When I got into cycling several years ago, the first bike I lusted after was a 1993 Bridgestone RB-1.  Man, I loved that yellow paint job.  But I was just getting into cycling seriously (I had a 1991 Bridgestone CB-0 at the time) and could only afford a 1992 RB-2 that was on closeout at the local bike shop.  I eventually acquired a yellow RB-1 a couple of years later on a closeout as well.

I still desired a fancy lugged steel bike, but I wanted a racing bike.  When I found out that Richard Sachs was making replicas of his 25th Anniversary bike, I knew that's what I wanted.  I rationalized the purchase as a 40th birthday present to myself and a way to upgrade my fleet.  This midlife crisis was significantly less than a Corvette, but finances were a concern (ok, more of a concern to my wife).  With upkeep on a 100-yr old Victorian home and a college education to finance, I sacrificed my Riv on the altar of Ebay (apologies to Grant).  I also sold my RB-1 and a Waterford cyclocross bike.  This was going to be my ultimate bike—a custom frame built by a master.

Safe from financial ruin (and divorce), I journeyed last October to Chester, CT to order and be measured for the frameset.  (I also brought my 18-month old son, hoping that this pilgrimage would enlighten him to the Church of the Spoke & Wheel.)

Immediately upon meeting Rich, he strikes you as a quiet and warm person.  For two hours, he toured us around his workshop and informed us on how he goes about building a frameset.  Rich's attention to detail is amazing.  He even files the hole inside the seat tube where it meets to the top tube into a spade, something you can't see unless you remove the seatpost.  Rich measured me and took some measurements from my Merlin, which I brought even though it seemed sacrilegious to do so.  We went over the options such as whether I wanted a pump peg, internal cable routing, front derailleur braze-on, and what color and paint scheme. Rich asked me when I expected it to be finished and I replied that I thought it would take six months or so (hey! I don't want a rush job).  As we left, he gave t-shirts to my wife and me and later that week sent a Richard Sachs team wind vest as a token to ease the wait.

During the months that followed, Rich sent a copy of the measurements of the forthcoming steed. A couple of months later, I corresponded with him by telephone and e-mail on my thoughts.  I provided little input as to the design, mostly due to my own intrigue as to what would the result be.  Moreover, I got a "taste" of what was to come when I purchased a used RS cyclocross frameset from Adam Myerson, who won the cyclocross collegiate nationals while sponsored by Rich.

At the end of March, I received an e-mail that the frame was finished and being sent to Joe Bell for paint.  The painting took longer than I would expect as the frame was sent back to Rich in May. (Must have been those damn Rivendells clogging up the schedule.) I drove back to Chester to pick up the frameset and have the headset installed.  When I saw the frame, it was more beautiful than I remembered.  I was a bit unsure about my decision to paint the new frame in the traditional red & white since I now had a cyclocross bike in that color.  But upon seeing the paint with that high gloss, wet look, I don't have any regrets.

I assembled the bike with all 2002 Campagnolo Record 9-speed, except for the Ergo shifters and rear derailleur that are Chorus.  I didn't like the look of the carbon levers and rear derailleur of the Record parts, at least for this bike.

Suffice to say, I am estactic about the Sachs.  The craftsmanship is unlike any other bike I have owned or seen.  And the ride is everything I wished for - the stability of an RB-1 and the turning like a Merlin (but better!).  And most importantly, the fit is spot on.

I am lucky enough to still own two Bridgestone XO-1s (1992 and 1993), Merlin Road, Falcon (set up as a fixed gear) and a Waterford 2200.  But these are collecting dust because I take the Sachs riding 99% of the time. 

My advice: buy a Sachs now and you won't have to buy another bike again.  I would have saved money buying a Sachs earlier!

To view pictures of the bike, click on-to http://photos.yahoo.com/jrzung

Here are the specs:
Rider: 5'11", 165lbs
Seat tube: 57.5cm c-t
Top tube: 56.6 cm c-c
Setback: 16.5cm
Bottom Bracket height: 25.5
Wheelbase: 102.1
Chainstays: 41.9
Front-Center: 60.2
Trail: 5.1cm
Weight: ? (I don't have a scale.)