(post ride parking and live music)
This is an official LGRAB Summer Games event entry.Sunday was the Newton Bikes, Rally and Ride. My second time joining and riding and basically my only chance at a group ride each year. The other group rides Newton Bikes hold are Monday evenings and are often 7 to 10 miles long. At that time of night I would have to ride with the kids and they'd rather be eating dinner, taking baths and having stories read to them.
I wasn't sure I was going to be able to make the ride. I had church in the morning and it was important sunday to attend as we were in the process of calling a new minister and I had to put my vote in! But as soon as the vote was cast I gathered my kids and threw them back in the bike to bike home. I didn't let up that there was going to be cake or we never would have left.
I biked as fast as I could home and B stuck his head out the door when we arrived. He said he'd make sandwhichs for the kids and quickly handed me a bag full of sunbutter and jelly sandwhichs, pita chips and water for three. We took the bag, waved howdy to our neighbors who were biking back home from playing tennis and kept trucking to city hall for the rally.
Since I had biked to and from church I wasn't sure I felt the need to do the 3 mile ride with everyone, however as soon as we arrived the Mayor said " So let's ride!" and everyone queued up to set out. I followed suit and got near the front of the group determined to not be the last rider returning as I was last year.
The ride itself was good. It was mainly up hill for a lot of it and during the beginning one woman passed me saying " This is going to be hilly, are you ready for that?" I nodded that I was. We passed a few people on some straight a-ways when I stood up and pumped making the bike cruise fast. Tuber would shout with glee and yell " Go Mommy go. Go Faster!". And we'd fly. Of course as soon as we hit an incline all the people we passed would pass us and I'd huff and puff and we'd slowly make it.
The kids watched the bikers and ate their food and chatted with anyone who would chat back. We waved at fence painters who thought we were our own traveling circus. We slowly rolled past some of Newton's most beautiful properties with perfect paint jobs and beautiful landscapes.
I biked next to one woman on a Pashely Sonnet. I called out that I loved her bike. I told her I had given it a test ride and liked it. I waved at all the family bikers who passed by as well. Kids in rear kid seats, front kid seats and trail a bikes all pedaling away. Kids on their own bikes on two wheels as well as with training wheels.
As much as I was determined to not come in last, I pretty much did. Thankfully one of the ride's organizers and fellow bike blogger hung back with me and the father and son team that I paced with. I was pretty much as fast as a kid on a bike with training wheels. But being around some people instead of being mostly alone in the rear with the police crusier on my tail made all the difference. By the time I hit Comm Ave and knew the end was near I was full of pumping energy and zoomed as fast as the sorte will go ahead and on back to city hall.
Once we got back- it was time for ice cream. The biggest downside of being near last? They ran out of spoons. But the kids enjoyed it anyway.
There were a ton of fun bikes out there and I tried to snap some pics of them in between all the chatting I was doing.
These two bikes were together. The kid's bike is all tied dyed and very fun! Mama's bike is sweet too.
Below is the bike of a reader D. Hi D! She talked about buying this bike to ride to work in dresses over ten years ago even though her husband thought it was impractical. D also suggested I take pictures of my outfits with my bike. I've been too shy to do that frequently but I might try it again. D, for real style with bikes- look to the blog list to the left!!
I was wearing a dress to the rally. A lot of people commented on it. I replied that I had come from church even though my church isn't the type one needs to dress up for. I sometimes do just as an excuse to wear something nice. But really I wore a dress because as most of your reading know, riding a bike in a dress is really quite nice. Especially when it's warm.
I got a lot of comments about the Sorte. I realized I end up saying the phrase " It's Danish" so much that last Monday when I said it forthe second time Tuber said " Ugh! I hate when you say Danish". I guess he's tired of it being so strange since it's his everyday life now. A lot of people get excited with they see the sorte though. I wish that there were more options for Americans to get cargo bikes. I've stopped telling people how much the bike cost for fear of turning those excited faces into shocked frowns. Now I say " it was super expensive, but you should totally check out Madsen.com". While I love my sorte and think a two wheeled bakfiet or a nihola are the freaking bomb, I think it takes a while for americans to just go from "hey that looks cool" to dropping several grand on a bike and the madsen is a good way to be serious and still affordable. That's my soap box on that- more later.
I even got to test ride an electric bike. There were several frame types and I choose the foldie mainly because it looked like I would fit it. I rode on flat land and boy was that thing speedy. Almost too speedy. I'd love to try it on a hill but I think I would be scared to ride it in traffic as I really enjoy going slowly.
Happy bike week. Even though every week is bike week around here, unless my kids are sick like last week. Life is good, the more I bike the happier I am. the more I bike with people or get to talk to other biking people, the happier I am. I'm really pretty happy right now.
( Trisha and Dottie- I'm having trouble figuring out how to put your badge on my page. could you help me?)
I'm really ambivalent on the talking about the cost issue. I started with a xtracycle, and I was nervous about the cost (about $500 then for the upgrade), but it totally worked.
ReplyDeleteNow I've got a Big Dummy, build up the way I want it (9-speed IGH, dynamo hub, self-designed regulator for bright LEDs, weird handlebars, track crank for low Q, chaincase from velo-orange, swappable MKS pedals so I can do cleats or clogs in a few seconds), a seriously not-cheap bicycle, and I just don't think I should apologize for the cost AT ALL. It is a great bike. I ride it all the time, I am guessing I will hit 3000 miles this year (hard to say, the bicycle computer has gone wonky, but I know I exceed 50/week every week). It goes on road, it goes off road, it carries loads, it eats potholes for lunch, it hops curbs, it's nimble, it rides no-hands, I can almost track-stand it. I ride it in cleats, I ride it in clogs, I ride it in dress shoes. It doesn't get grease on my pants, it doesn't snag my cuff. I can carry my wife on the bike if I don't feel like shoveling out the car in a snow storm, I can carry my daughter to the edge of the soccer field for her game. For under $3000, you can (mostly) dispense with compromises (I didn't get the Rohloff, le sigh), and dispensing with compromises is something we don't get to do nearly as often as we should.
And I don't think that people appreciate how inexpensive, relative to other expenses, a good bicycle can be. Turns out track bottom brackets don't last that long, I had to replace one after 2500 miles (in hindsight, duh). So, why not Phil Wood? It costs about 6% of the last repair bill on our Toyota Camry. Need a saddle? Why not the appropriate Brooks saddle (in my case, a Flyer)? It costs almost as much as 3 tanks of gas in the Camry. The right handlebars, cost only as much as one tank of gas. My previous bike had cheap Shimano disk brakes, they were ok, but the new bike has Avid BB7s, and they're so much nicer, and last longer, etc.
So, sure, you could maybe suggest a Madsen, Radish, or Yuba Mundo, but it just doesn't cost that much to build up a really nice bicycle, if you don't buy into all the bike industry nonsense (no, you do not need shock absorbers. No, you do not need the latest Octolink crankset. No, you do not need carbon fiber anything. Do not buy a bike for Lance Armstrong, buy a bike for your own lumpy self.) A high-end cargo bike is just a ton of fun.
I sympathize with you (and Tuber) on the problem of unusual bikes-- and I also default to recommending the Madsens. For us, the line is not "it's Danish" but instead "it's custom... my husband built it" which is equally off-putting to most mamas around town who just want to ride with their kids.
ReplyDeleteVee--
ReplyDeleteI can help you with the badge thing since I, too, use Blogspot. Save the LGRAB badge you want to display as a jpg. Then go to "Customize" on your home page at Blogspot & "Edit Layout." Find "Add a Gadget" on your sidebar & scroll down the choices to pick out "add a photo." Then simply upload the LGRAB badge you saved as a picture (jpg). Make sure you "Save Changes" and the badge should be displayed.
I have to admit that I am not crazy about telling others (esp. random people on the street) how much we paid for the Bakfiets. However, I don't regret the purchase AT ALL & likely will buy other expensive bikes in the future. I do end up getting into pretty lengthy discussions about all the cargo bike/family bike choices I know of and try to explain that there are a range of prices....
And Dr and Sara- I was/ have been upfront on the price issue b/c people outright ask me. I also steer them to the website which has it clearly displayed. I don't regret the choice to buy it even though it was quite a lot of money and I do not in any way ave 50 miles a week. or close. I am willing to put more $ into it for a motor if that is workable which would make it more useful for me and more milage... But even if I keep it at the same small milage I use it at now- it has been worth every penny for me. I love my bike more than I can even say.
ReplyDeleteHowever I see people who are excited by family biking and just haven't gotten to the point where they want to spend sev thousand dollars on a bike. And they don't need to. while I haven't ridden a madsen yet I think it's really meeting a need. I have friends who are tempted by this family biking thing and are getting madsens to give it a go. And I think this rocks.
ink and pen- people ALWAYS ask me if I made my bike and that's when I say- no I didn't make it- it's danish and imported from there... I'm not sure which would make people feel better- that it's home made or buyable!!
Love this entry! It's funny how people feel so free to ask you what you paid for something; it happens to me too and I always feel like it's a bit gauche (can't they just ask where you got it and figure it out??)
ReplyDeleteSounds like Sara gave you clear instructions about the badge; drop me an email if it still doesn't work. I haven't used blogger in ages but I'm sure we can figure it out. :) To put it in a specific entry, go to the HTML view and enter [img src="link to lgrab jpg"] with <> in place of the brackets.
Hola, Ms. Vee! Love this story! The one-liners your kids come up with are priceless. The photo of girlpie eating the icecream is, too. That's eco friendly - no need to waste a plastic spoon :) I'm at the point where I carry silverware in my purse everywhere I go, but that's another story. Great jean dress!
ReplyDeleteI agree that for people who are just starting out, a budget option can be more appealing. Not only might they not be prepared to think of a bicycle as something that justifies "that kind of money", but they may also simply be unsure about whether the whole cycling thing will work out.
ReplyDeleteBut one can also look at it another way, and argue that taking the time to research and committing to the expense of a high-quality bicycle is more likely to create dedicated cyclists - both because the experience will be more enjoyable, and because they will feel like they invested more into it.
I can see the sense in getting the Madsen, if it will have a lifespan of just a couple of years for transporting a toddler or young child while they are a transportable age. One might not want to spend $$$$ for a bike that will only be used in the short term. But if one plans to use the bicycle in the longer term - for cargo and future kids, it might not be the best option.
HI there,
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your discomfort when people ask you about the cost. We have ridden a Gazelle cabby 2-wheeled cargobike in Cambridge for about a year now (probably purchased from the same Dan and Maria that you got your Sorte from, I think?), and we love almost everything about it (ease of doing errands without strapping things on, smile on little one's face as she "presides" in it, saving car miles), and have saved some decent gas in the process. Really, it's a second car, and the price we paid is well worth it. But we get stopped all the time with that question, and I'm not used to answering it to strangers.
I love reading your blog from time to time, you capture the joy of cycling with a family. Thank you.
Hi anon in cambridge
ReplyDeleteThanks!!! Yes I did buy the Sorte from Dan and Maria. I now need to take a look at the Gazelle Cabby! Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
V