Chris Long and his Indy Fab Planet X
Indy Fab Planet X
This was a great cyclocross rig, a “Planet X” model built by Independent Fabrications in the early 00’s and painted in their own racing team colors.
This is the steel version of the Planet X (Indy Fab also offered a Titanium option) but the owner of this bike was more likely to buy a second steel version to keep as a spare in the cyclocross pits than to spend an extra $1000 to have his one bike made out of titanium.
Yep, this is a no-nonsense cyclocross racing bike. As you see, it’s equipped mostly with Shimano’s Dura-Ace 7700 component group. The double crankset has 39 and 44 tooth chainrings on it, providing a very useable gear range at cross racing speeds. The wheels are Mavic Heliums clinchers, a light (and budget-friendly) choice for the privateer athlete. The Thomson seatpost, Time pedals and Frogglegs cantilever brakes are all parts choices that follow a high performance and reliability per dollar rating system.
Alpha Q cross fork, Mavic Helium wheels
Time Atac pedals
Cable pulley
Flite saddle, Thomson post
Frogglegs cantilevers
So that’s the bike, it’s pretty straight forward. What about the rider?
Some of the bike racers in our bike museum were famous for a time but most are, or were, not.
Most of our notable cycling friends are like the former owner of this Indy Fab in that they had fun racing their bikes, they enjoyed the occasional win, and they supported the sport and other cyclists.
Chris Long passed away earlier this year and our friend Eben has helped distribute Chris’ stable of bikes and cycling equipment to other riders who could enjoy them. Already one of Chris’ winter jerseys helped an eager but unprepared teenage bike racer survive a chilly 40 degree club ride this October. As Eben writes, this would probably please Chris to no end…
This bike belonged to my friend, Chris Long. Chris was a bike racer and we put in a lot of miles together over the years. So what does it mean to be a bike racer?
Chris Long racing on Planet X
Well, using Chris as the template, it means being meticulous and methodical. It means always marking your seatpost height with a piece of tape. It means not wasting anything. It means not having an extra gram of fat on your body or your bike. It means always keeping your bike immaculately clean–not because you’re showing it off, but because you run your equipment until it wears out and you want to get every last kilometer out of it. It means always being up for a ride, and it means never being late for the rollout. It means never bragging, complaining, or making excuses. It means stockpiling all of your vacation days at work so you can use them to travel to races during cyclocross season. It means having nobody at home who depends on you except for the cat. It means asking the doctor, “How soon can I ride the trainer?” It means being so determinedly self-sufficient that when your handlebar completely snaps on a solo ride not too far from your friend’s home, you don’t even call him for a lift; instead, you somehow fix it with a stick and ride the remaining 20 miles home.
But most of all it means loving the ride, which is probably why he didn’t call me for a lift. When you’re a biker racer, riding home with a stick for a handlebar still beats sitting in traffic on the Major Deegan.