Was thinking of that commercial: "...and what's in YOUR wallet?"
More like: "...and how many bikes are in YOUR garage?"
Or Elizabeth Barrett Browning (how exquisite is a name like that?): "How do I love thee? Let me count your bikes..."
Do I have too many? I dunno....each has its purpose me thinks:
'06 Bacchetta AERO (Titanium dual 650c wheel recumbent): She's a thoroughbred amongst thoroughbreds. Sleek lines. Fast. Powerful. Able to leap hills in a single bound. She's the bike I ride when I want to go as fast as I can because she knows that's what she was built to do. The AERO is in the garage in West Linn, Oregon.
'06 Bacchetta GIRO20 (20"/26" wheels Recumbent) Whereas the AERO calls for a more "recumbent aggressive" riding position with a very high BB in relation to your hips and a very reclined body back angle to take advantage of aerodynamics, me Giro20 has a more relaxed and upright riding position. I love the position on this type of recumbent configuration the best. Just feels more betterer. The Giro20 is my "when I'm in Miami" bent as she rests in my sister's garage. A tad slower than the AERO but still can flat out fly when necessary.
'98 VRexAcchetta (20/26 Recumbent S&S Coupled My first love bought in 1998 when I got, as they say, bent. She started as a 1998 RANS VRex, a classic recumbent to this day. Getting older, she went "under the knife" so to speak along with doing some cosmetic surgery. Her RANS seat was replaced with a lighter, more appealing Bacchetta EuroMesh. Her handlebars were the "hampster" position. Hampster position? Take your two hands, make fists, and hold them up towards the top of your chest/lower chin. A very closed arm riding position. Bacchetta brought forth some new ways to ride and one of them is the "tweener" bar (your knees actually pump up and down inside the bar so to speak) and your arms are extended akin to Superman flying through the air.
Thus, she became my VRexAcchetta having some of her RANS body parts replaced with Bacchetta body parts.
She's a grand old gal and as I said: "went under the knife". S&S Machine pioneered the use of couplers to cut a frame in half so it could be packed in an airline legal suitcase for traveling. This makes VrexAcchetta my "travel" bike for bike tours. She also became my overseas bike while living in China.
Right now she's tucked snug as a bug in her suitcase awaiting the next adventure. She's found a nice warm spot in the corner of the garage.
'93 Bike Friday SAT R DAY (16" folder recumbent) Bike Friday, located in Eugene, Oregon, is a pioneer in "folding" and "travel" bikes. The SAT R DAY was their recumbent equivalent. This is now a classic as the SAT R DAY is no longer manufactured. Bike Friday tried to keep the model alive with an upgraded dual 20" wheel version akin to the newer line of recumbents, but the market just wasn't there. I can't part with my SAT R DAY. She was my "travel bike" before the VrexAcchetta and got me through qualifying brevets for the 2003 Paris-Brest-Paris, the grand dame of brevets. I remember completing a 200km brevet, coming into the parking lot at the finish. There was a guy on a cell phone talking to somene and I heard him say: "Some guy just did this ride on a tiny wheel bike...incredible"
Now she's good go go now and then but mostly to look at and reminisce
Bike Friday New World Tourist This was bought for my better half. I ended up using it in Shanghai because a DF (diamond frame) type bike just works far better where nible, tight turns, bunny hopp'n, curb stomp'n, stand up and look over cars, get around everywhere is required. And I loved the different feel of being on a DF. Just different.
'08 Bike Friday Family Tandem While my better half enjoys cycling for all the reasons most of us do, she is deathly afraid of riding in traffic and never takes her eyes off the road. So what was she seeing on her BF New World Tourist bike? Nutt'n honey. I got the idea for a tandem and when I proposed it she said: "I dunno if I can give up control to you." I can understand that. Some test ride loops in the parking lot of Bike Friday and then a half hour ride down the bike path had her exclaiming: "Hey..this is fun." Whenever we ride together this will be our mode of transporation. Heckuva lot of fun for geocaching too.
Yeah, I know: I need a mountain bike
And maybe a trike.
I'm thinking of a unicycle too.
LEFT click enlarges photo
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