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Make your neighbor cry and hug you: fix their bike!
Well that was satisfying! My neighbors had been lamenting their lack of
good bikes whenever I saw them at the local dog park, as they'd often see me zooming about doing errands on one of my small fleet of utility bikes. So I lent Caroline "Helga", an alley find retrofitted with 700c wheels and 28mm tires I built up from the detritus in the garage. (http://tinyurl.com/2nw9c2) She rode the crap out of that funky coaster brake thing the past couple of unseasonably warm weeks. That lady needed a bike of her own! I found out in passing that she had an early 90s rotty Mt. Shasta rigid mtb in the garage. A college campus transport in very rough shape. Tires with the tubes coming out the sidewalls, and a chain that was 2mm past the 12 link usual. Shimano Altus componentry in oxidized, but solid condition. Rust spots on frame, bars, and covering the chain. The wheels were nice and almost true, so I asked her if she wanted to blow a hundred bucks to see if I could do something with it. Returned it today looking fantastic, with WTB slicks, Freddy fenders, a silent and perfect drivetrain with a fresh chain, grippy new brake pads, shortened bars with new Tru-Grips, rust ground off and touched up with 'lectric tape covering the hideous decals in an urbanite fashion. It didn't look showroom, but it looked like a serious vehicle instead of an old rotty mtb. She just about had a heart attack! Talk about a killer hug! She kept shreiking on about how cool the fenders looked. :-P Oh, and then she saw the shiny new skewers I'd given her from the bucket. Never have I seen a person get so happy about new shiny skewers. All for a hundred dollar bill. Now I have another neighbor that'll leave the cage at home for the basics, as our local market, hardware store, and dining/drinking establishments are all within a couple miles. This wouldn't be news in a city where utility cycling is normal, like Chicago or Madison WI, but in Nashville, it's pretty cool to get another rider on the road that's not spandexed up. :-D |
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#2
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Make your neighbor cry and hug you: fix their bike!
On 16 Jan 2007 18:09:57 -0800, "landotter" may
have said: This wouldn't be news in a city where utility cycling is normal, like Chicago or Madison WI, but in Nashville, it's pretty cool to get another rider on the road that's not spandexed up. Welcome to the ranks of the Urban Transport Guerilla Underground. Subvert the fuel-based-transportation paradigm! -- My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail. Typoes are not a bug, they're a feature. Words processed in a facility that contains nuts. |
#3
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Make your neighbor cry and hug you: fix their bike!
"landotter" wrote in message
ups.com... All for a hundred dollar bill. Now I have another neighbor that'll leave the cage at home for the basics, as our local market, hardware store, and dining/drinking establishments are all within a couple miles. This is great news -- keep up the good work! -- Warm Regards, Claire Petersky http://www.bicyclemeditations.org/ See the books I've set free at: http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky |
#4
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Make your neighbor cry and hug you: fix their bike!
In article . com,
"landotter" writes: All for a hundred dollar bill. Now I have another neighbor that'll leave the cage at home for the basics, as our local market, hardware store, and dining/drinking establishments are all within a couple miles. You realize, of course, you are the bike's personal caregiver/veterinarian from now on -- unless you're willing to lend tools ;-) cheers, Tom -- Nothing is safe from me. Above address is just a spam midden. I'm really at: tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca |
#5
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Make your neighbor cry and hug you: fix their bike!
Tom Keats wrote: In article . com, "landotter" writes: All for a hundred dollar bill. Now I have another neighbor that'll leave the cage at home for the basics, as our local market, hardware store, and dining/drinking establishments are all within a couple miles. You realize, of course, you are the bike's personal caregiver/veterinarian from now on -- unless you're willing to lend tools ;-) Yup, that's always the case isn't it? :-P I don't mind, as it all evens out in the end. Those folks provided me with garden tomatoes, chilis, and herbs all summer--so I'm not complaining. :-D |
#6
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Make your neighbor cry and hug you: fix their bike!
In article . com,
"landotter" writes: Tom Keats wrote: In article . com, "landotter" writes: All for a hundred dollar bill. Now I have another neighbor that'll leave the cage at home for the basics, as our local market, hardware store, and dining/drinking establishments are all within a couple miles. You realize, of course, you are the bike's personal caregiver/veterinarian from now on -- unless you're willing to lend tools ;-) Yup, that's always the case isn't it? :-P I don't mind, as it all evens out in the end. Those folks provided me with garden tomatoes, chilis, and herbs all summer--so I'm not complaining. :-D Yeah, neighbourliness is great. Even though sometimes it results in being given more zucchinis than ya know what to do with. Tell ya what, though -- sometimes it doesn't pay to let too many people know you've got a floor pump. It's okay if they bring their bike over for you to air-up their tires. But sometimes they wanna borrow your pump and take it away with them for awhile. Then you've gotta go through the distress of delineating &putting your foot down about what you'll lend, and not lend. Never lend a chain tool. Especially if it's a beautiful ol' Rivoli with the straightest pin ever lathe-turned. It's okay to lend (what's left of) a Suntour 2-prong freewheel remover, if you've already used it, yourself. cheers, Tom -- Nothing is safe from me. Above address is just a spam midden. I'm really at: tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca |
#7
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Make your neighbor cry and hug you: fix their bike!
Tom Keats wrote: In article . com, "landotter" writes: Tom Keats wrote: In article . com, "landotter" writes: All for a hundred dollar bill. Now I have another neighbor that'll leave the cage at home for the basics, as our local market, hardware store, and dining/drinking establishments are all within a couple miles. You realize, of course, you are the bike's personal caregiver/veterinarian from now on -- unless you're willing to lend tools ;-) Yup, that's always the case isn't it? :-P I don't mind, as it all evens out in the end. Those folks provided me with garden tomatoes, chilis, and herbs all summer--so I'm not complaining. :-D Yeah, neighbourliness is great. Even though sometimes it results in being given more zucchinis than ya know what to do with. Tell ya what, though -- sometimes it doesn't pay to let too many people know you've got a floor pump. It's okay if they bring their bike over for you to air-up their tires. But sometimes they wanna borrow your pump and take it away with them for awhile. Then you've gotta go through the distress of delineating &putting your foot down about what you'll lend, and not lend. My pump does not leave the premises. I went for near twenty years without getting a proper floor pump of my own, and it's going nowhere. I do not miss the beforetime when I thought all a man needed was an hpx and a thumb. I lent my Yakima rack to the next door neighbor. He went and got himself drowned in the Gulf of Mexico the next weekend. Never got my rack back. That'll learn me. Damn you, Nate! Never lend a chain tool. Especially if it's a beautiful ol' Rivoli with the straightest pin ever lathe-turned. I've got two, just in case! I don't lend bike tools, ever. You want something fixed? I'd rather do it than lend out my tools. My electric hedger is another deal, borrow it for a week, have fun. It's okay to lend (what's left of) a Suntour 2-prong freewheel remover, if you've already used it, yourself. I could use one of those actually... |
#8
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Make your neighbor cry and hug you: fix their bike!
In article .com,
"landotter" writes: It's okay to lend (what's left of) a Suntour 2-prong freewheel remover, if you've already used it, yourself. I could use one of those actually... I've got a couple of 'em, but they're kinda nubby. You'll do better with a fresh, square-cornered one. Or two. cheers, Tom -- Nothing is safe from me. Above address is just a spam midden. I'm really at: tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca |
#9
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Make your neighbor cry and hug you: fix their bike!
landotter wrote:
I don't lend bike tools, ever. You want something fixed? I'd rather do it than lend out my tools. My electric hedger is another deal, borrow it for a week, have fun. Nobody around here (Boston) seems to do any landscaping any more -- I feel like an endangered species. It seems like not too long ago people used to fix their own stuff. Now, if a bike breaks, people toss it. Everything has become disposable. One of the great ironies is, with the Internet, we're in some kind of DIY "golden age". Know-how is easy to Google, so are odd parts, and Ebay is like a global flea market. It's nice that you're seen as a hero to your neighbor, and it's nice of you to be so generous with your time and expertise. On the flip side, I built a really nice bike up for my wife - city bike, 26" wheels, slicks, fenders, rack with rear pannier, bar bag, v-brakes, trigger shifters, etc. Perfectly matched to what she wanted - a reliable, no fuss machine for commuting and weekend rides. She always has people telling her how she needs to "upgrade" if she wants to be faster when she goes on club rides. Ditto on my son's bike (we built together), old Raleigh, but with new bar-ends (8s), new wheels, clipless pedals, etc. On a club ride one condescending jerk remarked that he was surprised my son was faster than he, given that he had all the "wrong stuff". On a balmy evening last August, my dog walking neighbor (professor) stopped to chat as I was replacing an exhaust system. He made a sympathetic remark about what a shame it was to be under a car on such a nice day. I flipped my goggles up, took a long pull on my Tecate, and told him this was the perfect thing to be doing, and I meant it! It made me wonder if he had ever fixed anything. Fixing stuff makes me happy, and if I can make someone else happy too, like you did, that's a bonus. |
#10
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Make your neighbor cry and hug you: fix their bike!
landotter wrote: Tom Keats wrote: In article . com, "landotter" writes: Tom Keats wrote: In article . com, "landotter" writes: All for a hundred dollar bill. Now I have another neighbor that'll leave the cage at home for the basics, as our local market, hardware store, and dining/drinking establishments are all within a couple miles. You realize, of course, you are the bike's personal caregiver/veterinarian from now on -- unless you're willing to lend tools ;-) Yup, that's always the case isn't it? :-P I don't mind, as it all evens out in the end. Those folks provided me with garden tomatoes, chilis, and herbs all summer--so I'm not complaining. :-D Yeah, neighbourliness is great. Even though sometimes it results in being given more zucchinis than ya know what to do with. Tell ya what, though -- sometimes it doesn't pay to let too many people know you've got a floor pump. It's okay if they bring their bike over for you to air-up their tires. But sometimes they wanna borrow your pump and take it away with them for awhile. Then you've gotta go through the distress of delineating &putting your foot down about what you'll lend, and not lend. My pump does not leave the premises. I went for near twenty years without getting a proper floor pump of my own, and it's going nowhere. I do not miss the beforetime when I thought all a man needed was an hpx and a thumb. I lent my Yakima rack to the next door neighbor. He went and got himself drowned in the Gulf of Mexico the next weekend. Never got my rack back. That'll learn me. Damn you, Nate! Never lend a chain tool. Especially if it's a beautiful ol' Rivoli with the straightest pin ever lathe-turned. I've got two, just in case! I don't lend bike tools, ever. You want something fixed? I'd rather do it than lend out my tools. My electric hedger is another deal, borrow it for a week, have fun. It's okay to lend (what's left of) a Suntour 2-prong freewheel remover, if you've already used it, yourself. I could use one of those actually... Park Tool FR-2, nicer than the Suntour original. |
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