish rear wheel. Thanks for your great customer service and, of course, your great bikes!

Regards,
Seth

Rough Riding in the LA Times

"I love my Breakaway: it's seen duty from Ironman Triathlons
to dirt road epics and everything in between!" - Chris

I am deeply honored to have been featured in a special Health section of the LA Times right after the New Year. I made a point of riding my road bike on one of my favorite fire roads above Brentwood for the photo shoot, which was on December 13, 2007.

Chris Kostman

Click here to read an excerpt from the article.
Note Chris' bike of choice for his LA Times photo shoot.

Break-Away Owner Travel Tips

Looking back, it’s hard to imagine life without my Ritchey Break-Away. As a manager in a high-tech firm, I’ve dragged it literally around the world and to 3 continents in the 3+ years I’ve owned it. It’s made my hectic business travel schedule tolerable —heck, even enjoyable – and I’ve ridden in places I never even knew existed. I’ll never forget some of the experiences I’ve had on my Ritchey: exploring narrow mountain roads on Japan’s Kyushu Island, riding a century through the former East Germany, watching the sun set from atop Mount Hamilton, CA, blasting through traffic in Tokyo and Los Angeles, even placing 3rd in an early-season road race in Oregon. It’s logged well over 125,000 airline miles and who knows how many road miles, and after 3 years and lots of abuse I’m still using the original case (though I am going to get the frame repainted this winter- the baggage handlers have not been kind!). I’ve gotten plenty of curious stares from the clerks at the baggage counter, but never once have I had to pay extra to check the luggage.

I must admit that I was skeptical when I first ordered the Break-Away. I didn’t really believe that a “travel bike” could be as much fun as the higher end race bikes I was used to riding. I was wrong. It’s a joy to ride and climbs as well as it descends. It’s plenty stiff- I’ve raced and sprinted on it. But it’s also comfortable enough to ride all day.

Building the bike up is really easy. Packing and unpacking it took a little getting used to, but after a trip or two I had the whole process dialed in and found that the effort to pack, unpack, and drag the suitcase around was more than offset by the riding opportunities I gained. Here are some hints I’ve learned along the way:

1. When packing the bike, I never leave the Shimano shifter levers in their detensioned state (I just shift “up” a couple clicks after decoupling the shifter cables). I found this makes the cables less susceptible to getting damaged inside the shifters when in transit.
   
   
2. I always wrap the frame tubes in protective foam. Get some of the stuff plumbers use to insulate pipes and cut it to fit. The bike stays looking new a bit longer this way.
   
   
3. I place a large sheet of cardboard (with two holes in it for the hubs) between the wheels. This keeps the wheels/spokes from scraping each other.
   
   
4. I purchased a large duffle on wheels as a companion to the Ritchey suitcase. I put the handlebars, cycling clothes, helmets, and business clothes in the duffle, and the rest of the bike in the suitcase. I have found the wheels stay true when the suitcase is less heavily loaded.
   
   
5. I covered the corners and bottom of the travel case with “Shoe Goo”- it is tough as nails yet flexible. I also frequently inspect the case for places that show wear due to rubbing from the baggage handling equipment and apply “Shoe Goo” liberally to those places. “Aqua Seal” also works well. This will dramatically increase the lifetime of your travel case.
   
   
6. I always carry two extra shifter and brake cables and a spare coupling in the travel case. I’ve never needed the coupling but the cables have some in handy.
   
   
7. Always carry a (hand) tire pump. Some airports make you deflate your tires, others may confiscate your compressed air cartridges.
   
   
8. Always lube your chain before you leave your house: my “White Lightning” chain lube has been confiscated a couple times.
   
   
9. I installed larger washers under the handle of my travel case in order to prevent the handles from pulling off. (I had a very early version of the case and I bet you already fixed this.)

DK

I love my Break-Away bike!

Dear Ritchey,

I just wanted to tell you guys at Ritchey how much I love my Break-Away bike! With a travel schedule of about 40% of the time, I find myself looking forward to business trips more then ever. I've owned a Break-Away for several years and I could not have won numerous Masters Nationals titles without this bike.

I even leave early so I can ride with friends around the country or when I travel to Spain for my wine importing business. The benefits go beyond not being required to pay airline fees, maintaining fitness, & scenic riding. I can put my bike together in about 10 minutes and be out the door in less time then it would take to find a gym and ride some out of date exercise bicycle. I've even done some training races on it.

Thanks,

Michael Hutchinson

Break-Away and the Colle di Finestre

Check out these photos of the BAB and the Colle di Finestre. This is a brute of a climb - 5500' in 11 miles for an average grade of 9.2%! This was the final climb of the Giro in 2005 where Savodelli and DiLuca slugged it out (note the marker in the photo). Oh yeah, the last 5 miles of this climb are dirt (see photo!).

~ Bruce Hildenbrand