Saturday, November 15, 2014

Biking

I grew up in a family that cherished two-wheel vehicles, but mainly those with engines. While I have a fondness for motorcycles, it turns out I like bicycles as well. This fall I’ve been cycling more, which is partly inspired by my new bicycle. I’m rather proud of it, not because it’s especially beautiful, but because I had to stand my ground at the bicycle shop in order to get the bike I want. For example, I wanted the beat-up bike my dad bought at a garage sale, with a few new parts, instead of the expensive fancy bike they wanted to sell me. Likewise, I wanted handlebars that I could reach with my quite-short arms; I couldn’t find any handlebars that did this, so I ended up buying a stem that was designed to move the handlebars further away, for very tall people, and rotated the stem 180 degrees to do the opposite. I’ve been contemplating adding some strategic duck tape, just to make the bike a bit uglier.
     It’s time to bid a temporary adieu to my bicycle, because the weather is getting cold. I know that there are hard-core cyclists who ride throughout the winter, but it’s not me. Partly this is because I don’t have special gear – I bike to work in my work clothes - and partly this is because I can walk to work when I don’t bike. This year I was also a bit lazy and never attempted the ride to the grocery store with my bike trailer. But I vow that I will do that next year.


5 comments:

Gill - UK said...

Well done standing your ground - you made an environmentally friendly choice - dare I say to re-cycle.
And the 180 degree turn is a stroke of genius.

Shaela said...

Ha! It is so fun to imagine you besting those condescending yuppies at the bike store. I can just picture the bewildered look on their faces as you left having spent less than $450..."W-what just happened?"

Bernice said...

You should hand out cards with the web site of Mr. Money Mustache so they understand :)

alexis said...

I suggest paniers for the shopping! I always worry the trailer is going to fall off somewhere.

Or jump on the bandwagon and get a bakfiets!

http://kearo.nl/?page_id=128

de-I said...

I'm sure Alexis could also export to you all kinds of foul weather gear for bikers.