Buy a bike and ride it!

I saw the loveliest bike today. I only got a glimpse of it as the guy flashed by, but it was a road bike the color of orange sherbet. The rims were painted a cherry red, and there was lemon yellow on it somewhere – maybe on the guy. It was beautiful.

Boyfriend is out of town next weekend, and I will get a bike, by gum. It doesn’t have to be perfect, just good enough. Either a very light hybrid or a road bike.

The money is worth it.

It doesn’t matter if boyfriend won’t ride with me, I know other people to ride with.

If the seat isn’t comfortable, I’ll get a different seat.

If the handlebars aren’t comfortable, I’ll get padding.

If I don’t like the color … I’ll eventually get it painted.

All things can be fixed except fit and ride.

KHS road bike. Felt good! Very light, and the fit wasn’t all weird like the other modern road bikes I’ve tried. Only downside, the ride was stiff, not smooth. Probably the all-aluminum ride just takes getting used to.

Got honked at. That was fun.

The owner said he’d give me a neighbor’s discount.

Going to try more bikes this weekend – including some hybrids, to make sure I really want a road bike – but this one might be it.

... has a bike in my price range. It looks like my size, too.

I’ve never heard of the brand, KHS. I did find a Canadian website for them.

I’m a bit leery because the bike shop owner is strange.

I looked at the online inventory of two local bike shops, and if I eat beans for a year, I can afford something like a Specialized Sequoia, or similar entry-level road bike. Or road-ish bike. On the Specialized site they list the Sequoia under both “road” and “comfort/hybrid”. Hmm.

My understanding is that comfort/hybrids tend to be more upright and heavier than road bikes, and have flat handlebars. None of which I want. I also think shocks on a bike are ridiculous. Hardtail all the way, baby.

... makes me think of velociraptors. The bikes look like they’re ready to pounce. Possibly this is the primitive mammalian part of my brain talking.

http://www.workingbikes.org/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=9&page=4

So I saw a bike on the sidewalk outside my building that caught my eye. It looked FAST – not in a high-tech racing kind of way, more like a stripped-down lean-and-mean way. I nearly lifted it up to see how light it was, but realized at the last moment how totally rude that would be.

I noticed it had a Working Bikes sticker (http://www.workingbikes.org/). What the hell?? The bike I got from Working Bikes is crappy. (Why did I buy it again?)

Anyway, been looking online at bikes. Maybe this weekend I’ll find time to go to a store.

... my choice would be clear.

Ferrari’s [sic] for thugs5011.entry

Half the URL is mangled. The specific entry is 3/2/06, “An Open Letter to Cannondale”.

I accidentally left behind my old 80’s Panasonic 10-speed in a sublet in grad school, and I’ve been desperately missing it ever since. It was a perfect fit. Perfect.

My next bike was a mountain bike – a mid-level Trek – but in retrospect the frame was way too big and the salesman should have known or cared better – I hated riding it, it felt like it was riding me. Then it got stolen, and I was kind of relieved, actually.

Then I got a cheapo road bike at Working Bikes Cooperative (http://www.workingbikes.org/). It was only $80 and it’s okay for tooling around the city because I don’t worry about it getting stolen, but it’s heavy and not comfortable for longer rides.

So I’m still looking. I’m willing to spend a bit for the ideal bike for me, but I don’t want to drop $800 on a bike that’s not quite right. It’s difficult – I’m 5’9 and have long legs, so salesmen put me on 56” frames, but they’re all designed for men, who have proportionally longer torsos and arms. I’m stretched out way too much to reach the handlebars, it’s a tiring position after awhile.

Any tips would be appreciated!