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| I'm told they all have one, you just have to look for it |
With all the pain, frustration, and difficulties that result from getting rear-ended by an SUV while riding your bicycle... there are at least a few benefits worth mentioning (not that I would recommend the "windshield-headbutt to asphalt-faceplant" as a means of acquiring them).
Benefit #1: Teenager Mode
With the majority of the pain (and corresponding pain medication intake) occurring during the night, the mornings end up being a foggy haze reminiscent of the ones too-often awarded to my friends and I during our college years. While a hangover is no fun, whether it results from that party you should have left 3 hours earlier than you did, or some unfortunately-necessary Oxycodone taken at 3am -- it does mean that my alarm clock has been set in the "off" position for a couple months now. It means that I wake up when I can, which sometimes isn't until after I'm already hungry for lunch. I get out of bed, shower (if the wifey is home to assist me), get dressed, and get to work when I'm able to -- completely independent of the location of the hands on the clock hanging on my wall. It seems funny to say, but for a while now and for at least a little longer: I'm back in my Teenager Mode... I get to sleep in.
Benefit #2: Beach Bum
Being part owner of a mechanical engineering firm comes with certain expectations. At project kick-off meetings with building owners, architects, contractors, and the occasional interior designer, it is -- and always has been -- a given that when a mathematical calculation needs to be performed, I will be there -- calculator or slide rule in hand -- ready to immediately provide the correct answer. I am expected to turn in 10-months worth of work in 7 weeks. I am to reduce my fee twice while increasing my scope thrice. And I am expected to wear a short sleeve dress shirt with tie, slightly wrinkled slacks, miss-matched argyle socks, and of course... my pocket protector. Err... I mean, "a" pocket protector.
With the fashion accessory, aka "core brace," that I am required to wear 23.75 hours a day (doctor's orders, reinforced by the wifey), I have needed to hang up the dress shirts and opt for the weekend/vacation t-shirts. Now my clients can learn which rock bands I like, where I like to travel for vacations, and what year I graduated from the U. Additionally, if I am unable to escape the foggy morning haze prior to the wifey leaving for work, I must resign to wearing flip flops on account of my inability to put on socks or tie my shoes. It's almost like I'm back on the beach of Isla Kuanidup off the Caribbean coast of Panama. Almost.
Benefit #3: Captain I.P. Freely
Due to my doctor-ordered requirement to avoid bending over at all while the vertebrate heal, our entire household (at least for the time being) is subscribing to the 24/7-seat-up policy, which I haven't enjoyed for a little over 5 years now. Granted this benefit is likely to be the first one to go because 50% of the household is less than happy with it. And let me be perfectly clear: I am happily married going on a little over 5 years and much prefer the beautiful wifey over saving the 2 seconds lifting a seat any day of the week -- so I'm completely willing to lose this benefit when it comes time. I'll just enjoy it while I can.
Benefit #4: Rebirth
And last but not least, with my rear wheel and frameset sufficiently disassembled into a dozen or so pieces (read: destroyed), I am supremely blessed with the task of obtaining a new bike.
When I started cycling I noticed that I was always "checking out" other people's bikes. Even when driving around town if I saw a cyclist I would look to see what they were riding. At group rides I sometimes have trouble remembering names, but can always remember their bikes. For a while Evan was "the racer with the Fuji," Jason was "that guy with the Roubaix who used to have the Allez," Cody was "the guy with the CAAD who is also into mountain biking," and so on.
I've found myself in the exciting position to start completely over with my road bike; now armed with the knowledge I've acquired over the past year from reading magazine reviews, online forums and articles, friend's opinions, and most importantly -- my own experiences.
It's almost as if I get to choose my new "name" -- almost like choosing a new identity.
So what about you? What are you currently riding? What do you like about your bike? What do you dislike? If you were buying a new bike, what would it be? Feel free to comment below, I definitely appreciate your thoughts.
I'll go first... I had a 2012 Specialized Allez (white). I liked the value of the frameset and the shape of the top tube. I didn't like the color (too hard to keep clean), the material (aluminum being noisy and relatively heavy), the Shimano bottom bracket adapters required for the OSBB (creaked a lot), the headset top cap (too tall and no easy shorter options available), the white handlebar tape (somewhat necessary to match the saddle, but a real pain to keep clean), and a few other "dislikes" that I'll expand on in a near-future blog post.
ReplyDeleteAnother great post man! I especially like that I'm referred to as the "racer" with the Fuji. I'll pay you later. Ok, so it's a 2011 Altamira. Carbon frame and fork with alloy steerer tube. When I was shopping, I was looking at some Scattante's but read in reviews that the Altamira was stiffer and accelerated better. It was also about a pound lighter than the Scattante I was considering. I liked that it had a complete Shimano 105 component set (not the best ever, but I was on a budget). Most of the other bikes in my price range had 105 derailleurs, FSA cranks, and Tiagra shifters - all mixed up. The bike came with an Oval cockpit and wheelset, which I've been happy with. Never felt the need to swap saddles. Unloaded, it weighs around 19lb, which is good enough for me. I'd love to upgrade sometime in the distant future when I have money to throw at bikes instead of diapers, but overall I've been extremely happy with my purchase! Oh, and I also had white handlebar grip, but that didn't last long. Impossible to keep clean and looked disgusting, so switched to black.
ReplyDeleteI like the way my GT fits and feels but as you mentioned I wish it wasn't white. When its brand new white is an awesome color but from a practical point of view I'd rather ride my bike than wash it all the time.
ReplyDeleteHa! Yep, exactly. I enjoyed washing it for the first month after building it.. but after a year I was pretty bad about keeping it clean. Fit is definitely important but since the Allez was my first road bike I can't say much about the fit other than it did feel slightly too big (even though a Specialized size 58cm is supposed to be good for my 5'-11" height). I don't know, I may have felt like the 56cm was too small...
ReplyDeleteThat may come down to a difference in proportion of your upper/lower body compared to the general public. I've found that I need a bigger frame from my legs perspective but this forces me to put on a shorter stem so the reach is correct.
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