Pictures of your bike

[JonFromMaplewood]

I bought it in 1993. I once rode it from Boston to NYC in the Aids Ride.  It has been down the streets of Manhattan, dirt paths in Vermont, and quiet seaside roads on Martha's Vineyard.  I love it, but it is getting old and falling apart now because I have not had the time to take care of it.  She is mostly my "station bike" now that I've moved to the suburbs, and that makes me sad.

Nice.

Is that bike rusty because of your salty sweat from the station?

Yes.

Awesome. Can you recommend an entry point to get into stationary riding? I guess I'm thinking rollers vs. the standing type. I know absolutely nothing about it but would like to get a setup before winter.

I know nothing about it either. Sorry sir. Probably a lot less rust involved.

[colonel panic]

I bought it in 1993. I once rode it from Boston to NYC in the Aids Ride.  It has been down the streets of Manhattan, dirt paths in Vermont, and quiet seaside roads on Martha's Vineyard.  I love it, but it is getting old and falling apart now because I have not had the time to take care of it.  She is mostly my "station bike" now that I've moved to the suburbs, and that makes me sad.

Nice.

Is that bike rusty because of your salty sweat from the station?

Yes.

Awesome. Can you recommend an entry point to get into stationary riding? I guess I'm thinking rollers vs. the standing type. I know absolutely nothing about it but would like to get a setup before winter.

I know nothing about it either. Sorry sir. Probably a lot less rust involved.

Sorry. I meant "make my bike stand still so I can ride it indoors" and not a stationary bike.

[scotttsss]

The economic crisis is great if you want to travel by bike....  I spent $654 for a round trip ticket from Oklahoma City to Paris, and rode to the Mediterranean on my bike (which I brought with me for no charge, taken apart, as luggage...)  980 miles over 13 actual days of riding..camped along the way for a month...  met SO many nice and wonderful people, as I was alone and smiling, which ..  I guess it makes people at ease and piques their curiosity..  I recommend it --if you think you might like that kind of a trip, just do it, before you're too old...  one day a french couple invited me to dinner and the woman, Laurence,  gave me a haircut the next day... she was a hair stylist...  you can't plan that kind of thing!  hehheh.. 

Anyway my bike is a Surly brand steel framed "cyclocross" bike, --pretty much a road bike.  I commute with it and it's been good for at least 5K miles since 06' when I got it.  I've got the Schwalbe reflective tires in the photo..  and I always wear a helmet..   as should anyone.  I haven't fallen yet but if I did,.....    I mean, I like to think, right?  The Best Show wouldn't be as funny with a numbskull.  --wear a helmet.  If fixed gear hipsters want to go helmet free, it's their choice...what's sad is I think they' be pretty nice people once they grow out of their stone cold idealistic phase.  (I'm starting some shit I imagine if anyone rides fixed gear here..  hehe...  ) 

[colonel panic]

The economic crisis is great if you want to travel by bike....  I spent $654 for a round trip ticket from Oklahoma City to Paris, and rode to the Mediterranean on my bike (which I brought with me for no charge, taken apart, as luggage...)  980 miles over 13 actual days of riding..camped along the way for a month...  met SO many nice and wonderful people, as I was alone and smiling, which ..  I guess it makes people at ease and piques their curiosity..  I recommend it --if you think you might like that kind of a trip, just do it, before you're too old...  one day a french couple invited me to dinner and the woman, Laurence,  gave me a haircut the next day... she was a hair stylist...  you can't plan that kind of thing!  hehheh.. 

Anyway my bike is a Surly brand steel framed "cyclocross" bike, --pretty much a road bike.  I commute with it and it's been good for at least 5K miles since 06' when I got it.  I've got the Schwalbe reflective tires in the photo..  and I always wear a helmet..   as should anyone.  I haven't fallen yet but if I did,.....    I mean, I like to think, right?  The Best Show wouldn't be as funny with a numbskull.  --wear a helmet.  If fixed gear hipsters want to go helmet free, it's their choice...what's sad is I think they' be pretty nice people once they grow out of their stone cold idealistic phase.  (I'm starting some shit I imagine if anyone rides fixed gear here..  hehe...  ) 

I've been thinking about buying a cross check for my next real bike. Yours is an inspiration.

Fixed gears are excellent commuter bikes because there are so few moving parts. I ride one but I also ride geared bikes. I rode that fixed gear all last winter and had absolutely no problems whatsoever. The fixie scene is kind of fun to follow; I keep thinking that it can't get any bigger/hilarious but it does! I use a messenger style bag and I ride a fixed gear sometimes so I'm fully entrenched in this thing but here's my take:

I'm attracted to the aspect of finding a well-built steal frame from the '70s and '80s, cleaning it up, stripping all of the parts for ebay or your bike coop and then turning it into a single-speed or fixed gear. It's a bike that will work great everyday. But, I don't understand the track-bike fixation of buying very expensive Italian parts for a bike that will probably never see a velodrome. All of that money could have been spent on fixing up additional bikes.

I have a helmet and wear it but have been slacking lately because it's so hot out. Shame on me and I'll start wearing it again.

[scotttsss]

yeah I'm totally in favor of single speed, but personally have no desire at this point to ride fixed gear, I have enough to think about in traffic without worrying about my pedals not stopping..  but I'm sure it's great for your legs over time. 

The Cross Check's been great, but if I were to do it over again I'd go with a good old frame, which can be as little as free, if you're lucky. 

[AllisonLeGnome]

This is my bike:



A decent amount of my summer so far has been spent on the Rails-to-Trails bike trail, and I've become pretty fond of my bike, though I do wish it had suspension- I think I got it just before the point at which any decent mountain bike would have it. And I'm still super jealous of my friend's Trek hybrid.

[Josh]

I have a 2oo8 Kona Smoke 2-9. Haven't been able to find a great looking chainguard so I'm still rolling the pantlegs. Added:
 - Topeak rack w/ lock
 - Topeak MTX bag (the side panniers expand)
 - Fenix LED headlight
 - Planetbike Superflash tail light
 - pretty excited about the Sanden dynamo my boss got for me while in Japan