On the road: Seven Axiom SL bicycle review – 'The lightest, smoothest thing I’ve ever had between my thighs'

This bike has given me such joy that I'll remember it for ever, like a boy I never got over

There are many things you could buy for seven grand. A year's tuition at a mid-ranking university. Two decent secondhand cars. A very daft handbag. Or this dreamy titanium bicycle, the lightest, smoothest thing I've ever had between my thighs; a bike that has given me such joy, I'll remember it for ever, like a boy I never got over, or the steak in Rome in 2007 that made me gasp.

It wasn't love at first sight. Sure, when Phil, the owner of CycleFit in Manchester, twirled the 1.4kg frame on one finger, I was impressed, but I didn't think, "Cor!" It didn't look like it cost 3,500, even though I knew it had been custom-made by a woman in Seven's Massachusetts factory. The green decal was a little workaday and, really, how excited can you get about a bit of fancy metal welded together? Even after the first few spins, I wasn't convinced. The SRAM shifters were doing my nut in: I couldn't get the hang of double-tapping to go up a gear and I was making a right meal out of changing chainrings up front.