old bikes, new bikes, new old bikes

[Note: if you're not in to bike stuff, there *is* a cute cat video at the end of this post. :-) ]

I don’t think I’ve owned a *new* bike since I was about 6 years old. The bike I rode as a teenager first belonged to my mom. I had several bikes in college too — most bought at thrift stores. In college, actually, I was kind of a “vintage bike-head.”

(That’s me in 2002 with a bike I completely overhauled with new everything, including a custom paint-job. In its previous life, it had been a green Sears Roebuck 5-speed.)

I loved collecting old beat-up road & commuter bikes and fixing them up. I started with a lime green 1974 Schwinn Suburban when I was 18.

I bought the Schwinn from a really scary guy at a gun store – I saw it sitting out back looking sad and it took me a week to get up the nerve to go in there and inquire. I think I paid $75 for it, which was more than I’d ever pay for another used bike. What did I know though? I was a n00b.

I moved through a couple more bikes throughout college and eventually ended up with an early ’70s women’s Raleigh. Then came my favorite bike of all time, a really huuuge 1974 Peugeot.

I still have the green Raleigh and this one. My Peugeot is built for a very tall person. I’m pretty tall (but not that tall). But I loooove this bike mainly because I can see over most vehicles while riding it. It’s so tall. And heavy. And therefore: fast. I rode it my senior year of college, and brought it and the Raleigh with me to Grand Forks in 2005. Unfortunately, Grand Forks isn’t really bike-friendly. Few bike lanes, inconsistent sidewalks, and a population that is simply not used to two-wheeled non-motorized transportation. Not to mention that the ground is covered with ice for half the year. So I’m embarrassed to say I’ve barely ridden my bike in the past 5 years. But when Mr. Nodakademic took an interest in bike-riding, I was game!

He didn’t want a road bike though. He’s more of a mountain bike kind of guy. And through a strange turn of events, someone randomly left one on our front lawn. I left it there for a few days to see if someone would claim it. But after a while, I decided it was mine. My yard, my bike, right?

Unfortunately, it was in a lot worse shape than it had originally looked. It was not an expensive bike to begin with and had not been taken care of at all. Still, I tried. Since we don’t have a used bike parts shop in this town (Eugene, OR had a couple of GREAT ones), I got parts the best way I knew how. I went to the thrift store and bought another bike. But then I noticed that the parts-bike I purchased (for $20) was nice. REALLY nice.

See?

(At least, it’s a whole hell of a lot nicer than the free yard bike.)

I decided to keep it and return the busted up free bike to the streets from which it came:

It was gone 5 minutes later.

Turns out, the blue bike I’d just bought is a decent mountain bike. A little small, but ridable. It didn’t even need new tires or tubes. It was in perfect shape! (I wish I’d taken a photo of it before i washed it. It was totally grimy and not very snazzy-looking at all.)

Mr. Nodakademic rode the blue bike for several weeks, while I rode old Big White. But by this time, my parents had heard that we were getting in to mountain biking. They wanted to find a good home for their bikes (which they no longer use). These arrived on Friday.

These are very very nice bikes. It’s like riding a Mercedes. Hah! They’re about 15 years old, but still in excellent shape.

And my collection has grown.

In the back is the green Raleigh. Then the big Peugeot, and the GT thrift-store bike. And the newest additions!

Now, hopefully we can get a little riding in before winter sets in.

And [the reason this post is tagged with 'tiberius tuesday']: Rusty has a new favorite toy. The best box ever!!