current state of affairs

So 3 blowouts in one day. I miss my specialized armadillo tires which for almost a year prevented a single blowout. I need to head to the 3 dollar store and get a patch kit. I opened one I got about 3 years ago and the glue had dried to a small gummy ball.

Because of the week without a bike it has been made clear that we are so centrally located in town and the terrain is so steep and hilly that walking seems to be a more viable option. I've decided to take the long way to school though and make my bike more of a passion again instead of an inconvenience.

Auckland spoke card

Tragedy

So usually, when i hear about a cyclist who was hit by a car i think wow, that sucks, because it does. After the initial sorrow i feel for the poor guy/gal i wonder why they got hit. Who's fault was it? Although i blame the driver of the car outright I often find myself wondering if maybe the cyclist was in the wrong place. Big Toph has taught me well that a lot of peeps on the road don't know how to ride with cars and sometimes i should have an open mind. For the most part, though, it really is the cars fault, and in this story http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=5909581 there is no doubt!

Today, i am blown away at how unbelievable some people can be. I mean, a hit-and-run is bad but a hit-get out-check on the critically hurt cyclist-turn around-get back into car-and then run is sick on an entirely new level. What a sad thing.


Be safe fellow rollers

spoke cards

I think that in the spirit of The Holy Rollers we should make our personalized spoke cards available to all. O yeah and here's a Morgan one Toph.

hubba hubba

I just rode out to one of the warfs in the industrial part of town. We saw this huge gear that reminded me of phill woods. Little rusted but still awesome.

Est-ce que tu dis en Français? Peugeot?

As some of you know, my first born turned into a science project here in New York. Observation: My entire frame rusted in about two weeks. Conclusion: There is a lot more moisture in the air in New York than Utah. I wasn't too disappointed considering I was looking for a reason to get a new frame. Rather than wallow in the past, I'll just share pictures of my new ride.

FELT f75

it feels so good...

HELP

Down tubes are red,
chain stays are silver,
so someone thought
that yellow handle bars might be clever.

Not so much in my opinion but roller Katie was inclined to the color choice...i might have to take a rattle car to the rest of the bike. We flopped and chopped the hell out of these bad boys. I love this setup for brakes, I deem it most comfortable of all positionings in the land. Thanks Roller Toph. We did all the work in the bike shop that I've been telling you guys about. They are awesome and basically function as a secret bike collective.

Kiwis are currently devoid of any collectives in NZ but I was hoping that maybe one of the Rollers might be able to point me in the direction of a UK derived collective. New Zealand is a part of the Common Wealth and it would be great to get a hold of someone that could explain the workings of government support for said collective.

You guys have any suggestions for the color combo? I'm not going to show a picture of the bike because It sucks other bikes' balls.

Sincerely, Roller Mike

p.s. I enjoy wrapping bars immensely.

Dreams

I love bicycles. I have recently tried to determine why i love them so much. I'm not sure if it is because it's a hobby i shared with on older brother growing up, giving it sentiment, or if its just the simplicity of a machine that is propelled strictly by my own will. Whatever it is, i love it.

I am finally adding a road bike to my collection this Saturday and, honestly, i have been dreaming about it non-stop, and i truly do mean dreaming (you know, that thing that happens when you go to sleep at night). In this dream i am riding around saying hi to everyone, and then there is a lemonade stand, and then i forget the rest. I have taken this dream to be a vision of my future and i am quite excited...because i also love lemonade.

I have also been completely distracted for the past two weeks looking into what i want to purchase. I sat down at the computer to do homework and the next thing i knew i was cruising around the internets looking at bikes. I am very excited that we are only 4 more full days away.

So wish me luck and pray that the bike swap has some good weed to offer because i will truly cry if this Saturday comes to an end and i have no new bike.

cheers

Yesterday was the "back in action" day for me in terms of riding my bike. I left the winter of SLC which definitely cut down my biking by half but headed into summer over here with no car. Not having a car is great by the way. In the US the leap seemed implausible but here its almost matter of fact.

So most of you know that I used to ride a stiff 56X16 gear ratio. Truth be told TRAX saved my ass from ever having to go up any real hills though. I remember trying to chase down a commeorative ride for Tom before he left on a mission. I climbed up Main St. to the Capitol with a few switch backs that about killed me. Now though the game is changed. Basically there isn't a spot of level ground here in Auckland and I find myself enjoying the new 48X18 ratio. Yesterday I rode all over Auckland, mainly due to a few too many wrong turns, and survived massive non-stop hills only by my new wossy ratio. There's something to be said about swallowing the pride that comes with a huge hard gear ratio.

Roll on Rollers!!!