I've often wondered how frustrating it is for Grant. So many of his bikes end up as garage ornaments. I've tried to explain to interested people that the fancy lugs and paint get our attention, but the geometry, ride and handling are what keep us on the bikes. My '87 Trek has nice lugs and looks cool, but it hands in the garage while the Rivs get the play. I've used my Hunq for everything six is why I'm on my 4th set of fenders and 3rd paint job. The Sam gets better treatment but several recreational rides a week. I don't mind locking either at a store, restaurant or bar with a really, really good lock, but do have a Soma Buena Vista I use for daily commuting and a cheap aluminum mtb to use here in Michigan during the winter. Despite the practical choices I've given myself, the Rivs get the play time.
On Tuesday, November 8, 2022 at 7:57:50 PM UTC-5 Mackenzy Albright wrote: > When I was living in Alberta, I had an art studio near a bottle depot. We > had a lot of houseless folks in the area for that reason. We were pretty > good pals with some of the regulars and we had some very interesting > conversations about bike thief's. The main points i remember that i use as > general rules: > > 1. bikes and parts that can be bartered - 26" wheels are hot. old mountain > bikes. anything with QR. Any seat is in danger. > 2. Convenience - anything that can be swiped or taken off easy. (QR) > Leaving a bike "for a moment" etc. Leaving a bike in a dark corner street > late at night. Leaving it alone draws attention. Riding your carbon roadie > and leaving it outside the shop to grab an espresso - its gone. Parking > your bike in the same spot every single day makes it easy for more > organized thief's. > 3. Making it inconvenient means locking well lit high foot traffic zones, > near spaces where other cyclists lock up (we kinda watch out for suspect > behavior) coffee shops. bike shops. bars can be OK as there are often > smokers outside etc. other social sort of spaces. > 4. if somebody really wants it, they'll find a way. > > > On Tuesday, November 8, 2022 at 4:34:49 PM UTC-8 Jim Bronson wrote: > >> I ride my Rivendells for almost everything, but I'm not going to lock >> them up outside a grocery store or a bar. Or an outdoor music >> festival, like Austin City Limits with 75,000 people. I have my beater for >> those things. >> >> The Rivs get 99% of all the riding I do. They get rode hard and put away >> wet. Grant needent fret. >> >> Jim >> Austin suburbs, TX >> >> On Sat, Nov 5, 2022 at 5:15 PM Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! < >> jonasa...@gmail.com> wrote: >> >>> Did you read Grant’s Blahg? He covers a lot of ground, but most notable >>> to me was the Please Don’t Be Precious About Your Rivendell section. In >>> sum, Grant is saying it saddens him to think of people riding beater bikes >>> instead of their Rivendells to do daily, monotonous tasks - because those >>> tasks make up a lot of real life. If one “saves” their Rivendell, it will >>> not realize its potential, sit mostly unused and then pass to one’s heirs >>> who will sell it in “near mint” condition on EBay, and how sad. What was >>> the bike for? >>> >>> I have found myself both guilty and innocent on the matter. My #1 >>> favorite bike is my raspberry Platypus. I ride it all the time, because I >>> bought it to ride it, but I also dread any harm coming to it, and I do >>> guard it from that. I got a second Platypus that I dedicated to shopping >>> and traveling with and promised not to be precious about it. But now and >>> then I still am tempted to backslide. When traveling to the Philly Bike >>> Expo I dithered about which bike to bring. I didn’t want my raspberry Platy >>> damaged while locked up at racks and I feared it being stolen. Roberta >>> said, “I don’t think you have a choice, Leah. That’s the bike people will >>> expect you to bring.” And she was right, and I did. >>> >>> Then, there is Pam. Pam is at the other far end of the spectrum. Her >>> bike is a model of beausage. Innumerable paint chips and little spots of >>> rust cover her tiny Betty frame. Her Backabike bags are full of holes and >>> the elastic closures are worn out. She locks it up and never worries about >>> it. She did not obsessively stare out the restaurant window to see if it >>> was still locked to the rack while we were at dinner (like yours truly). >>> But she loves her bike, has real affection for it. She looked at me, eyes >>> shining, and said exactly that. Ana, PurpleRiv, is another good example to >>> us. She adores her bike, but has not spared it from hard work. Her bike has >>> hauled obscene loads and taken her everywhere. I remember there was that >>> one fateful camping trip for she 1. Posed it for a photo, only to have it >>> topple and slide down the face of a boulder next to it. I believe she said >>> she sat there and wept for 2 hours over her Joe Bell paint. And who among >>> us would not do the same? 2. Same trip, another photo op, and the bike fell >>> off a cliff. >>> >>> So, who truly loves their Rivendell? The one who lavishes it with care >>> and protection? Or the one who pulls it out of the garage and into all of >>> life - the mundane and the adventurous? >>> >>> On one end of the spectrum we have those who will only take a Rivendell >>> out for special occasions so as not to spoil it, and on the other…well, we >>> have Pam and Ana, who will give it a good thrashing. (Oh, don’t take it >>> personally, friends, I’m being funny about both types of owners.) >>> >>> I find myself wanting to be precious but fighting it and succeeding >>> *most* of the time. I’m lucky that the raspberry paint hides beausage and >>> dirt, so it looks pretty new. But a dent in the top tube or a large chip in >>> the paint would really hurt my feelings. Heaven help me. >>> >>> Where are you on the spectrum? What words of wisdom might you have? What >>> strategies do you employ? Do you want to change? Or are you >>> unapologetically staying put on the matter? It might be fun to hear >>> perspectives. >>> >> Leah >>> >>> >>> >>> -- >>> >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >>> "RBW Owners Bunch" group. >>> >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >>> email to rbw-owners-bun...@googlegroups.com. >>> To view this discussion on the web visit >>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/2f5fe184-d6ba-46f7-bd7f-256f8563c16cn%40googlegroups.com >>> >>> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/2f5fe184-d6ba-46f7-bd7f-256f8563c16cn%40googlegroups.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >>> . >>> >> >> >> -- >> ------------------------------------------------------------------ >> signature goes here >> > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. 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