Hello there! Today is the Fourth of Joo-lie.
Yes, it's American Independence Day. And it's my birthday. But I can't say I'm a Yankee Doodle Dandy: I was born in Georgia! Then again, it was one of the thirteen colonies that declared independence.
(One thing they never teach in American History classes, at least in the US, is that there were really fifteen colonies. Thirteen seceded. The other two, Quebec and Nova Scotia, didn't. The reality is that they couldn't: Nova Scotia was the North American base for the Royal Navy, and Montreal and Quebec City were essentially garrisons for the Royal Army. But I digress.)
Anyway, on a day like today, what better theme than red-white-and blue bicycles?
Perhaps it's not surprising that red-white and blue bikes come out in the wake of victories by American riders. It seemed that during the reign of Lance, every other Trek model had some sort of variation on the flag that poet Bill Knott referred to as "a starry sweatband of cheese."
All right, it's a Do-Rag. My question is: Will it fit under my helmet?
Back when I was training in Prospect Park, I sometimes rode with a guy who wore a yarmulke under his helmet. And the fringes of his tallit dangled from underneath the hem of his jersey. I also sometimes rode with an observant Jewish woman who carried a skirt in her jersey pocket. As soon as she got off the bike, she pulled the skirt on. Where else but in America, right?
Speaking of Americana: Like baseball, basketball and snowboarding, mountain biking originated in the USA. So, of course I had to include a mountain bike here:
And, of course, the Fourth is not complete without parades and such. And there are always kids on bikes. This one's for them:
Finally, I would be remiss if I didn't end my homage to red, white and blue bicycles on the Fourth without mentioning the web page of someone who has a red, a white and a blue Cannondale.
