Dear Sean,
I have been riding my 54cm/ 650B Nordavinden for several weeks now in various states of completion. Now that it's finally befendered and enlightened, I wanted to share this autumnal portrait by the Charles River on the outskirts of Boston, MA.
Sean, as you know, I am involved in a couple of low trail 650B projects of my own, which should yield prototypes sometime early next year. But in the meantime, I had no bike for riding on dirt roads. After trying a demo Nordavinden for review on Lovely Bicycle, I liked it so much that I decided to buy the frame and build it up in the interim. Funny thing is, I am now completely attached to the Nordavinden and wonder whether I will like my own project bikes quite this much!
The 54cm frame with 650B wheels fits me very nicely. I have built it up as an all-season dirtroad bike with wide tires, low gearing, fenders, dynamo lighting and a front rack. The build includes Pacenti PL23 650B wheels with Grand Bois Hetre tires, a NOS 10-speed Campagnolo drivetrain, White Industries VBC road cranks, Paul centerpull brakes and Grand Bois Maes handlebars.
Aside from being comfortable and responsive, the Nordavinden makes me feel exceedingly confident riding on dirt roads. The handling, the wide tires and the fit work together to give me the experience I've been looking for. Everything feels just right.
Thank you for creating this smile-producing, high value product.
"Velouria"
