Man, yesterday was a bad day. Not like Walker Texas Ranger re-runs bad, but bad nonetheless. I lost a good friend yesterday, Alfredo the black lab. Probably one of the nicest, happiest, healthiest, most exuberant four legged companions I have ever known. This dog lived a life like Richard Branson and I am sure he is telling some good stories to the likes of Spuds Mackenzie and Lassie up in the sky right now. Ugh, and I received some disturbing news by means of electronic carrier pigeons from the wrong coast that still is not sitting well.
On a lighter note I took the old single speed to work today, gosh that's a sweet ride. So on bike portland.org today there was a story related to a older NYT's article on how expensive used bikes here in Ptown are. Now this guy apparently has some credibility in some media circuit because he gets clearly gets paid to bash our biking prices. I read this a few weeks ago and after perusing his posts I did not see another one related to bicycles so I wrote him off as uninformed. Of course this article being posted on BikePortland stirred up quite the hubbub, being how many people in Portland are:
Cyclists, whether commuters, recreational riders, racers, mechanics, etc.
Unemployed, thus leaving them plenty of time to comment on blogs
Constantly looking for a chance to prove why Portland is better than all other US cities
Always looking for an avenue to explain the good deal they got on their "track" bike
This brings me to a point which has been bothering me recently. First off I love the fixed gear, it is a fun way to master your cadence in between race seasons and great for the velodrome. But, on the street in Portland I don't get it. People choose to commute miles and miles on some crap roads (Portland is great for biking, but the roads have other ideas) on a bike with no brakes. I don't get it, I just don't. Maybe everyone thinks they look super cool and that is the driving factor, the simplicity of a good track bike is beautiful, but then again so is coasting home downhill after a rabble rousing night at the bar. I guess my biggest peeve is the dropouts, fixed gear bikes need rear facing dropouts, ask any kid on a BMX and he will tell you. Just because you bought a cheap ass Raleigh off of good ol Craigslist and put on a rear track wheel doesn't make it a track bike. Ugh.
Now these are clearly not your typical Portland fixed gear aficionado's. Notice the board shorts, clip in shoes, and 3 to 5 cycling cap ratio. Oh no, this will not do. In Ptown there would be way more chuck taylors, tight pants, and neon sunglasses
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