Bianchi San Jose

Urban cyclists are a stubborn lot. They tend to fall in love with their rig, and then display a suicidal loyalty to the bike, regardless of shifting trends or technologies. That philosophy, and the war-like conditions of Washington DC's asphalt, have kept me on my trusted hardtail mountain bike for over seven years now. I swapped out the knobbies for slicks, but otherwise felt the wide tires, aluminum frame, and front air shocks made all the difference. But as the nation's capital started painting bike lanes onto newly repaved city streets, I started reconsider my years-long loyalty. And on my first ride on the Bianchi San Jose, I was a convert.

If my mountain bike was a cudgel, the San Jose is a stiletto; simple and efficient, sleek and smooth, ridiculously aerodynamic, and perfectly responsive. The bike is tailored for city riding; the narrow handlebars let me slice through spaces between parked cars and uptown traffic that would've frozen my old bike, and the twin Cane Creek cantilever brakes are accessible without bending to a full crouch—a nice detail for the head's-up kind of cycling required on city streets.

The 42-tooth crank and 17-tooth Shimano freewheel gives me enough get-up-and-go to conquer all of DC's hills, including the cardiac push up from Rock Creek Park into Adams Morgan, and the chrome-moly frame and fork offer just the right touch of flex on the pot holes and divots that remain. The bike comes standard with TWB All-Terrainasaurus tires, which I kept to allow for occasional bouts off-road exploration, but I swapped out the Wellgo resin pedals for a pair of Candy Cs from Crank Brothers—their small platforms provide the right touch of extra balance when traffic conditions prevent the immediate click into the cleats. I also ditched the Bianchi Velo saddle for Sella Italia's Max Fleet, a magnesium-frame "super-comfort" model with an anatomical central opening, gel-flow padding, and two small reflectors at the back. Besides, the strip of cheetah felt on the Bianchi seat is a touch too La Dolce Vita for me.

Some road purists may scoff at the lack of gears, but the single-gear structure (which can be swapped to fixed gear) brings me back me to the simple joy of cycling when 20-plus shifting options wasn't so important. Minimal maintenance, reliable, almost idiot-proof performance… It's as if this sly Italian cycle has unlocked my inner child, reverting me to when my bike had a banana seat. Sure, I occasionally bottom out when zipping downhill or busting it on the flats, but that just reminds me to relax and enjoy the scenery, rather than trying to beat the next yellow light. Now, I take my mountain bike where it belongs: the trails. Everywhere else? It's the San Jose.
$600; bianchiusa.com

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