Saturday, October 20, 2007

A New Member of the (bike) Family...


Hi All,
Well, there are some changes in the bike department here in Utah. I am now the owner of a new bike! Yes, it’s true. But, it’s not a recumbent! Blasphemy you say! Heretic! Rebel! Non-conformist!

All true. After all, as I have said many times, the best bike for you (or me) is the one you will ride! Here’s a little background. In 2006 I hiked the mountain bike trail to Desolation Lake supporting the Wasatch 100 mile endurance race. As I hiked along, I met a dozen or so mountain bike riders, and the thought occurred to me that I could have just as easily ridden this route, rather than hoof along for 4.5 miles. So, that idea has been percolating for over a year to add a mountain bike to the garage and do some trail riding here in the Wasatch Range. Over the last summer whenever I was in the local bike stores, I would browse the mountain bikes, and check out their features and cost. In August, I had the opportunity to ride Pastor Bob Kaylor’s Specialized Hard Rock around the trail near Park City Community Church. What a fun bike! Light, responsive, and just the class of bike I needed.

Last week, the mail brought the final piece to the equation; the end of season clearance sale coupon! That was enough to send me over the edge. So, this past week, I became the proud owner of a Cannondale F7 Dual Disc mountain bike.
The shopping experience would have made my son Paul proud. It was a delicate dance around my requirements, the amount of money in my pocket, the size and features of the available bikes, and of course, the color too! The salesperson was quite helpful, walking me the length of the line of inventory that stretched from $250.00 all the way to $5,000 dollars! Eventually we settled on the Cannondale; the right size, a lovely color, a manageable cost, and the dual disc brakes a neophyte like myself should have.
What to call the bike? Well, that’s easy! The bike shall be called “Four Bits!” Named after where the money came from! You see, for years I have kept a small white box that I use to collect quarters. This helps me save pin money for bikes, and keeps me away from the soda and candy vending machines. Over half of the money for the Cannondale came from the little white box, hence the appropriate name!

So, now, I will train on the Little Red Bike for long distance brevets, use Four Bits to become a stronger climber, and enjoy the Wasatch in my backyard.
Now, if it will only stop snowing!
Jim

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Sooo shiny! Almost like it hasn't ever been ridden. Looks great Jim. Who needs to ride it?

Dan's Mom said...

Dear Jim,
Ooooweee! And, Yowza!!!
What a fun new toy to have and to use. Wanna place odds on which of our sisters gets one too??
Enjoy the ride.
Love, Patsy

Anonymous said...

Interesting post. My father used to have a sock-shaped bank in his top dresser drawer. One day he emptied the sock on his bed and took my brother and me to a bike shop where we picked out Schwinn one-speed bikes with 20 inch wheels. Saving your change has its benefits.

I recently went unbent (I have a Tour Easy) after a series of mechanical problems at the peak of the riding season left me bentless. I logged over 2000 miles on my ancient Specialized Sequoia.

I'm so happy with my unent summer that I just bought a new New World Tourist from Bike Friday.

FLYBYU said...

Nice bike, I used to have a Cannondale similar to that one, very nice quality, you won't be disappointed for sure.

Anonymous said...

You write very well.

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