tire-ing out.

The philosopher and I have been shopping for bikes today. Allllll day. It is not a very fun experience actually. The first store, Revolution Cycles, said decent entry level road bikes would start around $650. The next store on 45th and Roosevelt was a total waste of time. No customer service, no cheap bikes. Gregg's on Greenlake informed us that decent entry-level bikes would run more along the lines of $800. Yikes.

Craigslist has been pretty disappointing overall. A couple of leads but mostly old bikes. The ones that are new and that look pretty good are still selling for $5-6. A lot of money considering I could just get a new one for a little bit more. Hmm...

The pawn shops were worse. Mostly mountain bikes.

There are two really, really crummy parts to this whole bike-hunt. First, I feel like an idiot. I don't know the lingo. I don't know anything about the brands or parts (except for my brief internet research last night). AND, they always want me to get on the bike to check out the fit which is, by far, the most uncomfortable experience. "How does it feel?" "Uncomfortable." "Why?" "Because it feels like you're about to let go of the bike." Yes, I am terrified. I seriously wish I were 6 again and could go for one with ribbons and training wheels without being judged (or worse).

Which brings me to the second really crummy part of the bike-hunt. All of the "moderately" priced bikes are U-G-L-Y. Why doesn't electra make a great road bike that looks like the other road bikes... but, you know, cute?

I really want this bike:



Unfortunately it is a cruiser bike and the philosopher would never let me live it down. Maybe as a gift to myself someday after I face my fears and become a regular biker.

Another cruiser bike from electra I love is this one, voted Best Women's Cruiser Bike for 2009:


The electra road bike equivalent is, I think, "the townie". They're not really road bikes but some are a sort of cross between a road bike and a comfort bike. Some are single speed, others 3, some 7, some 8, some 16, and even a 21 speed model.






Aren't they wonderful?! Electra is known for challenging the hunch-style riding most road bikes require. Unfortunately, that is just one more reason why it is hard to convince L that these bikes are real bikes. (Not that I really know... )

The felt bikes are kind of cute but the road bike versions aren't anything to write home about.

racing in circles

I'm on the hunt for a bike and it absolutely frightens me. True, I enjoyed riding around Onion Creek when I was younger. But the last time I really rode around was about 8 years ago and, in case you don't know, I am the least coordinated person ever. Or at least in Seattle. My some-day mother in law offered me a spare bike to ride around on a few weeks ago to save me the expense of purchasing my own. After three miserable attempts to ride it I realized, happily, that it is a kid's bike. I guess what is sad is that I didn't realize that on my own. Anyhow, the philosopher loves to ride and has been pestering me to get my butt on a bike and head for the open trail with him. This has been going on for a while actually, this desire of his for me to ride. So I am grudgingly, yet a little optimistically, trying to face my fears and take up riding. The bitter-sweet thing about starting this new hobby is it necessitates buying a bike. (Bitter because road bikes are f*ing expensive - even on craigslist I can't find a road bike for less than 150$ and that is for an 80's bike - but sweet if I don't break my nose or my neck riding and have some fun.)