Shattentänzerin (Shadow Dancer) is my Hybrid. I have been building and riding hybrids exclusively for 20 years now, due to a belief that you had to be at a certain level to make good use of a road bike (or a proper mountain bike for that matter). I still feel that they are great all around bikes, but after building and riding Mondtänzerin (Moon Dancer), I have come to the belief that you do not have to be a class 1 racer to justify having one. I had justified building her as a midlife crisis thing, but the joy of dancing on the bike has wiped away other need to justify this type of bike.
But that is Mondtänzerin. Meanwhile, Shattentänzerin hangs from a hook, virtually ignored. There is no justice in this, as my shadow dancer has served me well. But she feels like a tank beside her sister. What kind of build can I use her frame for that would be fitting for her, and still be one I would use? Well, one thing was certain: the fork had to go. I had fitted Shattentänzerin with a suspension fork to soak up the bumps on the road to help with handling. It made her sluggish. Also, I felt the need to go back to a drop bar on her, as I'm just more comfortable on one. OK, that clears it up. Shattentänzerinwill be reborn as a full on touring rig! So when? How? I'm on Disability, I do not have cash laying around...
I built Mondtänzerin for $150 here, and $75 there. . . I can do that again for Shattentänzerin! Then I found a set of Campag Athena triple shifters in eBay for $140. They retail for over $200! OK, that turns out to be quite a solid beginning. So I'll just set up my work-stand over in this corner, out of the way.