W
e are pleased to announce that frame builder David Kirk is the Cino Heroica 2019 official Guest Rider!
Some of us are true “old school Cino” and some of us are “not so old school Cino.” The former grew up with names like Jacques Anqutil and Eddy Merckx. The latter grew up with names like Greg Lemond and Miguel Indurain. Though we had different childhood heroes, we all lusted after steel frames. For some there were European names like Peugeot, Bianchi, or Colnago. For others there were American or Asian-built bikes like Trek, Specialized, Bridgestone, or Serotta. Serotta was one of the last big name holdouts for steel road frames in the 21st century. One of the great builders to come out of that legacy is local(ish) resident, David Kirk.
David followed his passion for cycling to frame building at a key transition point in the industry when bicycles were moving away from lugs to TIG welding, from standard sized tubing to oversized tubing, from downtube friction to integrated brake lever shifting. David is innovative and knows how to do all of those things, but while many companies moved on to aluminum then carbon, he (quite literally) carried the torch for hand-built, lugged steel frames into the present.
Look at a classic David Kirk frame today and you immediately recognize the hallmarks of a traditional steel framed bike: beautiful lugs, a level top tube, slender, curved steel forks, and rim brakes. Even his hallmark curved Terraplane seat stays evoke memories of the wavy rear triangle of a vintage Hetchins. His designs have been awarded patents and his bicycles have won awards.
2017 NAHBS Best Fillet Brazed Frame and Best Road Bike winners
Please join us on Friday when David will have a vintage Team Coors Light bike that he built while at Serotta on display at the Concours. Having lived and worked through the end of one era of cycling history and carrying on into the beginning of another, he has a unique perspective on the bicycles we know and love as Cino. For the weekend he will be riding his own stainless steel, lugged and unpainted “Onesto” (honest in Italian) model that won Best Road Bike at the 2017 North American Handmade Bicycle Show (the largest of its kind in the world).
Team Coors Light Frame soon to be built up as it was in the early 90’s.
I encourage you to read more about David Kirk’s extensive history and his frames (try not to drool on your keyboard) at kirkframeworks.com.
And if you haven’t already, click the link for Cino XI registration info!
