ededwards":1b8r7wsc said:
Very strong month again...
I’m always surprised when I see this type of comment over and over again as the monthly entries get made and then again as the votes roll in. On the contrary, I’m always hard-pressed to find the very small handful of bikes that I’d consider voting for – and often those bikes lose by a wide margin.
Earlier in this thread someone suggested that people seem to vote either for the “bike” or the “member”. Given I know almost no one here, for me it’s always “bike”. But it seems my “bike” criteria must be radically different than most.
For me (in order of importance), it’s:
1.) Is the bike and it’s builder truly special, unique and/or important. Is it “hand-made”? Pretty much all mass-market bikes (meaning, built by the hundreds, thousands or more in large, often Asian factories) are immediately eliminated on this point. My favorites would be those designed and built by a single, known individual or tiny “factory” operation.
2.) Is the bike either well preserved or well restored? Was attention paid to the details? Are exceptions explained or justified?
3.) Personal taste. I don’t care for suspension (front or rear) and I hate anodized parts in any color but silver/clear or black. (Thankfully largely absent in the 1980’s and hence this month’s entries)
Applying those criteria to this month's entries, I see about a half dozen possibilities and only 1 (maybe 2) of those are into double-digit votes. I’m baffled by some of what excels. In cynical moments, I think JB's Breezer #1 would loose BOTM to an Orange or Kona. I know there’s a lot of debate and angst here about “snobbery” and the slogan “if it’s Old School it’s in”. Even if I fully accept that premise for general questions and bike postings, shouldn’t the “bike of the month” (and year) be held to a higher standard?
