Pedal Hard: Shimano PD-R540

I've only owned one pair of clipless pedals in my years of cycling. Those were early model Speedplays I bought in 1993. I used them for a number of years until I sold my Centurion LeMans RS and have had only my KHS Montana Comp mountain bike to this very day. I really appreciated the two-sided design of the Speedplay pedals, but I was often disappointed with the trouble I had clipping out of them and the hot spots I experienced more than enough times for my comfort level. This time around I decided to ride the larger platform of the SPD type pedal with the hope for better comfort. Because I don't have any history with this kind of pedal I figured I would start with a basic to mid-level model and go from there. When I learn the subtlties of the pedal and levels of quality and perfromance I can graduate to a higher end model. My research found the Shimano PD-R540 had a great amount of positive user feedback. It falls into the basic to intermediate level, and to seal the deal I got a bargin of a price. A price that is hard to turn away, so I didn't have to contemplate this purchase much. I'm sure I will discover quickly how well these perform and how to adjust to their little quirks, if any. Then I'll know what features to look for in a pedal when I want to upgrade in the future.

Mission...Control: Campagnolo Centaur Ultra Shift

By comparing the blog entry dates one can tell I'm not a prolific writer by any means. I created this journal not out of a love for blogging, but a desire to record the progress of the making of a bicycle from the ground up. The coming together of parts has been a slow process. This has been in part due to research and price comparison and primarily because of a lack of funds to put into the project. This set of Campagnolo Centaur Ultra-Shift levers I've had for some months, just haven't gotten around to including them here until now. When I decided on a Campy gruppo I had set my sights on the Chorus components for their high performance qualities, but after some pricing of the parts I quickly learned I would have to consider the next model down the Campy line, Centaur. Reading many reviews of the 2009 Centaur group by both industry professionals and amateur cyclists put my mind at ease about the downgrade. The quality of this edition of Campagnolo's middle of the pack model is ideal for the amateur bicyclist who needs excellent performance in a price range that won't drain the wallet. The refinements of Record, Super Record and Chorus will not benefit me much at my level of experience and ability. The commonly held opinion of these Centaur shifter/levers is that they are of the same quality of the Record shifter/levers of a couple of years ago. This makes sense being the level of design and performance trickles down to the lower models over the years of product development.

There was a significant enough difference in price between the alloy levers and the carbon Centaur incarnation to influence my decision. The small saving in weight is not important to me either. With this piece of the puzzle in place I have a clear picture of a classic bicycle adorned with shiny steel and aluminum components. I've admitted to romanticizing about this bike capturing the style and aesthetic of the two-wheeled machines of yore, and now my vision of the completed build is ever more exciting. I may not have the skill and ability of Coppi or Merckx, but I will have a classic machine in the fashion of theirs.