I’ve long been an advocate of the On-One il Pompino. It’s a solid, reliable workhorse whose steely, no-disc, full-fender, single-speed versatility appeals to retro-grouches like myself, Bike Snob NYC and Scooter, one of the hardest working wheelmen I’ve had the pleasure of acquainting.
Andy Rogers is the latest to appreciate the simplistic pleasure of the Pomp. You might recognize him as the photographer responsible for some of The Spoken’s most popular posts: Fame & Spear:
Here’s Andy’s story: “As cycling is my only viable mode of transport, it was inevitable that it would get to the point of me riding my bike in rain, hail and shine. I got kind of sick of riding my road or track bike around and getting home soaking wet and having a bike covered in road grime. I then decided I needed something more appropriate – I needed a Winter bike!
I did my research and the Pompino came out the winner. Sturdy frame, provisions for full fenders to keep me dry and I could build it up on the cheap as a SS and also have it relatively low maintenance at the same time.
I bought the Pompino frame and fork directly from On-One in the UK. After riding around on the stock fork for a while, I decided I wanted something with a lugged crown and the ability for a front rack option in the future.
This lead me to the Surly Crosscheck fork, which does a great job! The rest of the parts were pretty much just whatever I had kicking around. Nothing on it is particularly high-end or lightweight but boy is it a hefty bugger. And that’s exactly what I was trying to accomplish with the build.
I’ve always enjoyed riding in the Winter months. And now I’m looking forward to it even more so now that it means I can finally give the Pompino a serious and consistent workout in some unpleasant weather. Bring on the rain!”
Big thanks to Andy Rogers for his photography and reportage. To see more of his excellent images, which are a superb insight into Melbourne’s bicycle culture, head to his website or Flickr.