Once A Hero
Old School Grand Master
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Recently acquired this Yeti F.R.O as the sister (brother? Are bikes male or female?) bike to my Ultimate. Both bikes originate from use by the Cycleland Race Team, and have been supplied from the same shop, Bromley Bikes. This F.R.O was purchased by an ex Bromley Bikes employee who has owned it ever since. Turns out that the previous owner and I were racing on the same team back in ‘93, so meeting up with the seller when I went to collect it turned into more of a chat about our history, people we knew, and what we’re up to now - rather than much talk about the bike 
The more I get into Yeti ownership, the more it seems that the history / age / spec of models is surprisingly vague. Sizes are strange to determine, with little more than a 1/4 inch difference in one tube length despite an 1 & 1/2 inch difference in supposed frame size - though where that is measured appears to be a mystery! As for serial numbers/age, this ones appears to date back to around 1990, though there is not a concrete system to support that, so it’s a case of tracking down owners of bikes that have had them from new, asking them what serial number theirs is and asking if they can remember when they bought so as to gauge if yours has a higher or lower number and therefore newer or older.
The spec as purchased isn’t exactly setting the world alight, but I purchased it for the frame and history, and the fact I already have the matching Ultimate.
Like the Ultimate, the F.R.O was re-sprayed in the early ‘90s into Cyclelands Team colours of orange and grey, and compared to the Ultimate, the orange on the F.R.O has seen very minimal fading. There is a paint run in the orange, and the down tube sticker application is a bit wonky, so maybe not the best paint job!
My plan is to work with the frame and trick it out more in keeping with the Ultimate.
More to come as parts start to arrive…
The more I get into Yeti ownership, the more it seems that the history / age / spec of models is surprisingly vague. Sizes are strange to determine, with little more than a 1/4 inch difference in one tube length despite an 1 & 1/2 inch difference in supposed frame size - though where that is measured appears to be a mystery! As for serial numbers/age, this ones appears to date back to around 1990, though there is not a concrete system to support that, so it’s a case of tracking down owners of bikes that have had them from new, asking them what serial number theirs is and asking if they can remember when they bought so as to gauge if yours has a higher or lower number and therefore newer or older.
The spec as purchased isn’t exactly setting the world alight, but I purchased it for the frame and history, and the fact I already have the matching Ultimate.
Like the Ultimate, the F.R.O was re-sprayed in the early ‘90s into Cyclelands Team colours of orange and grey, and compared to the Ultimate, the orange on the F.R.O has seen very minimal fading. There is a paint run in the orange, and the down tube sticker application is a bit wonky, so maybe not the best paint job!
My plan is to work with the frame and trick it out more in keeping with the Ultimate.
More to come as parts start to arrive…
