As a longtime fan of Waterford I was very sad when I heard about Richard Scwhinn's decision to close down the business. It truly is the end of an era for lovers of handmade steel frames. Waterford has built frames for so many--from Rivendell to Wilde to Shinola. And of course Gunnar has long been one of the last truly affordable Made-in-USA steel frames. They will be missed.

AJ LaTrace attended the Waterford farewell ride and factory tour and posted some nice shots on Twitter: Richard Schwinn speaking to a group of cyclists, boxes of True Temper steel tubes, and the final batch of Waterford frames.

Steel is real, and I know that there are many thousands of happy miles ahead for all the great bikes that came out of this shop. Long live Waterford!

I rode Selle San Marco Concor saddles for decades before finally switching to a more modern design. After a lengthy search and much trial and error, I settled on the WTB Volt saddle, and quickly added them to all the bikes in my rotation (about five bikes currently). Needless to say, when I saw the headline coming out of Eurobike that WTB was “updating” the Volt, I was VERY concerned. Would I like the new version? Would I need to stockpile the old version? But it sounds like the updates are relatively minor. Read the BikeRumor article for more details!

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E-bike fence sitters and weight weenies may now be temped to consider an e-bike for their next purchase as Bosch introduces the new Performance Line SX, aimed at higher end mountain bikes, gravel bikes and urban bikes. The motor and battery combine for a total weight of just 4KG (or 8.8 pounds). You can read more about it at Bike Radar, or watch the Bosch product launch video below.

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Congrats to our buddy Mike Stewart of the Cycle Jerks Podcast for making it up the famous L'Alpe d'Huez climb yesterday. Not too bad for an old guy! This is a total bucket list climb for so many fans of bike racing. It brings back memories of incredible efforts by Fausto Coppi, Bernard Hinault, Greg Lemond, Andy Hampsten, Marco Pantani, and yes, even Lance Armstrong. Check out Mike’s full effort on Strava and give him kudos. You can see the full leaderboard on Strava here and read more about the history of this incredible climb at Cycling News.

Looking for a new road bike to make you faster on climbs? Shop all road bikes on BikeList!

Our buddy Dan Cavallari got a chance to demo the new Zwift Play handlebar controls. Check out the video below and you can read his full review at slowguyonthefastride.com These will be available soon from Zwift at introductory price of $99. These seem long overdue and I'm excited to get my hands on a set!

Just got back from a nice two-week vacation in Greece. The wife and I spent the last 24 hours in Amsterdam, and the morning before we flew home, we rented bikes and got a great little tour of the city from my buddy Brad, who lives there.

I’ve done a fair amount of road riding in Italy and it spoils you. I’ve also done a fair amount of city riding in Italy. The drivers there treat you much better than in the US (and of course it helps that most of the cars are much smaller). But the riding in Amsterdam is on a whole other level.

As my buddy pointed out, the bike really is at the top of the food chain in Amsterdam, and you are generally given the right of way by both cars AND pedestrians. Bikes are literally zipping around everywhere and parked in long rows on every street (including tons of seemingly abandoned bikes, which get marked for removal). Most people ride on the typical Amsterdam-style bike. Lots of moms and dads going fast on cargo bikes with kids strapped in front. No helmets whatsoever. Fewer e-bikes than I would have thought–though it’s flat, and you don’t really need it. According to Strava our 7.7 mile ride had a total elevation gain of 63 feet.

One thing I thought funny: my friend advised me to only use the bell in extreme circumstances, because it really is seen as aggressive, like a car horn. He said everyone would know we were tourists from our bright yellow bikes and we would likely be cut a bit of slack (and given a wide berth).

It’s an incredible feeling to be able to ride around a city without fearing for your life. Yes, it can get a bit dicey from time to time with so many bikes going so many different directions, and you do have to watch for trolly tracks. My bike was a heavy, beat up single speed with a coaster brake and a barely functioning front brake. But even the worst bike is still a bike, and still fun. I found myself smiling and laughing the whole time. Is this the bike utopia we all dream of? I’d say yes. Believe the hype.

Have you ridden in Amsterdam? Let me know your thoughts!

We just rolled out an update to view bikes and frames by frame size. You can find these on both the Bikes & Frames pages as well as on the sub-pages for MTB Bikes, Road Bikes, etc. Keep an eye on size "Other" for listings without a frame size. You can also search by size by using the search bar at the top of every page.

Check it Out:

Bikes Page
Frames Page
Road Bikes Page
Road Frames Page

This may be the most contentious topic in all of cycling, but I'm gonna ask anyway: what is your favorite chain lube?

I feel like I've used just about everything for the past few decades, but my current favorite is Dumonde Tech's Original Bike Lube.

I've been using it year-round here in the Pacific Northwest on my road, cross and mountain bikes. Works great in the wet and doesn't gunk up. Not the cheapest stuff, but a little goes a long way and it's well worth it IMO.

Let us know your favorites!

BikeList officially turns one year old today and we want to thank everyone who has followed us on this journey so far! From our favorite sellers to our nonprofits and independent bike shops to our friends like Project 529, Philly Bike Expo, CABDA, MFG Cyclocross, Cycle Jerks, Slow Guy on the Fast Ride, Hannah Bergemann, Old Shovel, The Path Less Pedaled, Jess the Maker and Rad BMX Builds. We have big plans for the next twelve months so stay tuned!

Marketplaces don’t happen overnight. It takes a village. We love the community we have built so far! And we couldn't do it without you!

***Thank you Etta for the cupcake drawing in BikeList blue with the chainring wrapper!

I’ve been riding clipless pedals pretty much exclusively since the mid-80s when I got my first pair of Looks, just a year after they first hit the market. I’ve owned all sorts of road and mtb clipless pedals since then–Look, Time, Shimano, Ritchey, Wellgo, Onza, Speedplay, etc. But when I moved to Bellingham last year I decided it was time to give flat pedals a try for mountain biking. I don’t think I’d ridden flat pedals since my BMX days.

After consulting the LBS I went with the alloy OneUp pedals, which I have loved (though I have had some issues with the bearings, which OneUp covered under warranty). Since then I have also gotten a few sets of the OneUp composite pedals for my vintage mtbs, and at $40, I don’t see how they can be beat.

PinkBike just did a huge roundup of flat pedals, and called the OneUp composites the "Best Value" out there. They awarded the Crankbrothers Stamp Large the “Best Overall Feel” and I plan to try those next.

What are your favorite flat pedals?

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