I thought I’d introduce you to an important member of my family. I never loved Boston more than when I started bike commuting from Jamaica Plain to Cambridge. Every weekday, I travel a little over twelve miles to and fro, more when I have evening activities (which is most evenings.)
Three years in, I’ve logged somewhere in the neighborhood of 5000 bike miles per year. Each winter, I find myself extending my season a little further because it hurts to be off the bike. Typically I’m not a jealous person but watching someone cycle past on a bright day, no matter how bitter cold or how bundled the rider, makes me yearn for my wheels.
Meet my rusty, trusty stead: a pink Raleigh mountain bike hybrid circa 1990s(?) Also known as:
- The bike
- My bike
- The $60 police auction special
- Heaviest bike on earth (not true, my Huffy was heavier)
- The tank
- The rickshaw
My “trunk” used to be a plastic milk crate, but I quickly outgrew that. Now I’ve a large set of bright yellow Ortlieb panniers. Unlike the bike, they’ve got actual names: Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. I named them in part because I have trouble with left and right. So Fred “rings and bell” and Ginger “turns on the light.”
This past fall, I got a death sentence for the bike: frame rot. Sadly, I know our days are numbered. In the meantime, I will continue to appreciate it as the best bike I’ve owned in my adult life, purchased from the first auction at which I hefted a number, hand trembling with anticipation when I won my “prize.” What a prize it has been.
Love it. I am so jealous. I can’t even ride my bike down the street
Ah, but you have a bike! :^) That’s a start.
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I love it….especially the fact you named your bike accoutrements.
If it gets you around and you like it, then it is the best bike in the world!!!
Thanks for dropping by! I hadn’t realized there was someone out there making hard plastic panniers a la kitty litter containers. A friend of mine here in Boston who works for Bootstrap Compost (http://bootstrapcompost.com) might find those compelling.
And you’re right -if it rolls and I like it- it’s a pretty darn good bike!
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