N+1, or Priscilla as she’s known.
Priscilla has been around the block a bit, but she’s got what it takes to be seriously fast. Or as seriously fast as I can manage. The frame was well regarded back in the day (2007 Bike Radar review) and the previous owner (a former bike mechanic) has a PB of just over 23 minutes for a 10. That’s probably beyond me, but I bought her to see how I’d get on with a ‘proper’ TT bike, rather than an aero road bike with tri-bars.
I made precisely one adjustment before going for a first ride – dropping the seat post slightly. The rest of her fits me as-is, although no doubt there will be more tinkering to come. The seat height still isn’t quite right and the seat post collar has an annoying nut & bolt, which means a spanner is required for alterations. Might try and find one with a captive nut instead.
She’s quite a bitsa: Campag brakes, Shimano Dura Ace rear mech & bar-end shifters, a very old-school 105 chainset and a rather alarming looking Selle Italia SMP saddle. The wheels are deep section full carbon from Planet X. It all works well enough, but I might start pimping her up from my box of spare parts. The chainset could definitely do with being replaced by something a bit stiffer for a start. The saddle is actually quite comfy, based on a single ride, but it’s old and starting to split. The bar tape is old and grubby, that’s a quick fix, and the handlebar and stem are a bit tatty.
Having taken her on my usual training loop, first impressions are that she’s fast, but not astonishingly so. I’ve ridden that loop faster on Moley (Giant Propel, with clip-on bars and semi-deep wheels) but it might not be a wholly fair comparison. I was giving it beans on Moley and I’m very comfortable switching between his aero-bars, drops & tops. Priscilla only has the bars and the bullhorns, which I’m less confident on, so a chunk of this evening’s ride was ridden less aggressively than I might otherwise and I wasn’t really pushing hard on the rest. I was only a handful of seconds slower than my 2022 PB on Kenn Lane though, and I’ve not come close to that so far this year.
The handling is ok, but definitely compromised compared to a road bike. That’s as it should be and although I was on the bullhorns more than was ideal, it never felt sketchy. The deeper wheels aren’t very sophisticated, but it was a blustery evening and they felt stable. The Stealth Pro is a very old design and compared to modern TT bikes it’s quite primitive (exposed brakes, external cables, not-quite aero tube profiles etc) but it should still be faster than my Giant. Maybe one day I’ll try a really fast modern bike, but until my Premium Bonds come up, Priscilla should be good for a few PBs and a decent crack at the 24hr next year.
Another ride tomorrow and some minor fettling, then I’ll take her to Wednesday’s 10.
Well Chuffed Cycling 