- JAMES’ MODERN CLASSIC -

James’ modern classic is one of those bikes which is simple and elegant but somehow just catches your eye and makes you want a closer look. Many of James’ references throughout the process were French bikes which you might have, and still do see parked up outside the patisserie in a classic French square. At the same time, he wanted something that had a modern ride feel, faultless shifting and great for climbing. I thought long and hard about the spec and was even a little nervous about combining the aluminium seat post and quill stem with a high end carbon rimmed wheelset, but by throwing in the polished hubs and silver spokes I think its balanced out wonderfully. We went back and forth with mechanical or electronic. In the end, electronic just somehow didn’t feel fitting for this one, nor did the latest Campagnolo Super Record, so we went with the 2016 version and I think this was 100% the right choice.

James is a musician and all about white suits and 70’s synths, so the colour choice was fairly obvious in the end. The added pearl really takes the edge away from pure white and gives it that softer feel and adds a lot of class to a colour which can often look cheap. The three simple lines represent James’ wife and daughters, brown, blue and yellow were the chosen colours. In the end, we went with a metallic copper, blue and gold which felt more in keeping with the pearl white and adds a little flamboyance with a blue very similar to the paint on many of James’ references.

Overall, my feeling on this bike is the aesthetic of a 1980’s racer with the performance of a modern-day thoroughbred.