17 May 2004
The Best Bike Ever!
This weekend I bought my new fancy-ass bike, and boy is it a sweet ride! I thought carefully and did a lot of research before settling on this model, and it's paying off. This new bike will keep me mobile and happy for years.
I bought my old bike seven years ago, and chose it fairly carelessly. It was a cheap but nice-looking mountain bike, and I thought I wanted to go mountain-biking. It turns out that I don't like mountain-biking at all! Nevertheless, that bike was a sturdy workhorse that served me well in my travels around San Francisco.
This new bike is a whole different scene. First, I opted for a city bike because it's got faster tires and has a classic style. I also chose the girly-style frame because (a) I've started wearing skirts regularly in the last few years and (b) I'm hoping that bike-thieves are too macho to be seen riding a woman's bike. And finally, my daily biking habit and total lack of car-related expenses allowed me to justify springing for the most featureful city-bike I could find. Check out the bling bling:
- dynamo-powered head- and tail-lights
This is totally Amsterdam-style, but extra-high-tech. The dynamo is sealed inside the front wheel hub, silent, low-resistence, and safe from weather. The tail-light stays lit for a minute or so after you stop, so that you remain visible while waiting at red lights. And there's a sensor that detects when it's dark and automatically activates the dynamo. I tested the sensor this morning by riding through the Broadway Tunnel, and indeed it's smart!
- ring lock
Also Amsterdam-style, this locks the rear wheel so that the bike can't be ridden. It's not ultra-secure, of course, but it's handy for when I need to turn my back on my bike for just a minute.
- suspension on the front fork and the seatpost
Oh, was that a pothole I just hit? A pigeon maybe? I didn't notice.
- built-in fenders and cargo rack
Having these integrated with the bike makes them lighter and less inclined to rattle.
- internal wheel hub gears
The gears aren't visible at all; they're somehow inside the rear wheel hub. That means they never need to be cleaned or re-lubricated, which is great for lazy girls like me.
- chain guard
Now I don't have to wear a dorky velcro strap on my ankle to prevent the front cog from tearing up the hem of my pants!
It's got some other fancy bells and whistles too, but those are the main highlights. Kudos to the brilliant Joe Breeze for designing the Best Bike Ever! I'm completely psyched about it. Now I just need to pimp my ride, which in this case means giving it some street cred and making it slightly less eye-catching to thieves. A little dirt, some rude stickers, and I should be all set.