Thursday, May 2, 2019

(Parentheses Are The Fenders Of Punctuation)

After Monday's be-jorted ramble I recovered on Tuesday by taking a little detour with the kiddies on the way home from the school pick-up:


The older human child is showing some form, the younger human child is getting the hang of his own pedal bike, and inasmuch the only wisdom I possess is bicycle wisdom it means I've officially taught them everything I know.  So from here on in it's, "I don't have a fucking clue, go ask your mom."

With my work as a parent essentially complete, I headed out for a ride yesterday.  I started out on the paved path:


Left it for the open road:


Took in some old-timey signage:


And then hit the dirt trail for the return trip:


Yes, that's right, in a flagrant display of disregard for my own safety I defied the bicycle industry and rode on a gravel surface with a non-gravel bicycle:


That's my Ritte, by the way.  I've now had this bike for eight (8) years.  The stainless steel has proven to be anything but (in fairness to them, it was a prototype frame):


Nevertheless, it has been more that serviceable, and despite its short-reach brakes it easily accepts a pair of 28mm tires.  Its in this guise that the bike seems happiest, and no matter how I set it up it always seems to find its way back to being my "dirty road" bike.

Of course the Milwaukee also serves that purpose:


But what happens there is that, no matter how I set that up, it always seems to find its way back to being my "fender bike" since it accepts them so easily:


Anyway with the imminent arrival of my new-to-me "forever bike" (more on that when it arrives) I may have to permanently cement the Ritte and the Milwaukee in their respective roles.

As for the remainder of the ride, it was rather enjoyable:


There are certainly more exotic locales than the greater New York City area, but I manage.
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20 comments:

  1. wishiwasmerckxMay 2, 2019 at 8:48 AM

    Podium...

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  2. AnonymousMay 2, 2019 at 8:52 AM

    podiating yo.

    ReplyDelete
  3. huskerdontMay 2, 2019 at 9:34 AM

    Great pics again, with the exception of that closeup of the Ritte. It's gorgeous from afar, but those welds/brazes. I mean, I have refused to buy bikes I would otherwise have purchased because of gunky junky work like that. Why would they finish off an otherwise fine-looking bike with work that looks like the caulking a dodgy contractor did prior to skipping out after the check cleared?

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  4. P. BatemanMay 2, 2019 at 9:54 AM



    :---> - - ()

    i think while parenthesis are the fenders indeed, i think colon with dashes and hat then more dashes aimed at parenthesis are like the shimano 105 of punctuation.

    that milawakee is your niftiest bike. but that is like...just my opinion maaaan.



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  5. AnonymousMay 2, 2019 at 10:49 AM

    I had to show this to some friends that are convinced one must rack the steed and drive to anyplace worth riding. Greats rides are all around, it just takes a little explortaion

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  6. GI JoeMay 2, 2019 at 12:26 PM

    In the first photo, I notice 2 miniature action figures mounted on the handle bars of the Workcycle. They look very life like.

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  7. ChazuMay 2, 2019 at 12:56 PM

    After reading this blog entry, I visited the Ritte website out of genuine curiosity about what they have to offer resurgent Freds with disposable income.

    Their bike sizes max out at 56cm. Now, it is true that Americans are getting shorter (and fatter: https://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/ny-fea-americans-shorter-fatter-national-report-20181220-story.html) ((I'm not going to bother HTML-ing that for your linkway convenience))

    So maybe Ritte is getting ahead of the trend with their sizing selections?

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  8. AnonymousMay 2, 2019 at 2:12 PM

    That riding area and those bicycle byways in your backyard look pretty nice to me!

    Next time I'm visiting the family I'll have to try a few of them.

    ReplyDelete
  9. bad boy of the southMay 2, 2019 at 3:43 PM

    Are my eyes deceiving me or is that the Tarrytown Lakes in photo deuce?
    If not,it sure looks like them.

    ReplyDelete
  10. UnknownMay 2, 2019 at 4:09 PM

    Say, do you still have that wooden thing . . . Renova or something like that . . . ?

    Curiosity killed the cat but not the bike rider. Meanwhile, I'm off on my Calfee bamboo . . . a bit expensive but dammed nice piece of furniture (as it were).

    ReplyDelete
  11. JLRBMay 2, 2019 at 5:23 PM

    You, dear bloggeyman, have too many bikes. I know because I too have too many bikes. It will come in handy when your human children reach your sizeway.

    ...Money for nothing and your bikes for free ...

    ...No money for anything this blog is free ...

    ReplyDelete
  12. SchistheadMay 2, 2019 at 6:43 PM

    huskerdon't:

    Plenty of ugly stuff is awesome, and I hear stainless is a bitch to weld...


    After reading the previous post I'd just point out in addition to your very relvant points, that if they are to use the worst bikes this life has to offer, why not make them look rideable? Level saddle, brake levers in a useful position, fork pointing the right way, etc. goes a long way to reinforce the illusion that the car you totally want to buy and will make you awesome has something useful on it...

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  13. HDEBMay 2, 2019 at 8:48 PM

    Moving through the green tunnel is enjoyable : )

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  14. Beck the bikerMay 2, 2019 at 9:37 PM

    That's some nice terrain. Road bikes with LR brakes are the OG of gravel and pretty close to the holy grail of bikes for a rider with deft handling skills. I will be interesting to see what you've selected as the new bike.

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  15. der blaue ReiterMay 2, 2019 at 11:55 PM

    I was gonna make the same observation as GIJoe above, except i thought it was a single, two-headed figure... I guess what I want to say is, terrific photography as always, Wildcat. (Yes i am just jealous.)

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  16. AnonymousMay 3, 2019 at 5:05 AM

    "Yes, that's right, in a flagrant display of disregard for my own safety I defied the bicycle industry and rode on a gravel surface with a non-gravel bicycle."
    Woohoo! The real Snob must have escaped from the bike industry dungeon they were holding him prisoner in. Question is: who wrote the upcoming Eroica bit - the real or the fake Snob?

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  17. huskerdontMay 3, 2019 at 9:02 AM

    Sure, Schisthead, but I know it can be done:

    https://www.flickr.com/photos/148313779@N04/40235389704/in/dateposted-public/

    The bee on my bike is so happy sitting on the joint he doesn't even know it's there (and doesn't mind the line of crap I've unconscionably allowed to stream down the frame).

    But I do take your point, and of course, for mass-market bikes, brazing or doing a perfect weld adds expense that may not be worth it to some. We draws our lines where we chooses.

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  18. AnonymousMay 3, 2019 at 9:30 AM

    ANON @ 5:05

    Never end a sentence with a preposition.

    You are welcome

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  19. SchistheadMay 3, 2019 at 10:57 AM

    Definitely in agreement, just pointing out us bikey plebes aren't likely to get the best stainless welders when they're in high demand in jobs that pay unusually well.

    Also related: Most of the pretty welds I own were very obviously done by robots.
    Does that suck? Not 100% sure yet.

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  20. Grammar NaziMay 3, 2019 at 1:30 PM

    Anon @ 9:30, another formerly iron-clad rule now often broken intentionally. Quelle horreur.

    Where do you come down on the "nerve-racked" vs. "nerve-wracked" debate?

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