NOTE: For whatever reason, the photos posted out or order. But the captions should help you understand what is what. Also, I wanted to post recent photos so you can see our Rivendell triad today. (My bike has gone through several iterations...)Ok, then I’ll stop....
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Sent from my iPad > On Jan 11, 2019, at 2:03 PM, Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! > <jonasandle...@gmail.com> wrote: > > I found Rivendell in late 2012. I had ridden a Walmart Schwinn for years, > pulling my 2 little boys in a cheap bike trailer until my Schwinn was worn > out. The bike had many quirks, but the latest was some screeching sound it > would intermittently make, and I would ride it, howling now and then (the > bike, not me, ha!), through our neighborhood. After witnessing the freak show > that was me, my old bike, and my bobble-headed boys in their bike trailer, my > husband said, “You know, you really could buy a new bike...” Well, he didn’t > need to tell me twice. > > Up until then, a “nice” bike meant a Schwinn from Target. I decided I was > really going to treat myself and find a Trek (a name I knew and equated with > “nice”) on Craigslist. I ended up with a Trek 7.6 FX, which was aluminum with > a carbon fork and a plush,wide saddle from the previous owner. I was so proud > of my new bike; it was silver and I adorned it with pink accents. It came > with a sort of rack/nylon zippered pouch that clamped to the seatpost, so I > could haul a couple things from the grocery store. Despite all of this, I > didn’t feel comfortable. I spent the next few weeks convincing myself this > was a high-class bike and I just needed to get used to it. The tires were > skinny, and I needed a new air compressor to fill the tires as the old one > wouldn’t do 110 psi. I felt nervous when I’d take the boys off-road - the > bike felt unstable and didn’t seem to like pulling loads. (I would later > learn the term “squirrelly.”) The saddle was killing me. Absolutely killing > me. The bars were flat and didn’t facilitate me looking around and enjoying > the scenery -how was I going to point out my favorite ducks to the boys as we > passed the duck pond? I was stuck with my wrists locked in one position, > leaned over and facing straight ahead. But I had just spent $400 on a new > bike (until then the most I’d ever spent was $140) so I kept telling myself > I’d better learn to like it. I couldn’t face thinking this bike was a $400 > mistake and that my cheap Walmart bike was superior. > > I started looking online at biking forums to find out how to make bikes more > comfortable. Everyone said, “Get a carbon fiber drop bar road bike, they are > the most comfortable.” I had never had or wanted such a bike, but I wanted to > be comfortable but still considered “serious” and I began to visit the local > Specialized dealer. The bikes were garish colors and full of loud logos. I > test rode one, and it was freakishly lightweight; not stable, like sitting on > a plastic yard chair. I circled the parking lot, and when I turned those > curlycue bars, the front tire scraped against my toes!!! $900, said the bike > shop employee. I couldn’t give the bike back fast enough. > > I kept searching the forums, and one day on Team Estrogen, someone said > “Rivendell.” I found their website and knew this was what I’d always wanted > but never knew existed. They agreed about upright bars! They said saddles > could disappear beneath you, never to be thought of again, so comfortable > were they. > > Then I saw the price tag. > > My husband thought I had lost my mind. But when you want something bad > enough, it starts seeming attainable. Finally, he made me a deal. He had > wanted to cut our cable for years and I had always fought it. He said if I > cut the cable, I’d have his blessing to get the bike. DONE. No cable contract > was ever severed faster, and I called RBW and got a guy named Keven on the > phone. I thought I wanted the Sam Hillborne, because the sweet and sloping > top-tubed Betty wouldn’t be seen as serious (remember, I’d spent months > listening to the wisdom of popular roadbike forums and in bike shops catering > to racers) but Keven disagreed. I’m so glad he did, because I needed him to > give me permission to like that Betty Foy. He told me HE had a Betty Foy, and > if I wanted to pull children, this was the bike for me. And he was right. He > was so, so very right. The problem was, there likely were no Bettys left in > 55 cm. He said he’d do some checking and get back to me; otherwise I’d be > waiting until March. It was November. > > I got a call back saying there were two 55 Bettys buried in the warehouse and > one of them would be for me! I planned a trip and drove with my family to get > my new bike. It was love at first sight and has been a blithely happy 6 years > and countless miles together. In 2015 we got my husband a 52 Clem when his > Target Schwinn started behaving erratically, and when his mother found out > about it, she got herself a 52 cm Clementine! In summer of 2018, my brother > in law lost his Specialized Sirrus to theft, and replaced it with a 59 cm > Clem L in grilver. Finally, in fall of 2018, a fine fellow on this very List > gifted my 12 year old a brand new shiny grilver 45 cm Clem. > > So now my family is Rivendell-rich, and we are very happy and very grateful. > Attached are photos from 2012 of my pre-Rivendell life and when I got the > Betty Foy. > 1. My Trek and the sad set-up my dog was forced to endure. > 2. First ride. We were headed to church, so no dog. > 3. With the dog. We added more padding to his basket later. We had things to > learn. > > Thanks for this, Ryan, it’s been FUN! I hope to hear everyone’s stories here. > Leah > > >> On Friday, January 11, 2019 at 11:25:13 AM UTC-8, Abcyclehank wrote: >> Anyone want to add themselves and their Rivendell fleet or history to a >> POSITIVE ONLY commentary on how Grant and RBW has affected your relationship >> riding bikes in the spirit of JUST RIDE in all it details. >> >> For a starting tease: I currently have 10 Rivendell’s in a fleet of 16 bikes >> for my family of four (2 adult children). >> >> Ryan “equally proud and embarrassed” Hankinson >> West Michigan > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to a topic in the Google > Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this topic, visit > https://groups.google.com/d/topic/rbw-owners-bunch/JWFc98ZDKaM/unsubscribe. > To unsubscribe from this group and all its topics, send an email to > rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. > Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > <EE99C1EF-47BA-4E38-B386-9AC1C5E22813.jpeg> > <E929AE2C-3229-4755-B1D1-FC22CAC6E366.jpeg> > <2323F789-401C-482F-A660-2A1242C81006.jpeg> -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. 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