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 Ways to connect: |
n/a
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| Location: |
| Salem, Oregon |  |
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| Club Affiliations: |
ADD Bicycle Theatre
Commuter Cycling Century
Salem Bicycle Club
Team Fred
Team Estrogen
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| Member Since: |
July 2007 |
 5 Year Distance Chart
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| 2024 Miles Traveled: |
0
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| 2024 Rank: |
currently unranked |
| Lifetime Odometer: |
2,760 miles
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History:
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I don't drive, so I have always done most of my commuting, shopping and errands by bicycle. I only took up thinking halfway seriously about speed and distance in the last year or so. Yes, I'm ridiculously healthy, thank you very much.
My first bike was a Schwinn girl's Stingray with blue metal-flake paint and a flowered banana seat. What a sweet bike. Next was a Schwinn World Sport 10-speed, then I rode my mom's 3-speed Schwinn Breeze, which got run over by a Trailways bus...
...with the insurance settlement I got a one-speed Schwinn repro cruiser, which weighed about a million pounds and which I routinely rode on casual 30 mile trips, and an 18-mile round trip commute, up and down some serious hills. That was a sweet bike, but about the time I was thinking it would be nice to have gears, I snapped something off that would need to be welded so I donated the bike to the Center for Appropriate Transport. Blackie was a lucky bike--she was stolen 3 times and I got her back each time, once after almost a year. She served me well for over 10 years. I hope she's having a good 2nd life.
I had a crappy Schwinn "mountain" bike, a Frontier, I think, which got stolen. Good riddance. I also rode my brother's police-auction "Frankenbike", which got me around but whose geometry was all wrong for me.
I finally inquired about a Bianchi that my friend's housemate had *left in the yard* for two years. How often do you get a free Bianchi? After a trip to the LBS for new everything, Bianca has been my faithful, if heavy, steed ever since. The Project-3 was an ur-hybrid, a kind of 29er, and BSGs and real bicyclists often admire her. I've got road bike tires on her. I doubt I'll forsake Bianca anytime soon.
I don't own much in the way of real bike gear, know nothing about components, and hate getting my hands dirty. But I don't let that stop me. Go Team Fred!
If you don't care about aerodynamics, check out http://www.cobbworks.com/ for their "Oyster Bucket" panniers.
My hero: http://www.bta4bikes.org/btablog/2008/03/21/1295/ |
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