Can we be told in advance about BOTM?

[jax13]

that's the readers rides section I thought?

whats stopping you from entering it into BOTM?

I completely understand your point, however there will always be a good section of the membership who know they have no chance of winning BOTM with their entry level frame on a mid-range groupset project for whatever reason but might still want to throw it into a 'fun run' (to stick with the marathon metaphor used earlier) to see how they get on because they want to compete with bikes at a similar budget / component level.

put bluntly, your not going to try and race a ferrari if your sat in a diesel mondeo but you might fancy your chances against a passat or a vectra.


is the answer to lower or restrict the BOTM, no. is there the possibility for a slightly more novelty 'bragging rights' only monthly comp that is accessible for anyone, of course there is. restrictions could be put on it like only bikes completed in that month (and not re-entered for minor changes, only complete overhauls) can apply if they fit the specific months criteria... examples could be sub £200 builds, model year specific, commuter projects, component manufacturer (e.g. an x-lite or girvin component month for builds using at least one of their components)

it isn't a fool proof idea, nor is it likely to be taken on by a mod / admin as they have already got enough on their plate but I think there could be some cracking entries that we normally wouldn't see in the BOTM comp.

 

[We_are_Stevo]

I'm being ironic! :roll:

If you want anti-Americanism watch 'Southpark' or 'American Dad!'

...and I'm certainly not going to be denegrated by a citizen of the country that gave us Billy Graham and Jenna Jameson in equal measure!

 

[hollister]

you're being something alright


in the spirit of all inclusiveness, can I get list of peoples its OK to mock here on Retrobike?

 

[We_are_Stevo]

you're being something alright


in the spirit of all inclusiveness, can I get list of peoples its OK to mock here on Retrobike?

Try Frogs/Jocks & Micks - I'm all three; that was the whole point of admitting it in the first place!

 

[hollister]

I'm more interested in the official take on this. rather than following your lead in the race to the bottom

 

[boy"O"boy]

I think I've said all I can. IMO the "competition" should remain open and unregulated to foster better bikes and photos. If it was easy, then everyone would do it. "The hard is what makes it great."

I'd have to agree with ameybrook on this one. The competition should be open to all but it's all about how you present your entry as well as content. There are some fantastic entries let down by trying to show an 'artistic' angle of the bike when a side-on shot would sell it far better.
I've only entered botm twice but after the 'rider special' that when it came to the poll, most of the pictures in the vote didn't show retro riders actually riding their bikes... I didn't stay gutted, I just upped my game. I came away with '3rd best' against tough opposition in last month's 'neon special'... Thanks to all that voted. I aimed to give that 'brochure pic' but that still wasn't enough for the prestigious 'botm' monicker..... so I've got to up my game again.
More than likely, I'll miss again but the worthy winner will be the one that gets the most votes/ the one that envokes the most memories/ the one that gives the best 'eye candy' / the one you'd most want to own / the one you like the most. The 'blind' vote is great..... Who say's muddy fox's David won't slay yeti's Goliath?

What does suprise me though is that 'BOTM' is decided by barely over two hundred votes. There's a lot more people on the forum than that.... so there's a lot of unused votes out there. Perhaps if more people used their vote, the results would be different? Then again, it could mean more votes for standout entries? At the end of the day, you get one vote...the same as everyone else.

 

[We_are_Stevo]

I'm more interested in the official take on this. rather than following your lead in the race to the bottom

I thought I was working my way UP towards the bottom...

 

[sinnerman]

MAD FISH HAS A MOMENT.............,

every one of us who has made a contribution to this thread, and has a retro bike they love, should step forward and place into this months bike of the month, it "PROBABLY" be the best bike of the month ever.

 

[andrewl]

It’s interesting how perceived cost and exclusivity become so much of an issue to some when special BOTMs are discussed.

There are so many worthy Special month topics to be explored in the future and yet we as a group far too easily get caught up on discussions of crappy builds.

A special month will always exclude some from entering but some special concepts are just not worth discussing (ie cost – are you going to ask for receipts as evidence??)

Given that there is currently 3 weeks from the announcement of the topic of a special month and the vote, that should be plenty of time to get something ready if you really want to enter a bike.

 

[pete_mcc]

Is Pete Mcc on holiday?

Ha! Amazingly, yes I am (well, sort of holiday, I'm in Hospital again, but I'm not working so that's a holiday I think).

The reason I'm not playing is that this argument has been done to death and I really don't want to "go off on one"... like I do so often.

What I will say is that my last bike to win BOTM was a Klein; the frame & forks cost $300, the cranks cost £35, hubs £20, rims £20 and so on. No special handshakes, no massive budget. The whole bike cost less than the paint job (which was worth every penny).
-My Yeti that won BOTM was a wreck that I bought for £150, the groupset came from a bike shop clearing 'that old rubbish'.
-My Bradbury Manitou that won BOTM was an eBay special for a couple hundred.
-My Fat Ti that won BOTM was a swap with a full suspension bike that I'd bought third hand many, many years ago.
The two bikes that I spent a mint on won nothing.

I like to think that people voted for each of those bikes because they were painstakingly rebuilt, good looking bikes that pushed the right buttons and took people back, not because people were impressed that I could 'flash the cash'. I hope they weren't so shallow to repeatedly vote for what they saw as a pile of cash. If they were then it's them we need to have a go at, not me or other winners who entered the bikes.

Yes, I know I have more money than some but that doesn't mean I am willing to throw money around. I put in legwork, hunt eBay for badly listed items, talk to shop owners, go to swap meets or network. I know many people who can help me and who I help in return. Some people are willing to pay market price on eBay but I'm not, I insist on paying a lot less. My mother always said, "How do rich people get rich? By not wasting money".

I have never sold a single one of my BOTM winners as they were all works of love and passion and would rather eat bread and water for the rest of my life than get rid of them. They were not built for BOTM or for some other validation of my existence by random strangers - they were built for me. Yes some are unridden, but I've not been up to riding for a long time (see above hospital mention), and any way there are some that I will never ride, period and I don't need to explain why to anyone!


My final word is the same thing I have said for the past umpteen years; good bikes are not expensive bikes, bad bikes are not cheap bikes, the two things are truly independent. BOTM is not an 'elitist' thing and it's certainly not a popularity contest (otherwise I'd never have won 1 let alone 4).
Go and look at Sinnermans efforts; they are not wallet buster unobtainium bikes, they are man-hour marathons that have been recognised as stunning efforts with equally good outcomes. As he would say, 'Awesum'!


Alright, I did go off on one in the end, sorry....