In the middle of the journey of my life, I am--as always--a woman on a bike. Although I do not know where this road will lead, the way is not lost, for I have arrived here. And I am on my bicycle, again.
Five hours before the vernal equinox, I was pedaling the Randall's Island Connector on my way to work. As the season was almost-but-not-quite Spring (at least officially), it was almost-but-not-quite morning.
If those clouds look more wintry than spring-like, well,that's because they are. According to the weather forecast, the a nor'easter is going to be sprung on us tonight--and leave a few inches, perhaps even a foot, of snow in its wake. I'm so glad I took Dee-Lilah out the other day. She's not seeing any action until the snow and slush clear: I'm not going to muck up that nice, new paint job!
I suppose Bill still falls into the category of "new friend" and "new riding buddy". After all, I've known him only since October. Yesterday he met my latest friend. Now you are going to meet her, too. Here is Dee-Lilah:
Yes, she is the Mercian Vincitore Special I ordered back in May. Actually, she arrived a week ago and Hal, at Bicycle Habitat, assembled her for me. I rode her home that evening. But work, other commitments and lousy weather kept me from riding her again until yesterday. Before meeting up with Bill, I took her for a spin of about 17 kilometers. That whetted my appetite for more time with her.
Our ride took us through a variety of vistas: spires and windows that justify Brooklyn's nickname "The Borough of Churches", neat row houses in western Queens, the nearly suburban abodes to the east, opulent estates that look out onto the bay and ocean from the Five Towns and the more ramshackle places on the way to the boardwalk at Far Rockaway. My ride with Bill spanned about 115 kilometers. So, in all, Dee-Lilah's second ride took me for 130 kilometers, or about 75 miles, of pleasure.
Even with such varied visuals around me, I could hardly keep myself from looking at her. I mean, I still can't help but to marvel at this bottom bracket:
or these lugs:
All right, I know it's a bit presumptuous to say how beautiful one's own bike is. But, on my way to meet up with Bill, a couple of guys were wheeling two pricey mountain bikes with all the latest gadgets off a curb. They stopped themselves, and asked me to stop so they could marvel at my bike.
And, I was about four blocks from my apartment when another guy was getting out of his car and stopped to express his admiration.
It was a bit difficult to stand the bike anywhere, as the day was windy. (It's March, after all!) But I think Bill got some nice shots of the head tube and other features of the bike.
I'll devote another post to more technical details for the bike. For now, I'll just say the bike is very aerodynamic. It must be: I felt like I was flying.
I forget who said, "The best lock is the human eye." That person obviously had no stock in Citadel, Kryptonite, Abus or any other company that makes the things we use to fasten our bikes to lamp posts, parking meters, fences and other immobile objects. That person would have known better: Any security device created by humans can be foiled by humans. (Now, about that wall...) So..what are we to do if we have to leave our bikes on the street and want to find it when we return? Also: How do we protect our beloved machines from the elements? Well, it seems that someone has created a solution from that all-purpose material--duct tape
In New York and other cities around the world, one can find "ghost bikes". They usually look something like this
and are dedicated to cyclists who were struck by motor vehicles at or near the spot where the "ghost" stands. They are indeed solemn reminders of the dangers we face. But why can't we have more monuments to show the joys of riding--or at least the spirit of cyclists
I'll never forget the guy who just couldn't wait to show me the "deal" he got--on Canal Street. For ten dollars, he got himself the watch he always wanted--in gold, no less. That timepiece of his dreams was a "Roxel". Was that name the fruit of a counterfeiter's creativity--or dyslexia? I asked myself the same question when I saw this:
"Shimona" bike parts have been showing up on bikes purchased online--mainly under the "Aspen" brand. The typeface on the disc in the photo is all but indistinguishable from that of Shimano. I wonder how many people didn't catch the "typo." Is the same person responsible for "Roxel" and "Shimona"? Or was the person who came up with the latter name listening to song from a late-70s one-hit wonder. I'm talking, of course, about "My Shimona":
