Feature image: A sunny English morning on Drift Road, H10/10 time trial course.

My Planet X Stealth has had quite the journey. I purchased the bike from Planet X in 2013 as a time trial build directly from their website. It originally came with (ewww) SRAM Rival 10-speed and alloy-brake-track 50mm aero wheels. It was very much an impulse buy. Although the Stealth hasn’t seen as many miles as it should have since, it’s been through a few makeovers. It’s also the bike/frameset I’ve owned the longest.

My first ever race was a Farnham Road Club 10-mile TT in early 2014, where I set a benchmark of 26:37 @ 22.6mph (36.5kph). The course was the H10/8, a very fast dual carriageway “out and back” course. The current record is 18:07 held by Qhubeka NextHash pro rider Harry Tanfield! For one reason or another I never did get to race as much as I would have liked to from that point on.

The original Planet X Stealth TT build, fresh out of the box (England, 2013)

After I moved to Australia I converted the Stealth into a road bike. I rode it for a while in that guise, but to be honest I didn’t like the end result, so eventually stripped all the parts for sale or other projects. The frameset has hung on my garage wall for around two years now, collecting dust and looking very neglected…

I’m sure you all know by now I’m a sucker for a good project, so this year it’s time to get the Stealth running as a time trial bike again! I don’t want to spend much on it as it’ll get far less ride time than my other bikes, plus the TT scene is pretty poor here. I’ll see what parts I have lying around and what I can find for cheap or second hand. First up it needs a clean, then I’ll sort out a new cockpit and drivetrain. Everybody needs a good winter project, right?

Hopefully I can get the Stealth finished by November for the start of our summer!