hello hello
I did post first a couple of weeks ago I think, and meant to introduce myself properly then, but have never got round to it til now, being a bit useless.
So anyways - took up cycling on the laundry-strewn back streets of Hartlepool in the 1970s, inspired by this:
(I love how he laughs it all off when deep down inside he's crying.)
Had a variety of cheapo 2nd hand roadbikes (or racers, as we called them in those days) while growing up – Kalkhoff Concorde, Raleigh Arena, although what I really wanted was a Chopper - even as I cycled easily past them, I would experience a flash of Chopper-envy. Duh. But my dad said they were rubbish - and he was right.
Escaped Hartlepool, and after meandering in other cities for a while, where my falling-apart Arena was mainly used for going to the pub (and back), moved to London, where I cycled, er, regularly – ie. about 10 times in 10 years.
Then moved up to Edinburgh – Portobello - 10 years ago. I was amazed at how much space cyclists got on the road compared to London, so I bought a mountain bike (cheapie from Bike Repair Man) a few months afterwards to commute on. After a while, I decided it didn’t go fast enough, so swapped the tyres for slicks. But, it was still a bit like hard work. So… (I’m sure you know how this story goes.) Now have 2 racers (a black one and a blue/white one) and a sort of cyclo-crossy-roady-hybridy Trek thing (white) which has had much fiddling done to it, and is usually what I use to commute on.
Taught – well, helped - my eldest daughter to ride a bike last year. A few manly tears fell down my cheek as she sped off. Not sure if it was from pride at her newly acquired chops or in my super-fantastic teaching skills (it only took an afternoon-and-a-bit!) - hopefully the former.
I don’t cycle to be green or because it's cheaper than the bus* – these are beneficial side effect obviously, and allow me to be smug in conversations at work – I just do it cos I love it. Even today, into the 95 mph headwinds…
So that's kind of my cycling life. Sorry if I’ve rambled...
PS. Think I have chatted to the poster known as “Anth at Work” on t’road before. Conversation about Crud Road Racer mudguards/Edinburgh Nocturne/his white bike, by the end of which I was worried I sounded like an internet stalker. I probably do even more now. Oh well… (Maybe that should have been in Spotted, but it was a few months ago.)
*Hmmm, not sure about this actually.
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