I started a thread in the road section and have already had some very friendly and helpful responses, and I'm very familiar with online forum patronage so I'm excited to see such an educated and enthusiastic lot of members here. It's very impressive! My name's Gregory and I'm a college student in California working on my degree in history. I started cycling two years ago when my uncle introduced me to the sport. I'd been riding low rider bicycles and old mountain bikes to work and school for several months before I got my first road bike (a 1979/'80 Raleigh Carlton Super Course 12 speed) and I got hooked.
About four or five months later my parents sold our ranch and told me and my siblings that we could each have about $2,500 to spend on what we'd like. I decided to invest in a nice road bike and got a 2008 Trek Madone 5.2 with full Ultegra SL and Bontrager X-Lite components. It was a very nice bicycle and took me to a new level of riding. I'm an artist of sorts, especially when it comes to building technical and aesthetic things like bicycle components and automobiles. The Madone just wasn't personal enough for me... So I ripped it apart and sold all of the components hoping to re-build it with Deda accessories and Campagnolo Chorus 11 and Eurus rims. Sadly, I couldn't afford this for several months and then decided just to sell the frame while I hadn't been riding.
That was a mistake, but what ever. I accumulated the money for my build again recently and decided to stick with cycling. It keeps me away from cigarettes and I feel better about my body and mind when I challenge myself daily on my rides. The season I rode hard was probably one of the best years of my life. So, I built a new bike! I stuck with the Campy Chorus/Eurus combo as well as the Deda accessories. I couldn't afford all of these components with a carbon frame, so I picked up another Raleigh. This time it was a 2003 Team frame set, built from Columbus alloy tubing and Columbus Carve carbon fork and seat stays. Beautiful frame set. Total weight with Look Keos pedals and Torelli SS bottle cages is 18.46 pounds. The bicycle was completed this morning by the mechanics at Sierra Bicycle Werks in Visalia, CA and I'm very proud of it! It makes a great belated 21st birthday present to myself.

Here's the component list:
Raleigh Team Frame Set (2003)
Campagnolo Chorus Group Set (2009) Includes:
--Shifters
--Front Derailleur
--Rear Derailleur
--Brake Set
--Crank Set (175mm)
--Cassette (12-25)
Campagnolo Record Cable Housing (2009)
Campagnolo Record Chain (2009)
Campagnolo Eurus Wheel Set (2008)
Continental Duraskin Tires
Deda Elementi Zero100 Alloy Stem (90mm)
Deda Elementi Zero100 Alloy Handlebars (42cm)
Deda Elementi Super Carbon Seat Post (300mm)
Brooks Titanium-Railed Swift Saddle
And I'll finish with some pictures! Hopefully the introduction and the style of my bicycle tells a bit about myself and my personality. I'm really excited to join the forum and look forward to both contributing and getting my questions answered! Cheers, and happy holidays!
-Gregory