I’ve posted information about my race bike here before.

It’s a great bike, and I enjoy riding it, but the mix of components, especially in the drivetrain, was a bit of a mish-mash and was a compromise based upon what I was able to acquire from eBay at the time.

Two years later, I find myself itching to actually race this race bike. The drivetrain, as it stands, is quite suitable for group rides with the cycle club, but I don’t know if would handle the rigors of a criterium race. Furthermore, as I find myself on the other side of 40, I need a little more flexibility in gearing than my 9 speed group provides. That brings me to THE BIG UPGRADE.

I’ll be upgrading the drivetrain to a mix of SRAM Force and Red. Derailleurs, crank, chain and cassette will all be Force and I’m looking at Red shifters in order to get the big ring trim position and the adjustable reach for the shifters and brakes. I don’t know that I’ll go to SRAM brakes - the Ultegras do the job just fine, though I may change those out just for consistency.

Last, but not least, the wheels will likely be upgraded. I’ve been eying a Mavic Ksyrium ES wheelset for some time, though I also like the Topolino wheels.

I already have the front and rear derailleurs in hand. I’ll be posting more about those in a couple of days.

Stay tuned!

Update: See Part 2 here